Colonial National Historical Park
Colonial National Historical Park (NHP) administers two of the some of the most historically significant sites in the United States. The first is Historic Jamestowne, the site of the first permanent English settlement in North America in 1607. The second is the Yorktown Battlefield, the site of the final major battle of the American Revolutionary War in 1781.
Combined, these sites represent the beginning and the end of English colonial America and are connected by the 23-mile scenic Colonial Parkway. The Colonial Parkway connects Virginia's historic triangle (Jamestown, Williamsburg, Yorktown) and allows motorists to visit culturally distinct sites all while appreciating the surrounding landscape, and reducing impact on natural resources.
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Nearby Places
At the Site
Activities to do
Facilities/Amenities available
Hours
The Historic Jamestowne Visitor Center and the Yorktown Battlefield Visitor Center are open daily from 9 AM to 5 PM.
All park grounds close at sunset. The Park is closed on Thanksgiving Day, December 25 and January 1.
The Historic Jamestowne Entrance Gate opens 8:45 AM to 4:30 PM daily from December 1 through February 28.
March 1, the Entrance Gate will open at 8:30 PM.
Glasshouse Hours: Open 8:30 AM - 5 PM.
(Note: Many places fill to capacity on busy, nice weather days, especially holiday weekends. Please call ahead or visit the official website to get the most up-to-date information before visiting.)
Fees
Historic Jamestowne Admission
Adult (16 and older) - $14; good for 7 days entrance to Historic Jamestowne and Yorktown Battlefield. Passholders, $5
Yorktown Battlefield
Adult (16 and older) - $7; good for 7 days entrance to Yorktown Battlefield (and NPS areas at Historic Jamestowne).
Activities
Colonial National Historical Park is a multifaceted park providing something for everyone. For the nature lovers we have bird watching with over 200 various species. Wild life abounds with deer, raccoon, opossum, Red Tail Fox, Mink, Bald Eagle, Wild Turkey and many others. During the spring the fields are a rainbow of colors with wild flowers blossoming everywhere. In the fall the forest and tree lined parkway become a kaleidoscope of reds, orange, and browns.
For the health conscious you can walk, run or bike our Battlefield Tour roads, the Jamestown 3-5 mile loop drive or the Colonial Parkway. Or, if you prefer, you can drive these roads in the air-conditioned comfort of your automobile.
For the history minded the park spans the timelines from pre-colonization, through Colonial Virginia; from the end of English Colonial America through the American Revolutionary War; from America’s Independence to the Civil War.
History
JAMESTOWN
England was a late comer to the American scene. Her first attempt at settlement was the fabled lost colony of Roanoke in 1587. Twenty years later, in 1607, through a joint venture company known as the Virginia Company, England established her first permanent colony called Jamestown. In 1619, onboard an English privateer ship, “20 and odd” Africans arrived and were traded to the English for “victuals,” or food stores. Thus the stage was set and Native Americans, Englishmen and Africans converge at one small settlement. From this convergence, what we know as the United States of America would blossom. It is from Jamestown, and the English, that, who and what we are as a people and as a nation, we trace our heritage of language, customs and laws.
In our History and Culture section we will provide various short papers, we call fact sheets, about the history, people, cultural remains and events of Jamestown. These fact sheets represent Colonial National Historical Park’s interpretation of Jamestown through the research of the historical records and the physical material remains (artifacts) of those who came before us.
YORKTOWN
Yorktown was established by Virginia's colonial government in 1691 to regulate trade and to collect taxes on both imports and exports for Great Britain. By the early 1700s, Yorktown had emerged as a major Virginia port and economic center. A well-developed waterfront boasted wharves, docks, storehouses and businesses. On the bluff above, stately homes lined Main Street, with taverns and other shops scattered throughout the town. Yorktown had 250 to 300 buildings and a population of almost 2,000 people at the height of its success around 1750. The American Revolution had entered its seventh year when, in 1781, British general Lord Charles Cornwallis brought his army to Yorktown to establish a naval base. In the siege by American and French forces that followed, much of the town was destroyed. By the end of the Revolution, less than 70 buildings remained in Yorktown and the 1790 census recorded only 661 people in town. Yorktown never regained its economic prominence. A fire in 1814 destroyed the waterfront district as well as some homes and the courthouse on Main Street. Additional destruction came during the Civil War Siege of 1862 and the occupation by Union troops that followed.
Today, there are still some tangible reminders of Yorktown's historic past that have survived, giving much of the town a colonial atmosphere. During your visit to Yorktown, stop at the Nelson House on Main Street, the home of Thomas Nelson, Jr., a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and commander of the Virginia Militia during the Siege of Yorktown. For hours of operation, see Yorktown Programs and Activities.
As you stroll the streets, you have the opportunity to imagine Yorktown as it once was--a thriving tobacco port--that witnessed the last battle of the American Revolution.
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