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Renting an Apartment in Newport News
What You Should Know
Newport News is an independent city in Virginia. It is on the southwestern end
of the Virginia Peninsula, on the north shore of the James River extending to
its mouth at Hampton Roads.
The origin of the unusual name of "Newport News" is unclear. Some locals believe
it gained its name as the geographic point at which "news" reached shore of
Captain Christopher Newport's long delayed arrival after his ill-fated Third
Supply mission in May 1610. Perhaps originally the name signaled hope that
Jamestown would survive and the "Starving Time" was over. In reality, Captain
Newport's arrival proved remarkable in two ways: 1) with him was colonist John
Rolfe, with a new form of tobacco to try to export for the as-yet unprofitable
Virginia Colony, and 2) proved to be a stop-gap for the colonists, postponing
the abandonment of Jamestown long enough so that the eventual attempt to abandon
Jamestown encountered the supply mission of Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr,
which brought a new form of leadership as well. West and Rolfe together held the
keys to the Virginia Colony's survival.
It is more probable that the original name was "New Port Newce", named for a
person with the name Newce and the town's place as a new seaport. The first
English settlement on the site of Newport News which was made in 1621 in
Elizabeth Cittie (sic) by planters brought from Ireland by Daniel Gookin, who
selected the site on the advice of Sir William Newce and his brother Captain
Thomas Newce. On the edge of Elizabeth City County, it was earliest an
unincorporated town without formal boundaries in Warwick County for over 250
years. Some early maps show it as Newport News Point.
Beginning in 1881, 15 years of explosive development began under Collis P.
Huntington, who built a new railroad, coal piers, and a large shipyard. In 1896,
Newport News, which had been the county seat of Warwick County, became a
separate city from the county.
In 1900, 19,635 people lived in Newport News, Virginia; in 1910, 20,205; in
1920, 35,596; and in 1940, 37,067. However, the city consolidated with the
former Warwick County by mutual consent in 1958, becoming Virginia's third
largest in city population. As of the 2000 census, the city population was
180,150. A more recent 2006 estimate indicates the city's population has
declined to 178,281. It is Virginia's fifth largest city.
Among the city's major industries are Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock
Company, owned by Northrop Grumman, and the large coal piers supplied by
railroad giant CSX Transportation. Miles of the waterfront can be seen by
automobiles crossing the James River Bridge and Monitor-Merrimac Memorial
Bridge-Tunnel. Recovered artifacts from the USS Monitor are displayed at the
Mariners' Museum, and American Civil War battle sites near historic Lee Hall and
several plantations have been protected along the roads leading to Yorktown and
Williamsburg of the Historic Triangle.
Source of the name
The original area near the mouth of the James River was first referred to as "Newportes
Newes" as early as 1621 and is purported to be the longest continuously named
place in the United States.
The source of the name "Newport News" is not known with certainty. Several
versions are recorded, and it is subject of popular speculation locally.
Probably the best-known explanation holds that when an early group of Jamestown
colonists left to return to England after the Starving Time during the winter of
1609-10 aboard a ship of Captain Christopher Newport, they encountered another
fleet of supply ships under the new Governor Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr
in the James River off Mulberry Island with reinforcements of men and supplies.
The new governor ordered them to turn around, and return to Jamestown. Under
this theory, the community was named for Newport's "good news." (It is probable
that not all of those intending to depart thought returning to the harsh
conditions of Jamestown was "good" news, however). Another possibility is that
the community may have derived its name from an old English word "news" meaning
"new town." At least one source claims that the "New" arose from the original
settlement's being rebuilt after a fire.
According to a 1901 article in the College of William and Mary's Quarterly
Magazine, the well-documented case is made that it is more probable that the
original name was "New Port Newce", named for a person with the name Newce and
the town's place as a new seaport. The namesake, Sir William Newce, was
originally an English soldier and settler in Ireland where he had established
Newcestown near Bondon in County Cork. Newce sailed to Virginia with Sir Francis
Wyatt in October, 1621 and was granted 2,500 acres (10 km�) of land, but died
two days after. His brother, Capt. Thomas Newce, was given "600 acres at
Kequatan [sic], now called Elizabeth Cittie [sic]." A partner Daniel Gookin,
completed the establishment of the settlement. In the General History of
Virginia edited by Captain John Smith, occurs this reference: "Nov. 22, 1621,
arrived Master Gookin out of Ireland, with fifty men of his own, and thirty
passengers exceedingly well furnished with all sorts of provisions and cattle,
and planted himself at Newports Newes." Records following the Indian Massacre of
1622 state "Daniel Gookin successfully defended his settlement at Neport News
against all attacks.
