Virginia History

Virginia has been a fertile seedbed of American history. The rich colonial past of the state - and of the English-speaking U.S. - began in 1607 with the founding of the first English settlement at Jamestown. The first Thanksgiving was held in Virginia in 1619 and, with a bitter irony, 1619 was also the year slavery was introduced in the colonies - in Virginia.

Following are but a few of the many pivotal historic events which took place in Virginia:

• Patrick Henry's impassioned delivery of his "Give me liberty or give me death" speech in Richmond, Virginia is credited with convincing the Virginia House of Burgesses to commit troops to the Revolutionary War.
• Lord Cornwallis' surrender to Washington at Yorktown on October 19, 1781 ended the Revolutionary War.
• More than 2200 battles of the 4000 fought during the Civil War took place on Virginia soil.
• The Civil War ended when, on April 9, 1865, Robert E. Lee surrendered his troops to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House in Virginia.

Virginia also has the distinction of being the birthplace of eight U.S. presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, William Harrison, John Tyler, Zachary Taylor, and Woodrow Wilson.

Virginia Geography

Virginia is considered the most southerly of the Middle Atlantic states and the most northerly of the Southern states. It ranks 35th in size, with a total of 42,774 square miles of land and water surface. In eastern Virginia, four major tidal rivers - the Potomac, the Rappahannock, the York, and the James - dissect its coastal plain and drain into the mighty Chesapeake Bay. To the west, the landscape changes from tidewater to the rolling Piedmont whose western edge borders the Blue Ridge Mountains. West of the Blue Ridge range and east of the Allegheny and Appalachian Plateaus lies the area known as the Ridge and Valley. The best-known of these valleys is the Shenandoah Valley, immortalized in the well-known folksong, "Oh, Shenandoah."

Virginia Economic Information

Because of Virginia's proximity to Washington, D.C., the federal government employs about one fourth of Virginia's workers - more than any other industry in the state. And, indeed, the service sector (which includes business, computer, and data-processing services), constitutes the largest segment of the Virginia economy, producing income equal to that of the manufacturing and retail components combined. Nevertheless, manufacturing in Virginia is a robust part of its economy and includes food processing, transportation equipment, electronic components, chemicals, and lumber and wood products.

Virginia is among the top ten states, nationwide, in both coal mining and agriculture. Its farms excel in the production of tobacco, tomatoes, apples, peanuts, potatoes, poultry, and dairy products.

Virginia Demographics

Much of Virginia's early prosperity as a colony and, subsequently, as the 10th state in the union, rested on a plantation economy. Therefore, nearly half of Virginia's early population consisted of slaves, primarily from west central Africa. In the 20th century, when large numbers of African-Americans migrated to the urban North, Virginia's black population declined to about 20%, with most living in the eastern and southern parts of the state.

People from the British Isles settled in the western mountains and those with German heritage are prevalent in the mountains of the northwestern part of the state and in the Shenandoah Valley. Recent immigrates include Central-American Hispanics, as well as Asians from various countries. At present, Virginia's Vietnamese population is the largest on the east coast.

With a total population of 7,567,465, Virginia ranks 12th in the nation. Census Department statistics indicate that 85.4% of Virginia's population have a high school degree or higher, while 33.2% have Bachelor's degrees or higher, making Virginia 7th in the nation. The median family income of a Virginia family was $65,174 in 2005 dollars, which gives the state the 8th position nationwide.

Virginia Real Estate Information

Virginia is blessed with a wide variety of landscapes, from the salt marshes of the tidelands, to the rich valleys of the interior, to the mountains in the west. Virginia's cities offer a cosmopolitan lifestyle, while her villages and seaside towns are suited to those who seek a quieter setting. Homes range from historic mansions to rustic cabins to trendy condos. The choices are nearly endless and Virginia's robust economy makes for a lively real estate market.

The median value of homes in Virginia is $212,300, versus a median of $167,500 for the country as a whole. This ranks Virginia at 14th in the U.S. The median of selected monthly owner costs for those with a mortgage is $1,411, 16th in the nation.