Woodlawn, Virginia

Woodstock, Virginia

The town was established by charter in March 1761 as a part of what was then Frederick County. It was originally formed by a land grant from Lord Fairfax, and founded as Muellerstadt (Miller Town) in 1752 after founder Jacob Miller. The town's charter was sponsored by George Washington in Virginia's House of Burgesses. Woodstock has been the County Seat of Shenandoah County, since the County's formation in 1772.

In the late 1770s, John Muhlenberg was pastor at a Lutheran church located in the heart of Woodstock. As a famous story of Muhlenberg has it, at conclusion of his farewell sermon on January 21, 1776, Muhlenberg threw off his clerical robes to reveal an officer's uniform beneath and shouted, "there is a time to pray and a time to fight..." With that declaration, the story says he then called for volunteers to join the 8th Virginia Regiment under his command.

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 3,952 people, 1,685 households, and 1,029 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,216.9 people per square mile (469.5/km²). There were 1,840 housing units at an average density of 566.6 per square mile (218.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 91.62% White, 2.73% African American, 0.08% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 4.28% from other races, and 1.09% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.43% of the population.

Wytheville, Virginia

Wytheville (/ˈwɪθvɪl/ WITH-vil) is a town in, and the county seat of, Wythe County, in western Virginia, United States. It is named after George Wythe, a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence, and mentor to Thomas Jefferson and is known as ‘The City of Lights.’ Wytheville's population was 8,211 at the 2010 census.[3] Interstate Highways 77 and 81 were constructed to intersect at the town, long a crossroads for travelers.

During the American Civil War, Wytheville had a strategic importance. It was attacked in 1863 (Toland's Raid) and 1865 (Stoneman's 1865 Raid). The town is the birthplace of Edith Bolling Wilson, second wife of President Woodrow Wilson. The last lynching in Virginia took place here in 1926.

Wythe County was created in 1789 and named for George Wythe, the "father of American Jurisprudence" and signer of the Declaration of Independence. In May 1790, Chris Simmerman donated 90 acres, along with John Davis's 10 acres, to establish a town and county seat. Robert Adams completed a town survey in November of that year, dividing the area into half-acre lots. The town did not have an official name yet, but was generally known as Wythe Court House. [4]

Yorktown, Virginia

Yorktown is a census-designated place (CDP) in York County, Virginia, United States. It is the county seat of York County,[3] one of the eight original shires formed in colonial Virginia in 1682. Yorktown's population was 195 as of the 2010 census, while York County's population was 66,134 in the 2011 census estimate.

The town is most famous as the site of the siege and subsequent surrender of General Charles Cornwallis to General George Washington and the French Fleet during the American Revolutionary War on October 19, 1781. Although the war would last for another year, this British defeat at Yorktown effectively ended the war. Yorktown also figured prominently in the American Civil War (1861–1865), serving as a major port to supply both northern and southern towns, depending upon who held Yorktown at the time.

Today, Yorktown is one of three sites of the Historic Triangle, which also includes Jamestown and Williamsburg as important colonial-era settlements. It is the eastern terminus of the Colonial Parkway connecting these locations. Yorktown is also the eastern terminus of the TransAmerica Trail, a bicycle touring route created by the Adventure Cycling Association.

Virgilina, Virginia

Virgilina is a town in Halifax County, Virginia, United States. The population was 154 at the 2010 census.[3] Virgilina was once a copper mining town. It is named "Virgilina" because it is located on the Virginia and North Carolina border.

Virgilina is located in the southeast corner of Halifax County at 36°32′43″N 78°46′25″W / 36.54528°N 78.77361°W / 36.54528; -78.77361 (36.545244, -78.773720).[4] The town's southern border is the Virginia–North Carolina line. It is approximately 15 miles from Roxboro, North Carolina. Virginia State Routes 96 and 49 intersect at the center of town. VA-96 leads west 7 miles (11 km) to U.S. Route 501 south of Cluster Springs, while VA-49 leads northeast 14 miles (23 km) to Clarksville. Both highway numbers continue into North Carolina: NC 96 leads southeast 20 miles (32 km) to Oxford, North Carolina, while NC 49 runs southwest 17 miles (27 km) to Roxboro, North Carolina.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Virgilina has a total area of 0.62 square miles (1.6 km2), all of it land.[3] The town center sits on a small ridge, with both sides draining to tributaries of Aarons Creek, which flows north to the Dan River, part of the Roanoke River watershed.

Weyers Cave, Virginia

Weyers Cave (/ˈwɪərz/ WEERZ) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Augusta County, Virginia, United States. The population was 2,473 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Staunton–Waynesboro Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Weyers Cave is the site of the first chapter (1927) of the Future Farmers of Virginia, later to become the National FFA Organization. It is also the site of Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport and the main campus of Blue Ridge Community College.

