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History · Fries

A history of Fries,
then and now

Postcards, papers and photographs of Fries from public archives, woven together by decade. Neighbors fill in the gaps.

18old images & papers
1historic places
0recent photos
From Fries’s archive · credits on each photo

The story

from WikipediaRead it all ↗

Fries was named after North Carolina cotton mill owner Colonel Francis Henry Fries. Jim 'Pipe' Carico (of Stephens Creek, Virginia, the nearest incorporated town) contacted Fries in 1900 and proposed Bartlett Falls on New River as a site for a hydroelectric dam that could power a cotton mill.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

built from the dates on the items below
1910s18 items · View of the Washington Mills, Fries V…Commons
1920–1999Nothing yet. Family albums go here.
Help out

Finish Fries’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

1 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewView of the Washington Mills, Fri…, 1910: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Famous people from Fries

See all 2 →
JGJ. Wade GilleyScience & MedicineVMVirginia Hamilton MacQueenWriting & Arts
By decade

Fries, decade by decade

1910s18 items
View of the Washington Mills, Fries Va. Housing conditions are fairly good, but housekeeping not very good. Working ver…CommonsView of the Washington Mills, Fries Va. Housing conditions …1910View of the Washington MillsLOCView of the Washington Mills1910A part of the spinning force working in the Washington Cotton Mills, Fries, Va. Group posed by the overseer. All work. …CommonsA part of the spinning force working in the Washington Cott…1911One of the young doffers in Washington Cotton Mills, Fries, Va., going to dinner. Said he was 15 years old, but it is d…CommonsOne of the young doffers in Washington Cotton Mills, Fries,…1911Some of the doffers in the Washington Cotton Mills, Fries, Va. The smallest one said he was 15 years old but, for that …CommonsSome of the doffers in the Washington Cotton Mills, Fries, …1911Group of adolescent spinners in Washington Cotton MillsLOCGroup of adolescent spinners in Washington Cotton Mills1911One of the youngest spinners in the Washington Cotton MillsLOCOne of the youngest spinners in the Washington Cotton Mills1911One of the young doffers in Washington Cotton MillsLOCOne of the young doffers in Washington Cotton Mills1911View of the Washington Cotton MillsLOCView of the Washington Cotton Mills1911T.J. Fields and family. The father cards, two girls spin, boy on right end picks up bobbins, Washington Cotton MillsLOCT.J. Fields and family. The father cards, two girls spin, b…1911Mill boys' recreation. A Sunday swim. Base-ball on Sunday is tabooed here. Sunday-school and church are well attended. …LOCMill boys' recreation. A Sunday swim. Base-ball on Sunday i…1911Some of the youngsters working in the spinning rooms of the Washington Cotton MillsLOCSome of the youngsters working in the spinning rooms of the…1911Some of the doffers in the Washington Cotton MillsLOCSome of the doffers in the Washington Cotton Mills1911A part of the spinning force working in the Washington Cotton MillsLOCA part of the spinning force working in the Washington Cott…1911A part of the spinning force working in the Washington Cotton MillsLOCA part of the spinning force working in the Washington Cott…1911Sunday morning by the river. All of these boys work in Washington Cotton MillsLOCSunday morning by the river. All of these boys work in Wash…1911Some of the doffers in the Washington Cotton MillsLOCSome of the doffers in the Washington Cotton Mills1911Family of J. J. Moore. All but mother and two smallest children on steps work in Washington Cotton MillsLOCFamily of J. J. Moore. All but mother and two smallest chil…1911
1920s–
1990s
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your album
National Register of Historic Places

1 historic place in Fries

1 place in Fries is on the National Register of Historic Places, the country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

#243
In Virginiaby listings · the typical town has 1
1place listed1 building
0National Historic LandmarksNone here yet
2historic buildings protectedcounting each building in a district
2007first listedFries Boarding Houses

Where they are

Tap a dot for a photo and link. Districts show at their center.
Fries Boarding Houses
Buildings

Architectural styles

From each listing’s National Archives record
Colonial Revival1

When they were listed

The Register began in 1966.
Fries Boarding HousesListed 2007Fries Boarding HousesColonial RevivalTown planningIndustry
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places (05/22/2026) · styles from the National Archives catalog · photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place

Then & now

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as View of the Washington Mills, Fries Va. Housing conditions are fairly good, but housekeeping not very good. Working ver… (1910) and it appears here side by side.

🔁 Retake this view · +15

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Galax📜 Independence📜 Hillsville📜 Sparta

From Wikimedia Commons (4) and the Library of Congress (14). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
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