Norfolk Virginia History

The Chesipean Indians occupied the land where Norfolk is located today on the Elizabeth River near Chesapeake Bay. They ceased to exist by the time the first English settlers arrived in 1585 on Roanoke Island in North Carolina (a settlement which also disappeared in 1591). Norfolk was a planned city, laid out in 1682 (and became an independent city from Norfolk County in 1871). In 1776, the British royal governor of Virginia, in an attempt to quell the rebellion of the American colony, shelled the city and destroyed over 800 buildings. He ultimately failed to regain control of Virginia and went back to England. In 1855, a yellow fever epidemic ravaged Norfolk; one out of every three citizens died. The Norfolk and Petersburg Railroad was completed in 1858 which allowed for major connections to points north, west and south. During the Civil War in 1862, the battle between the Monitor and the Merrimac ironclad ships fought in the Battle of Hampton Roads off Norfolk. In 1917 the US Naval Base was established in Norfolk because of the area’s strategic location, deep-water bay, and ocean access. In the 1970s, urban renewal brought much-needed visitor and cultural attractions and commercial development, such as Waterside, which transformed a seedy harbor area into a festive marketplace with restaurants and artistic venues.