Statehood 1788

Virginia

The written history of Virginia begins with Spanish explorers in the 16th century, after which English colonization began in 1607 with Jamestown, founded by the Virginia Company chartered by King James I. In 1624, the Virginia Company's charter was revoked and Virginia became a royal crown colony under British authority. After declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1775, the Virginia Colony became the Commonwealth of Virginia, and Virginia was the tenth state to ratify the U.S. Constitution on June 25, 1788.

Statehood
1788
Admitted as
Commonwealth of Virginia
Historic sites
3,461
Military engagements
2,800

Pre-contact era

Before European contact, Virginia was occupied chiefly by Algonquian, Iroquoian, and Siouan peoples. The Jamestown settlement occupied land belonging to the Powhatan Confederacy. Warfare with the Virginia Indian nations had been an ongoing factor during the 17th century.

Colonial history

Spanish presence was exploratory documentation only; no sustained Spanish colonial settlement in Virginia is described in the source text.

The Virginia Company was an English trading company chartered by King James I on 10 April 1606. The company failed in 1624 following the widespread destruction of the Great Massacre of 1622 by indigenous peoples in the colony.

The Colony of Virginia was a British colonial settlement in North America from 1606 to 1776. After the English Civil War in the 1640s and 1650s, the Virginia colony was nicknamed 'The Old Dominion' by King Charles II. From 1619 to 1775/1776, the colonial legislature was the General Assembly. Jamestown remained the capital until 1699; from 1699 until dissolution, the capital was in Williamsburg.

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The Land
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Geology
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LiDAR Terrain
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Conflict & War
The battles, raids and skirmishes fought near here, across every era of American conflict.
The Civil War
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The Soldiers
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Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
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The Community
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Rivers & Rail
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Notable People
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Historical Maps
Historic maps of the location layered over how it looks today.
Finds & Access
Museum objects tied to the area, and the laws on searching, collecting and access here.
Literature
The old books, county histories and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Spotlight
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Explore Virginia records

3,461
National Register historic sites
National Register listings ›
2,800
Military engagements
Military history records ›
1
Civil War regiments
Union, Confederate, USCT ›
36
Indigenous groups
Heritage records ›
15
Notable figures
Born in Virginia ›
148
Colonial-era events
1492 to early statehood ›
Virginia counties
Census population history ›
Sources

State history content adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Historic sites data: National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

About Virginia

When did Virginia become a state?
Virginia was admitted to the Union in 1788 as the Commonwealth of Virginia.
What European powers colonized Virginia?
The territory that became Virginia passed through several colonial periods. Spanish presence was exploratory documentation only; no sustained Spanish colonial settlement in Virginia is described in the source text. The Virginia Company was an English trading company chartered by King James I on 10 April 1606. The company failed in 1624 following the widespread destruction of the Great Massacre of 1622 by indigenous peoples in the colony. The Colony of Virginia was a Briti
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