Regardless of the origin of the name, the fact it was formerly written as
"Newport's News" is verified by numerous early documents and maps, and by local
tradition. The change to Newport News apparently was brought about by usage, for
by 1851 the Post Office Department sanctioned "New Port News" (three words) as
the name of the first post office, and in 1866 it approved the name as "Newport
News", the current form.
Political structure
Newport News in Elizabeth Cittie, Warwick County
During the 17th century, shortly after establishment of the Jamestown Settlement
in 1607, English settlers and explored and began settling the areas adjacent to
Hampton Roads. In 1610, Sir Thomas Gates took possession of a nearby Native
American village which became known as Kecoughtan.
In 1619, the area of Newport News was included in one of four huge corporations
of the Virginia Company of London, and became known as Elizabeth Cittie [sic],
which extended west all the way to Skiffe's Creek (currently the border between
Newport News and James City County. Elizabeth Cittie also included all of
present-day South Hampton Roads.
By 1634, the English colony of Virginia consisted of a total population of
approximately 5,000 inhabitants and was redivided into eight shires of Virginia,
which were renamed as counties shortly thereafter. The area of Newport News
became part Warwick River Shire, which became Warwick County in 1637. By 1810,
the county seat was at Denbigh. For a short time in the mid-19th century, the
county seat was moved to Newport News.
1896: a new city: Newport News
Newport News was merely an area of farm lands and a fishing village until the
coming of the railroad and the subsequent establishment of the great shipyard.
Following a huge growth spurt of railroad and shipyard development, the new
"City of Newport News" was formally organized and became independent of Warwick
County in 1896 by an act of the Virginia General Assembly. It was one of only a
few cities in Virginia to be newly established without earlier incorporation as
a town. (Virginia has had an independent city political subdivision since 1871).
Walter A. Post served as the city's first mayor.
Two Kecoughtans
Native American village, 17th century cittie
Kecoughtan, originally named Kikotan (also spelled Kiccowtan, Kikowtan as well
as Kecoughtan), was a Native American village when the English colonists arrived
in the Hampton Roads area in 1607.
In 1610, the English colonists under Sir Thomas Gates, Governor, seized their
land, and established their own residency there. This land was long known as
part of Elizabeth Cittie (sic) and Elizabeth City County (until the county was
consolidated with the City of Hampton and the incorporated town of Phoebus in
1952 to form the current independent city of Hampton) and has been continuously
occupied ever since, forming the basis of a claim by the City of Hampton as the
site of the oldest continually occupied English settlement in the U.S.A. [4]
Town of Kecoughtan, Virginia
Not to be confused with the original native settlement, many years later, a
newer incorporated town of Kecoughtan was developed in the 19th century and
existed in the southern edge of Elizabeth City County bordering Newport News. It
was annexed by the City of Newport News in 1927, where it currently forms much
of the area now known as the city's East End neighborhood.
Consolidation with Warwick
Independent city status guarantees protection against annexation of territory by
adjacent communities. After years of resisting annexation efforts by Newport
News, in 1952, Warwick County was successful in petitioning the Virginia General
Assembly to become the independent City of Warwick.
In 1958, the citizenry of the cities of Warwick and Newport News voted by
referendum to consolidate the two cities, choosing to assume the better-known
name of Newport News, and forming the third largest city population-wise in
Virginia with a 65 square miles (168 km�) area. The boundaries of the City of
Newport News today are essentially the boundaries of the original Warwick River
Shire and those of Warwick County for most of its existence, with the exception
of minor border adjustments with neighbors.
Collis P. Huntington: builder of a new railroad and a shipyard
The area which formed the present-day southern end of Newport News had long been
established as an unincorporated town. However, during the period after the
American Civil War, the new City of Newport News was essentially founded by
Collis P. Huntington. Huntington, who was one of the builders of the country's
first transcontinental railroad, became a major investor and guiding light, and
helped complete the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway to the Ohio River. His agents
began acquiring land in Warwick County in 1865, and in the 1880s, he oversaw
extension of the C&O down the peninsula to Newport News, where the company
developed the coal piers.
