Virginia and other Virginia, VA General Tips

Favorite Thing: When we get to Smith Point on our boat, we know we have rounded the corner into Virginia. The Potomac River, up to the Virginia shore actually belongs to Maryland.

Under Things To Do in Virginia, I've made a separate tip for my pages in the Hampton Roads area (Norfolk)

These are the less traveled, scattered locations in Virginia when I have pages.

Individual locations- in alphabetical order: [1st number is tips, 2nd is photos and 3rd is travelogue/narratives]

Ashland 3 11 0

Bloxoms Corner 2 5 0 which is about the Salt Ponds area near Hampton.

Bowling Green 0 2 0

Chantilly 1 4 0

Charlottesville 2 32 1

Coles Point 4 11 0 across the Potomac.

Culpepper 0 1 0

Dahlgren 0 1 0

Deltaville 20 49 4 We've come here twice by boat

Fairport 4 19 1

Fleeton 3 34 2

Fredericksburg 5 16 0

Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County Battlefields Memorial National Military Park 5 28 0

Goucester 5 9 0 (on the way to Yorktown)

Gloucester Point 4 6 0 via Sarah Creek off the York River (opposite Yorktown)

Fondest Memory: Gwynn Island 5 9 0 between the Piankatank and the Chesapeake.

Hayes 2 11 1 (by boat)

Kilmarnock 8 45 3 First stop on the trip south in 2001 and last stop in 2004 on the way home.

Lexington 3 26 1

Lexington 2 11 incorrect for most tips)

Mabry Mill 1 1 0

Onancock 22 74 1

Orange 1 6 0

Perrin 1 4 0 We took refuge here from a bad storm in 2001

Poquoson Shores 1 4 0 - we anchored in the Poquoson River.

Port Royal 3 12 0

Reedville 51 178 5 Anchored in the Great Wicomico River three times and visited the town twice by boat.

Richmond 9 25 0 1997 business trip

Smithfield 20 35 1

Stingray Point 0 3 0

Tangier Island 57 142 5

Tappahannock 4 15 0

West Point 5 8 0

White Stone 6 10 1 (Windmill Point Resort)

Wilderness 4 24 0

Winchester 0 2 0

and Yorktown 7 56 5

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Favorite Thing: The regular license plates in Virginia have the dates 1607 and 2007. The 1607 date is for the Jamestown colony, and Virginia is gearing up to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the founding of the United States.

The 1807 Jubilee at Jamestown was a five-day event hosted by citizens of Norfolk, Portsmouth, Petersburg, Williamsburg, and many other outlying communities. Visitors, including many Revolutionary War veterans, came from everywhere and there was a regatta of sailing vessels.

At Jamestown Anniversary of 1857, highlights included a flotilla, a military parade that included 16 militia companies, and an oration by former President John Tyler. The celebration concluded with a dinner, a Grand Ball and fireworks.

The 1907 Ter-Centennial Exposition was held at what is now the Norfolk Naval Base. "Some called it a world’s fair, other a great international naval, industrial and marine exposition of American Imperialism." 21 states funded houses, which bore their names: Pennsylvania House, Virginia House, New Hampshire House, North Carolina House, etc. Thirteen of the state houses can still be seen on Dillingham Boulevard at the Norfolk
Naval Station, on what has been called "Admiral's Row."

Pennsylvania House was a two-thirds scale replica of Independence Hall in Philadelphia. Because of its historical association, the building was used as a headquarters during the exposition by patriotic organizations, including the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Sons of the American Revolution, and Descendants of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence.

In 1957, Queen Elizabeth II was part of the celebration.

Fondest Memory: Virginia was one of the first states to 'cash in' on the commerative type licence plates, and they offered them much more cheaply than nearby Maryland. Now there are over 180 special license plates, and you can select and order them on-line. The DMV does offer several plates with a one time fee of $10 or $15 in addition to the vehicle registration fee. You may personalize your plate for $10 a year in addition to special plate and vehicle registration fees.

In addition to various university and college plates, and military plates, there are numerous special interest plates, such as the Chesapeake Bay plate (photo 2 - where part of the license fee goes to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. This is equivalent to the Maryland Chesapeake Bay plate), Farm preservation plates (photo 3), lighthouse plates (photo 4), and even a Parrothead plate (photo 5)

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Favorite Thing: In Virginia, crops are irrigated by water sprayed from big center-pivot irrigation sprinklers. This is very inefficient because about 50% of the water evaporates, and thus you use twice as much water as you actually need. Unfortunately, a more effective system would cost a great deal more to install.


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Favorite Thing: When we lived in Philadelphia in 1969, I visited Winterthur Museum. H. F. duPont had a massive collection of pre-Revolutionary American furniture. He not only bought the furniture, but he bought the walls and surroundings right out of the house and displayed it as it would have been when it was new.

I took two specialty tours at Winterthur and bought some representative pictures of various colonies in the US.

This picture is from Lancaster Co. VA from pre-1760. I have another one from Tappahannock. (2nd picture) They are quite different from the ones from upstate NY.

Fondest Memory: I have obtained permission from Susan I. Newton, Photographic Services Winterthur Museum and Country Estate to use this picture. The original slide has become red with age.

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Favorite Thing: Some of my favorite Chesapeake Bay lighthouses are in Virginia


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