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- By Chez Oxendine
- Real Estate
A stretch of land along one of America’s most endangered rivers has been acquired by the Rappahannock Tribe in Richmond County, Va.
The tribe announced Thursday that it has acquired 969 acres of ancestral land at Fones Cliffs on the eastern side of the Rappahannock River. The announcement comes as the river has been named the seventh most endangered river in the country by conservation nonprofit American Rivers.
The acquisition is the result of collaborative efforts among the tribe, The Conservation Fund (TCF) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). The land is now co-stewarded with the Rappahannock River Valley National Wildlife Refuge. Terms of the acquisition include conservation easements that will prevent future development of the acreage.
The area’s biodiversity played a role in its importance to conservation groups and the tribe, according to a Conservation Fund statement. Fones Cliffs is home to one of the largest concentrations of nesting bald eagles on the Atlantic Coast, as well as a range of migratory birds. As such, Rappahannock Chief Anne Richardson called the acquisition “an incredible accomplishment.”
“This is the answer to the prayers of many generations to be returned to the lands of our fathers,” Richardson said. “Now this land will be preserved for our tribe forever and we will be able to return and commune with the land to heal the brokenness of our people.”
The Conservation Fund initially purchased the Fones Cliffs acreage in 2022. The organization won the land with an $8.1 million bid during a bankruptcy proceeding. The proceeding followed an attempt by developer Virginia True Corporation to build a resort and second home community in the area. That attempt was halted — and the company eventually bankrupted — by a failure to secure permits for early work on the project.
Following the auction, the Conservation Fund worked with the Fish and WildlifeSErvice and the tribe to conserve the property permanently. The federal agency secured a conservation easement using federal funds from the Land and Water Conservation Fund. The Virginia Board of Historic Resources will also hold an additional easement to protect the site’s cultural and forest resources.
“Returning this land to the care and stewardship of the Rappahannock Tribe is an emotional and important action – for the river, the land and for the Rappahannock people,” said Heather Richards, The Conservation Fund’s vice president and mid-Atlantic regional director. “It has been an honor to work with the Tribe to achieve this momentous accomplishment.”
This acquisition is the second major rematriation effort at Fones Cliffs in recent years. In April 2022, the tribe reclaimed 465 acres of sacred land at the site, which is historically linked to three recorded villages and early encounters with European settlers, such as an early skirmish with colonist Captain John Smith.
The newly acquired acreage presents fresh opportunities for the tribe to expand its Return to the River program, which trains tribal youth in traditional river knowledge and practices. The tribe also has plans to create hiking trails where visitors can learn about plants and animals native to the area while immersing themselves in Rappahannock history.
