Virginia: A Historical Timeline

PRIOR TO 1584 PRE-EUROPEAN SETTLEMENT
	The geographic region now known as Virginia is inhabited for at least 3,000 years by groups of Native Americans, including the Algonquin, the Iroquoian, and the Siouan. Much of eastern Virginia is inhabited by the Powhatan Confederacy, which is largely destroyed by European settlers by 1646.
1584–1606 EARLY EUROPEAN EXPLORATION
1584	Sir Walter Raleigh sends explorers along the North Carolina coast, and they return with stories of a ruler named "Wingina." This is modified by Queen Elizabeth I to "Virginia" (which may also have referred to her status as "the Virgin Queen"). Today, Virginia is the oldest surviving English place name in the U.S. not wholly borrowed from a Native American word. (July) Philip Amadas and Arthur Barlowe reach Roanoke Island. They return to England in September.
1585	Sir Walter Raleigh finances and organizes two attempts to establish a permanent English settlement on Roanoke Island. The first fleet of 108 men arrives in June. The final "Lost Colony" of Roanoke disappears after three years without supplies from England.
1602	Sir Walter Raleigh sends Samuel Mace on a voyage to Virginia to gather plant materials and search for the lost colony.
1606	(April 10) The formation of the Virginia Company. King James I charters a pair of English joint stock companies to establish colonies on the coasts of North America.
1607–1699 JAMESTOWN COLONY
1607	(April 26) After 144 days at sea, 104 English colonists arrive at the Chesapeake Bay on April 26. (May) The colonists establish Jamestown, naming it after King James I.
1610	(June) Conflicts between Jamestown and the Powhatan Confederacy lead to the first Anglo-Powhatan War. It lasts until 1614.
1611	John Rolfe imports tobacco seeds (Nicotiana tabacum) from Trinidad.
1612	Virginia colony begins exporting tobacco to England. Tobacco will soon become Virginia’s first successful industry (one that requires more and more land from Native Americans) and by far its most important crop.
1614	(April 5) The First Anglo-Powhatan War ends with the marriage of tobacco planter John Rolfe to the chief Powhatan’s daughter, Pocahontas.
1619	The Virginia Company sends 90 single women from England to marry male colonists and help populate the settlement. The first Africans are brought to the colony to help grow the tobacco industry. While treated as indentured servants, this marks the beginning of slavery in America. The first meeting of the House of Burgesses, the legislative assembly of the Virginia Colony, is held in Jamestown.
1622	The Powhatan massacre 350 of the Jamestown colonists in an attempt to force the settlement to leave. In return, the English military makes assaults on Powhatan settlements every summer for the next ten years.
1624	The Virginia Company’s charter is revoked and Virginia becomes the first Crown colony.
1644	The second Anglo-Powhatan War represents the last effort of the Powhatan to force the Virginia Colony to leave. Upwards of 500 colonists are killed (or approximately one-tenth the colony).
1646	The Treaty of 1646 dissolves the Powhatan Confederacy and gives European settlers exclusive rights to land between the York and Blackwater Rivers.
1654	The second Anglo-Powhatan War represents the last effort of the Powhatan to force the Virginia Colony to leave. Upwards of 500 colonists are killed (or approximately one-tenth the colony).
1646	The Treaty of 1646 dissolves the Powhatan Confederacy and gives European settlers exclusive rights to land between the York and Blackwater Rivers.
1654	John Castor, a servant of African origin, becomes the first legally recognized slave in the U.S. when Northampton County declares him "property for life."
1656	Elizabeth Key Grinstead becomes the first woman of African ancestry in North America to sue for her freedom from slavery and win, due to the fact that her father was a white Englishman and she had been baptized Christian. In response, the House of Burgesses passes a law in 1662 mandating that children born in the colony take the status of their mothers to ensure that mixed-race children remain slaves.
1676	Bacon’s Rebellion. Wealthy planter Nathaniel Bacon leads an uprising in protest of Native American raids on the frontier and Governor Berkeley’s refusal to retaliate. (July 30) Bacon and his followers issue a Declaration of the People of Virginia to demand that Native Americans be killed or removed. (September 19) Bacon and his men burn Jamestown. (October 26) Bacon dies of dysentery and Berkeley successfully represses his followers.
