by John Caknipe Jr. (Author)

Clarksville, Virginia's only lakeside town, is part of Western Mecklenburg County. It was the county's first incorporated town and was named for its founder, Clarke Royster. The area gained its fame when William Byrd II surveyed Buffalo Springs in 1726 and dubbed the waters "the water that Adam drank." The town was originally home to the Occoneechee Indians, who were driven from the area 50 years earlier when Nathaniel Bacon fought his last battle at Fort Occoneechee, massacring over 300 members of the tribe. This battle became his legacy. Today tourists are drawn to the area for annual fishing tournaments and lake activities.