Historically interesting places
Jamestown
Jamestown was founded as James Fort in Virginia in 1607 and went down in history as the place of settlement – where it all began, the only permanently settled colony on American soil. Unfortunately, there is not much left of the historic Jamestown today, which is mainly associated with the parched British pilgrims who came across the sea with the Mayflower. The remains of the old colonial settlement, which was named after King James I of England, are looked after by the National Park Service and belong to the Colonial National Historical Park.
- Abbreviationfinder.org: Find common acronyms associated with Virginia. Also see top 10 cities by population in Virginia.
- Allcitycodes: Lists of all area codes of Virginia. Also includes state overview and counties by area code in Virginia.
Williamsburg In
1633, Williamsburg was founded as part of Jamestown, which 33 years later became the seat of government. Until the official appointment of Richmond as the center of government and capital in 1788, Williamsburg served as the main seat of the British colony or the later Commonwealth of Virginia. Today there are around 12,000 residents in the city, most of whom live from tourism. In the 18th century, several million were invested in the Colonial Williamsburg project, which served the reconstruction and turned it into a living museum, which is primarily a protected monument and attracts around 1 million visitors behind its colonial facades every year.
The Library of Virginia
The Library of Virginia was officially founded in Richmond in 1823 and is one of the oldest state libraries in the United States. Her collection, including the history of settlements and the Virginia Assembly, is described as so massive that even the best librarian can hardly keep an overview. Its origins go back to the first settlers who collected and archived notes, documents and pictures. Today readings and speeches are held there, educational programs are offered and exhibitions are exhibited. The huge library building is on East Broad Street, 2 blocks from the Virginia State Capitol.
Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon is the former country home of George Washington (1732-1799), the first President of the United States to inherit the colonial-style building from his sister-in-law Anne in 1761. In the following decades it was expanded and rebuilt several times. The entire site covers an area of 3,240 ha = 32.4 km².
The house is located about 20 km south of the White House, the President’s seat of government in Washington on the Potomac River.
Here George Washington, his wife and some family members found their final resting place.
On July 4th – Independence Day – men in old uniforms with cannons marched across the country estate, where immigrants were granted American citizenship in a ceremonial ceremony on the same day
Virginia Civil Rights Memorial in Richmond
The Virginia Civil Rights Memorial in Richmond is a major memorial dedicated to the American civil rights movement. It is located on the Virginia State Capitol grounds and was unveiled in 2008. It consists of 18 statues by relevant civil rights activists such as B. Barbara Rose Johns and Oliver Hill and two significant quotes. It was dedicated to the struggle of segregation in classrooms.
Appomattox Court House
The tiny village of Appomattox Court House was originally built in 1846. Here, in the McLean House on April 9, 1865, the Robert Virginia Lee’s West Virginia Army Surrender was signed. This is the official end of the American civil war. Nowadays, Appomattox County is a large open-air museum that provides information about the role of the former slave states, among other things, and weapons that were used during the civil war.
Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail
The Vermountain Victory National Historic Trail runs through the states of North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. The historical route from 1780 follows the march of the pioneers who crossed the Appalachian Mountains and thus initiated the western expansion of the USA. The trail has a length of approx. 530 km and is therefore one of the long-distance hiking trails. However, the entire trail has not yet been completed as a long-distance hiking trail. The Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail has been part of the National Trails System since 1980.
| Contact | www.nps.gov/ovvi/index.htm |
Special buildings and structures
Pentagon
Directly on the border with Washington DC on the Potomac River in Arlington is the most famous pentagonal office building in the world: the Pentagon – headquarters of the United States Department of Defense. With a floor area of 135,000 m² and a circumference of 280 m, it is the seventh largest building in the world, which is also surrounded by 50 hectares of park and lawn. It was built in 1941 and specially designed so that each point is only about a seven-minute walk from another. In addition to the World Trade Center, the Pentagon was badly damaged in a terrorist attack on September 11, 2001, and over 125 people died in the rooms of the building.
Virginia State Capitol
Since 1788, the Virginia State Capitol in the capital, Richmond, has been the seat of government of the Commonwealth of Virginia (official name of the state). This is where the Virginia General Assembly meets, which has existed since 1619 and is the oldest government in the United States. The State Capitol was designed in 1785 by Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States. At the time, he designed his exterior together with the French architect and painter Charles-Louis Clérisseau, who is considered a pioneer of classicism. The Virginia State Capitol is strongly reminiscent of the Maison Carré, a former Roman temple in Nîmes, France, which was used as a template.
Richmond National Battlefield Park
Richmond National Battlefield Park was founded in 1936 and contains over 30 different historic sites around the city of Richmond, which played a significant role in Virginia during the American Civil War. B. The Shelton House (or Rural Plains), which was built around 1670 and was badly destroyed in the war. The house was declared a national historical site in 1975 and placed under protection. The oldest Civil War war hospital is also located there. Richmond National Battlefield Park receives around 70,000 visitors annually.
Jamestown Church
In addition to many other historic sites, Jamestown is the oldest church in the United States, first built by European immigrants in 1639. The entire construction of Jamestown Church took four years. It and St. Luke’s Church from 1632, not far from it, are among a few buildings from this period that still partially exist today. Jamestown Church is part of the Jamestown National Historic Site, a governmental organization that aims to preserve, protect, and educate the public for the traces of the first English settlers. It can be visited daily.
Virginia – Geographic Information Center
Offers a collection of geographic, economic, and demographic digital maps. Includes poverty distribution maps for the state.
Website: http://www.lib.virginia.edu/gic/maps/maps.statewide.html
Virginia – University of Texas Library
Tour the state as well as its points of interest with maps of Appomattox Court House National Park, Richmond Battlefield and Arlington House.
Website: http://www.lib.utexas.edu/Libs/PCL/Map_collection/virginia.h
Virginia – US Census Bureau Map
Map separated into counties provides details on each county, such as population estimates, an economic census and county profiles.
Website: http://www.census.gov/datamap/www/51.html