1691	The House of Burgesses abolishes Native American slavery. However, many Native Americans continue working under slave-like conditions well into the 18th century.
1693	College of William and Mary is established. Founded by a Royal Charter issued by King William III and Queen Mary II of England, it is today the second oldest higher education institution in the U.S. Presidents James Monroe, Thomas Jefferson, and John Tyler are educated here. The College also founds the Phi Beta Kappa academic honor society in 1776.
1699	The capital of the Virginia colony and the College of William and Mary are moved to Middle Plantation, which is renamed Williamsburg in honor of King William III.
1699–1775 PRE-REVOLUTIONARY ERA
1705	Virginia Slave Codes define slaves as those people imported from nations that are not Christian, as well as Native Americans sold to colonists by other Native Americans.
1715	Bruton Parish Church is erected. Over the next century, its congregation will boast George Washington, James Madison, Patrick Henry, and Thomas Jefferson.
1722	The Virginia government now allows families to live rent-free for 10 years on land owned by the state. The Iroquois surrender land south of the Ohio River and counties in the east panhandle.
1732	Scottish, Irish, Welsh, and German pioneers settle the western area of Virginia.
1744	Indians of the Sixth Nation surrender territory to England.
1756	The French and Indian War begins. Ultimately France concedes all French territory east of the Mississippi River, except New Orleans, to England.
1761	Robert Harper establishes a ferry to begin taking passengers across the Shenandoah River. The area becomes a starting point for settlers moving west and would later be renamed Harpers Ferry.
1765	Patrick Henry opposes the Stamp Act in the House of Burgesses, and the legislature passes the "Virginia Resolves" opposing the tax.
1766	(February 8) Northampton County court overturns the Stamp Act.
1769	The House of Burgesses meets in the Raleigh Tavern in Williamsburg and agrees to ban British imports.
1774	(June 1) The Burgesses approves a day of "Fasting, Humiliation, and Prayer" to show solidarity with Massachusetts following the close of the Boston port by England. (August 1) The first Virginia commences. Over the next five days, delegates approve a boycott of British goods, show solidarity with Massachusetts, and elect delegates to the Continental Congress.
1776–1783 REVOLUTIONARY VIRGINIA
1776	Virginia adopts its first constitution and declares independence. The legislature chooses Patrick Henry as the first governor.
1779	Virginia extends its southern border with North Carolina westward.
1780	Governor Thomas Jefferson establishes Richmond as the first capital of the United States, fearing Williamsburg is vulnerable to the British. Three thousand British troops invade Chesapeake Bay. One thousand of them wage an attack on Richmond.
1781	(September 5) The British navy is defeated at the Battle of the Virginia Capes. (October 19) General Cornwallis surrenders to General George Washington on at Yorktown, ending the armed struggle of the American Revolution.
1784–1859 POST-REVOLUTIONARY VIRGINIA
1784	Virginia relinquishes claims to the Northwest Territory, consisting of the modern-day Midwest and Great Lakes region.
1788	(June 25) Virginia ratifies the U.S. Constitution and becomes the 10th state.
1790	Virginia cedes territory and the District of Columbia is formed.
1791	(December 15) Virginia becomes the 11th state to ratify the Bill of Rights.
1790–1800	The number of free African-Americans increases in Virginia from 13,000 in 1790 to 20,000 in 1800.
1800	Gabriel’s Rebellion. Gabriel Prosser, a literate enslaved blacksmith, leads a large slave rebellion in Richmond. Gabriel and the 26 slaves who participate are eventually hanged.
1815	(March 6) George Boxley, a white abolitionist, tries to coordinate a slave rebellion in Spotsylvania. He plans to take over Richmond and Fredericksburg, but his plan is discovered. Boxley flees to Ohio and Indiana and is never caught.
1831	(August) Nat Turner leads a slave revolt in Southampton County. Rebel slaves kill approximately 55 white people, resulting in the highest number of fatalities caused by a slave uprising in the South. In the aftermath, at least 100 African-American slaves are killed. Turner is later tried, convicted, and hanged in Jerusalem, Virginia.
1859–1899 THE CIVIL WAR AND RECONSTRUCTION ERAS
1859	John Brown raids the federal armory in Harpers Ferry in an attempt to start a liberation movement among enslaved African Americans. This sets in motion events that directly lead to the Civil War.
