Featured Apartment:
Hampton - 1 bedroom - 1 bath - spacious, clean & sunny unit! - Brick Building - Hardwood Floors - Modern Kitchen - Spacious Living Room - Large Bedroom w/ Double Sliding Door Closet - Updated Bathroom - Off Street Parking - access to commuter rail, bus, shops & restaurants, first and last months rent (NO SECURITY DEPOSIT) View This Listing -->
Renting an Apartment in Hampton
What You Should Know
Hampton is an independent city in Virginia, and therefore not part of any
Virginia county. One of the Seven Cities of Hampton Roads, it is on the
southeast end of the Virginia Peninsula, bordering on Hampton Roads and
Chesapeake Bay.
As of the 2000 U.S. census, the city population was 146,437, but the census
estimate for 2005 showed that the city's population was down slightly to
145,579.
Hampton hosts Fort Monroe, Langley Air Force Base, NASA Langley Research Center,
the Virginia Air and Space Center, and features a wide array of business and
industrial enterprises, retail and residential areas, historical sites, and
miles of waterfront and beaches.
History
The former Native American community of Kecoughtan settled in 1610 in the
Virginia Colony forms the basis for Hampton's claim to the oldest continuously
occupied English settlement in North America. Considered strategic for defense
purposes against other Europeans, it was seized from the natives by colonists
under Virginia's Governor, Sir Thomas Gates in 1610.
Hampton was named for Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton, an important
leader of the Virginia Company of London, for whom the Hampton River, Hampton
Roads, Southampton County and Northampton County were also named.
Long a town in Elizabeth City County, the current independent city of Hampton
became much larger after a municipal consolidation with the incorporated town of
Phoebus and Elizabeth City County, Virginia in 1952. Today, the City of Hampton
essentially incorporates the boundaries of Elizabeth City County which was
created in 1643 from Elizabeth River Shire, one of the eight original shires of
1634 in Colonial Virginia, with several minor exceptions.
The original site of the Native American's Kecoughtan Settlement was near the
present site of a Hampton Roads Transit facility. [2] To the south of
present-day Hampton, a small unrelated incorporated town also named Kecoughtan
many years later and also located in Elizabeth City County was annexed by the
City of Newport News in 1927, and now forms part of that city's East End.
Hampton had the misfortune to be burned during both the American Revolutionary
War and the American Civil War. From the ruins of Hampton left by evacuating
Confederates in 1861, "Contraband" slaves (formerly owned by Confederates and
under a degree of Union protection) built the Grand Contraband Camp, the first
self-contained African American community in the United States. A number of
modern-day Hampton streets retain their names from that community. The large
number of contrabands who sought the refuge of Fort Monroe and the Grand
Contraband Camp led to educational efforts which eventually included
establishment of Hampton University, site of the famous Emancipation Oak.
Geography
Hampton is located at [show location on an interactive map] 37�2′5″N, 76�21′36″W
(37.034946, -76.360126)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 352.8
square kilometers (136.2 mi�). 134.1 square kilometers (51.8 mi�) of it is land
and 218.7 square kilometers (84.4 mi�) of it (61.99%) is water.
Adjacent counties and cities
* York County, Virginia (north)
* Poquoson, Virginia (northeast)
* Norfolk, Virginia (south; border within the waters of Hampton Roads)
* Newport News, Virginia (south and west)
Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 146,437 people, 53,887 households, and
35,888 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,091.9/km�
(2,828.0/mi�). There were 57,311 housing units at an average density of
427.3/km� (1,106.8/mi�). The racial makeup of the city was 49.55% White, 44.68%
Black or African American, 0.42% Native American, 1.84% Asian, 0.09% Pacific
Islander, 1.03% from other races, and 2.39% from two or more races. 2.84% of the
population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 53,887 households out of which 32.5% had children under the age of 18
living with them, 46.2% were married couples living together, 16.4% had a female
householder with no husband present, and 33.4% were non-families. 26.6% of all
households were made up of individuals and 7.9% had someone living alone who was
65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average
family size was 3.02.
The age distribution is 24.2% under the age of 18, 12.6% from 18 to 24, 32.5%
from 25 to 44, 20.4% from 45 to 64, and 10.3% who were 65 years of age or older.
The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 98.3 males. For
every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.6 males.
Population update: estimated population in July 2002: 145,921 (-0.4% change)
Males: 72,579 (49.6%), Females: 73,858 (50.4%) Source: [3] The Census estimate
for 2005 shows that the city's population was down slightly to more, 145,579.
[4]
The median income for a household in the city was $39,532, and the median income
for a family was $46,110. Males had a median income of $31,666 versus $24,578
for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,774. About 8.8% of
families and 11.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including
15.9% of those under age 18 and 8.6% of those age 65 or over.
Hampton is served by two airports. The primary airport for the Hampton Roads
area is Norfolk International Airport, on the opposite side of Hampton Roads in
Norfolk. The region's secondary airport, Newport News/Williamsburg International
Airport, is located on the Virginia Peninsula in Newport News.
Schools
* Moton Early Childhood Center
* Aberdeen Elementary School
* Armstrong Elementary School
* Asbury Elementary School
* Barron Elementary School
* Bassette Elementary School
* Booker Elementary School
* Bryan Elementary School
* Burbank Elementary School
* Cary Elementary School
* Cooper Elementary School
* Forrest Elementary School
* Kraft Elementary School
* Langley Elementary School
* Lee Elementary School
* Machen Elementary School
* Mallory Elementary School
* Mary Peake Elementary School
* Merrimack Elementary School
* Phillips Elementary School
* Smith Elementary School
* Tarrant Elementary School
* Tucker-Capps Elementary School
* Tyler Elementary School
* Wythe Elementary School
* Davis Middle School
* Eaton Middle School
* Jones Middle School
* Lindsay Middle School
* Spratley Middle School
* Syms Middle School
* Bethel High School
* Hampton High School
* Kecoughtan High School
* Phoebus High School
Defunct Schools
* Phenix High School now the hampton family YMCA
* Pembroke High School now the hampton family YMCA
* Y.H. Thomas Middle School now basset elementary
Major neighborhoods
* Aberdeen Gardens
* Bethel Park
* Buckroe
* Buckroe Beach
* Farmington
* Fox Hill
* Grandview
* Grist Mill
* Hampton Woods
* Howe Farms
* Northampton
* Phoebus
* Pine Chapel
* Pine Grove
* Riverdale
* Sinclair Farms
* Tide Mill
* Wythe
Points of interest
* Air Power Park
* Bluebird Gap Farm
* Buckroe Beach
* Fort Monroe
* Grandview Beach
* Hampton Coliseum
* Hampton History Museum
* Hampton National Cemetery
* Hampton Plaza
* Hampton University
* Jefferson Davis Casemate Museum
* Langley Air Force Base
* Old Point Comfort
* Power Plant of Hampton Roads
* Sandy Bottom Nature Park
* Virginia Air and Space Center
* War Memorial Stadium