As of the census[5] of 2000, there were 1,225 people, 462 households, and 354 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 185.1 people per square mile (71.4/km²). There were 490 housing units at an average density of 74.1/sq mi (28.6/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 96.73% White, 0.90% African American, 0.08% Asian, 0.98% from other races, and 1.31% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.73% of the population.

Sweet Briar College

Sweet Briar College is a women's liberal arts college in Sweet Briar, Virginia, United States, about 12 miles (19 km) north of Lynchburg. The college is on 3,250 acres (13,152,283 m2) in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, on the former estate of the college's founder, Indiana Fletcher Williams. Sweet Briar was established in 1901 as the Sweet Briar Institute[4] and opened its doors in 1906.[5] The college is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges[6] to award the Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Fine Arts, Bachelor of Science, Master of Arts in Teaching, and Master of Education.[7]

On March 3, 2015, Sweet Briar's board of directors announced that the college would be closing at the end of the summer session, citing "insurmountable financial challenges".[8] In response, a group of concerned alumnae and friends of the college formed a nonprofit organization, Saving Sweet Briar, to reverse the board's decision.[9] Saving Sweet Briar, students, parents and alumnae, faculty and staff, and the local Commonwealth Attorney all filed lawsuits to enjoin the closing, one of which reached the Virginia Supreme Court.[10] On June 20, 2015, the Virginia Attorney General announced a mediation agreement to keep Sweet Briar College open.[11][12] After replacing the board and president, the college rescinded the closing announcement.[13]

The college is named after the former plantation of Elijah Fletcher and his descendants. Fletcher was a 19th-century teacher, businessman and mayor of Lynchburg, Virginia. He married Maria Antoinette Crawford in 1813, and purchased the Sweet Briar plantation property from her aunt and uncle. The plantation was initially known as Locust Ridge; Crawford supposedly renamed it "Sweet Briar" after the roses which grew on the land. Their daughter, Indiana Fletcher, was born in 1828 in Lynchburg.

Virginia Beach, Virginia

Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 437,994.[3] In 2015, the population was estimated to be 452,745.[4] Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous city in Virginia and the 41st most populous city in the nation.[5] Located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, Virginia Beach is included in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. This area, known as "America's First Region", also includes the independent cities of Chesapeake, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Suffolk, as well as other smaller cities, counties, and towns of Hampton Roads.

Virginia Beach is a resort city with miles of beaches and hundreds of hotels, motels, and restaurants along its oceanfront. Every year the city hosts the East Coast Surfing Championships as well as the North American Sand Soccer Championship, a beach soccer tournament. It is also home to several state parks, several long-protected beach areas, three military bases, a number of large corporations, Regent University, International headquarters and site of the television broadcast studios for Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN), Edgar Cayce's Association for Research and Enlightenment, and numerous historic sites. Near the point where the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean meet, Cape Henry was the site of the first landing of the English colonists, who eventually settled in Jamestown, on April 26, 1607.

The city is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as having the longest pleasure beach in the world. It is located at the southern end of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, the longest bridge-tunnel complex in the world.[6]

White Stone, Virginia

White Stone is a town in Lancaster County, Virginia, United States. The population was 352 at the 2010 census. The name "White Stone" refers to the accumulations of white stones in the area's waterways. The stones were dumped there in the colonial era by British ships that dumped their stone ballast to make room for cargo like tobacco to carry back to England.

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 358 people, 163 households, and 101 families residing in the town. The population density was 362.1 people per square mile (139.6/km²). There were 187 housing units at an average density of 189.2 per square mile (72.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 86.31% White, 10.34% African American, 2.23% Asian, 0.28% from other races, and 0.84% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.84% of the population.

There were 163 households out of which 27.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.1% were married couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.0% were non-families. 32.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 22.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.20 and the average family size was 2.73.

Tappahannock, Virginia

Tappahannock is the oldest town in Essex County, Virginia, United States. The population was 2,375 at the 2010 census,[3] up from 2,068 at the 2000 census. Located on the Rappahannock River, Tappahannock is the county seat of Essex County.[4] Its name comes from an Algonquian language word lappihanne (also noted as toppehannock), meaning "Town on the rise and fall of water" or "where the tide ebbs and flows." In 1608 John Smith landed in Tapphannock and fought with the local Rappahannock tribe. After defeating them, he later made peace.[5][6][7][8]

In 1682 a local man, Jacob Hobbs, established a trading post in the now extinct Rappahannock County[9] (in the vicinity of present-day Tappahannock). This area became known as "Hobbs Hole". The town comprised 50 acres (20 ha) divided into half-acre squares.[10] The port was established at Hobbs Hole and called "New Plymouth",[10] later changed back to the Indian name "Tappahannock". As part of the Tobacco Inspection Act of 1730 public warehouses for inspection and exportation of tobacco were established at Hobbs Hole.

Tappahannock is located on the east side of Essex County at 37°55′20″N 76°51′47″W / 37.92222°N 76.86306°W / 37.92222; -76.86306 (37.922180, -76.863158),[13] on the southwest bank of the Rappahannock River.