1861	(April 17) Virginia secedes from the Union and joins the Confederacy. (May 29) The Confederate capital is moved from Montgomery, Alabama to Richmond, Virginia. (July 21) The First Battle of Manassas (or First Battle of Bull Run) is fought near Manassas. It is the first major land battle of the Civil War. Union troops occupy Arlington Heights and Alexandria.
1863	West Virginia is formed from Virginia. It is the only state in the Union to secede from a Confederate state during the Civil War.
1865	(April 1) Union forces comprised many of African-American troops capture Richmond, the Confederate capital, after the Battle of Five Forks. Richmond is burned by a retreating Confederate Army (April 9) Confederate general Robert E. Lee surrenders at Appomattox Court House in Virginia.
1867	Valuable coal deposits are found in Virginia. Along with tobacco, coal will become one of Virginia’s top exports.
1870	(January 26) Virginia formally rejoins the Union. A debate as to who is the legitimate mayor of Richmond attracts a large crowd to the second floor room in the capital. The floor collapses from the weight of the crowd, killing 62 and injuring 151. The case is resolved with the election of Anthony Michael Keily in 1871. The Virginia Constitution provides for racially segregated public schools.
1883	John Mercer Langston, a Republican from Petersburg, is the first African-American elected to Congress from Virginia.
1900–1929 EARLY 20TH CENTURY
1901	Virginia begins passing Jim Crowe laws for racial segregation.
1902	Statutes in the Constitution of 1902 reduce voter registration to the point that the African-American voter turnout for the 1904 presidential election is zero.
1903	Maggie Lena Walker opens the St. Luke Penny Savings Bank specifically for African-Americans.
1920	(February 12) Virginia rejects ratification of the 19th Amendment, which would give women the right to vote.
1929–1949 THE GREAT DEPRESSION AND WORLD WAR II
1936	Richmond Flood. Over March 17-18, successive rains led to flooding of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers. The James River rose 26.5 feet, flooding the industrial and commercial sections of Richmond. 150-200 lives were lost, and the flooding cost millions in damages.
1939-40	Aline Black and Melvin Alston, teachers at Norfolk’s only African-American high school, go to court to fight for equal pay for African-American teachers. At the time, the white janitor earns more than any teacher at the school. Black loses her teaching position, but eventually the court grants equal salaries to African-Americans in October 1940.
1941–43	The Pentagon is built in Arlington to consolidate 17 War Department buildings. The cost is $83 Million. It is the world’s largest office building by floor area.
1941–48	African-American parents and students fight for busing, equal facilities, and equal curriculum.
1950–PRESENT MODERN-DAY VIRGINIA
1950	School desegregation begins in Virginia. The first African-American student attends law school at the University of Virginia.
1952	(February 21) Virginia becomes the 41st state to ratify the 19th amendment, officially granting women the right to vote.
1958	Even though segregation was declared unconstitutional four years prior, the Virginia government decrees it won’t fund any integrated schools.
1959	Schools in Norfolk and Charlottesville are desegregated, but Prince Edward county closes its schools rather than desegregate.
1962	Washington Dulles Airport is opened in Dulles.
1964	The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel opens, connecting Virginia Beach to Cape Charles.
1965	Charles C. Green v. County School Board of New Kent County, Virginia is filed to force Virginia to comply with desegregation laws.
1981	(December 28) The first American "test tube baby," Elizabeth Jordan Carr, is born in Norfolk.
1990	(January 13) L. Douglas Wilder becomes the first African-American elected governor of a U.S. state since Reconstruction when he becomes Governor of Virginia.
1993	Eighteen tornadoes strike southeast Virginia over four hours, killing four people, injuring 259 people and incurring $52.5 million in damages.
2001	Winsome Sears, an African-American Republican, becomes the first woman veteran and first foreign-born woman to be elected to the State House of Delegates. (September 11) Virginia is targeted by the 9/11 attacks when an aircraft crashes into the western side of the Pentagon in Arlington County, killing 189 people.
2006	Governor Mark Warner becomes the first governor to appear in a video game when he gives a speech and interview in the multiplayer online game "Second Life."
2007	Thirty-three Virginia Tech students are murdered by a fellow student in an on-campus shooting spree.
2008	Virginia is the first state to pass legislation on Internet safety with mandatory educational courses for 11- to 16-year-olds.