The Maury River formed a portion of an all-water route from the Atlantic ports of Virginia to Lexington from the late 18th to the late 19th century, primarily carrying passengers, pig iron, and agricultural products. Connected to the James River and Kanawha Canal at Glasgow, a series of canals, locks and dams allowed merchant and passenger James River bateaux to travel the shallow, rocky river. The first canal boat reached Lexington in 1860. The era of the canal ended fairly quickly along the river, as the Richmond and Alleghany Railroad and later Shenandoah Valley Railroad both built rail lines along major portions of the river which offered faster and easier transportation. Numerous artifacts remain from the canal days including several lock and dam ruins. The lock at Ben Salem Wayside between Buena Vista and Interstate 81 on U.S. Route 60 is well preserved in a park setting. At least two dams from the canal era remain and impound water, Moomaw's Lock and Dam below the US 60 bridge in Buena Vista, and the Lexington Mills Dam at Jordan's Point in Lexington which formed the end of canal boat navigation. Several other lock and dam ruins, some almost complete dams, are visible along the river from the Chessie Nature Trail. The Gooseneck Dam downstream of Buena Vista is notable for being featured in a photograph by acclaimed 1950s railroad photographer O. Winston Link. The Maury River was called "a branch of the North River" before the name was changed within the past few decades. The United States Board on Geographic Names settled on "Maury River" as the stream's name in 1968. According to the Geographic Names Information System, the stream has also been known historically as the "North River" and "Calfpasture River". It is named in honor of Commodore Matthew Fontaine Maury, and it travels past Lexington's Washington and Lee University and Virginia Military Institute, where Commodore Maury worked in his last years. There is a memorial tablet in stone to the commodore at Goshen Pass.
Floods
The Maury River has a history of destructive floods damaging nearby communities. Particularly notable were floods on October 12, 1870, on the death of Robert E. Lee, when the Maury River provided Lee a temporary coffin due to a dock washed away upriver; and in 1936, 1969, 1985 and 1995. The Flood of '69 was the result of rainfall from the inland movement of Hurricane Camille. The Flood of '85 resulted from the convergence of three systems, including Hurricane Juan, which dumped tremendous amounts of rain on western Virginia. The flood of record for the lower Maury River including Buena Vista and Glasgow occurred on August 20, 1969, at a stage of on the Buena Vista gauge to Lexington were destroyed along much of the route. Instead of rebuilding the line to Lexington, the C&O Railroad restored the tracks from Loch Laird through Buena Vista to serve several industrial customers. On September 1, 1970, the Interstate Commerce Commission granted the C&O permission to abandon the remainder of the Lexington branch. The C&O tracks end at Georgia Bonded Fibers below the US 60 bridge over the Maury River. The remaining rail bed was converted to public use as an early example of rails to trails, becoming the Chessie Nature Trail. The James C. Olin Flood Control Project was completed in 1997 to reduce the potential for damage from flooding of the Maury River and inland streams in Buena Vista.
Recreation
The Chessie Nature Trail parallels the river to form a linear park between Buena Vista and Lexington. The rail trail winds through scenic mixed hardwood forests and open pastures along the river. Other notable parks along the river include Goshen Pass, Jordan's Point in Lexington, Ben Salem Wayside, and Glenn Maury Park in Buena Vista. State-owned public lands along the river include the Goshen and Little North Mountain Wildlife Management Area and the Goshen Pass Natural Area Preserve. The river is enjoyed by residents and visitors through swimming, fishing, canoeing, kayaking, and floating downstream in inner tubes. The river is largely wide and shallow, typically less than deep with occasional deep holes. The upper portion of the river includes class II, III and IV rapids. Below Jordan's Point in Lexington, the river is mainly a float trip with Class I and II rapids to the James River at Glasgow. Electric or gasoline-powered boats are rarely used beyond a few areas of slack water upstream of dams.