His next project was to develop Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company,
which became the world's largest shipyard. His famous saying is:
We shall build good ships here. At a profit - if we can. At a loss - if we must.
But always good ships.
The city of Huntington, West Virginia was named in honor of Collis P.
Huntington, as was Huntington Avenue in Newport News. Developed after World War
I, Huntington Park, near the northern terminus of the James River Bridge, is
named for his nephew, Henry E. Huntington. Collis Huntington's son, Archer M.
Huntington, developed the Mariners' Museum, one of the largest and finest
maritime museums in the world.
Geography
Newport News is located at [show location on an interactive map] 37�4′15″N,
76�29′4″W (37.071046, -76.484557)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 308.3
km� (119.1 mi�). 176.9 km� (68.3 mi�) of it is land and 131.5 km� (50.8 mi�) of
it (42.64%) is water.
Newport News entered a Sister City relationship with Neyagawa, Osaka-fu, Japan
in 1982. Newport News has a second sister city in Taizhou which is in the
Jiangsu Province in China and possibly in the near future a relationship with
Greifswald, Germany.
Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 180,150 people, 69,686 households, and
46,341 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,018.5/km�
(2,637.9/mi�). There were 74,117 housing units at an average density of
419.0/km� (1,085.3/mi�). The racial makeup of the city was 53.50% White, 39.07%
African American, 0.42% Native American, 2.33% Asian, 0.12% Pacific Islander,
1.79% from other races, and 2.77% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of
any race were 4.22% of the population.
There were 69,686 households out of which 35.7% had children under the age of 18
living with them, 44.6% were married couples living together, 17.9% had a female
householder with no husband present, and 33.5% were non-families. 27.0% of all
households were made up of individuals and 8.1% had someone living alone who was
65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average
family size was 3.04.
The age distribution is: 27.5% under the age of 18, 11.5% from 18 to 24, 32.2%
from 25 to 44, 18.8% from 45 to 64, and 10.1% who were 65 years of age or older.
The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 93.8 males. For
every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,597, and the median income
for a family was $42,520. Males had a median income of $31,275 versus $22,310
for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,843. About 11.3% of
families and 13.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including
20.6% of those under age 18 and 9.8% of those age 65 or over.
Newport News is served by two airports. Newport News/Williamsburg International
Airport, located in Newport News, and Norfolk International Airport, in Norfolk,
both cater to passengers from Hampton Roads. The primary airport for the
Virginia Peninsula is the Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport. The
Airport is experiencing a 4th year of record, double-digit growth, making it one
of the fastest growing airports in the country. In January 2006, the airport
reported having served 1,058,839 passengers. Along with this record growth,
there has been increased talk of a possible Newport News-UK direct flight after
UK-based Wolseley plc decided to put its North American headquarters in Newport
News. Speculation further increased when the news was considered against the
backdrop of the Jamestown 2007 commemorations.
Major Neighborhoods
* City Center
* Christopher Shores-Stuart Gardens
* Denbigh
* East End
* Glendale
* Hidenwood
* Hilton Village, a National Historic District
* Huntington Heights (Overtown)
* Kiln Creek
* Lee Hall
* Menchville
* Morrison
* Newmarket
* Oyster Point
* Port Warwick
* Richneck
* Riverside
* Summerlake
* Warwick
Education
The main provider of primary and secondary education in the city is Newport News
Public Schools. Several private schools are located in the area as well,
including Hampton Roads Academy[5], Peninsula Catholic High School[6], and
Denbigh Baptist Christian School[7]. Christopher Newport University is located
within the city, and Hampton University, Old Dominion University, Norfolk State
University and The College of William and Mary are located nearby.
Transportation
Newport News has an elaborate transportation network, including interstate and
state highways, bridges and a bridge-tunnel, freight and passenger railroad
service, local transit bus and intercity bus service, and a commercial airport.
There are miles of waterfront docks and port facilities.
See also Transportation section of main article Hampton Roads
Newport News, known traditionally as a blue-collar industrial city, is currently
undergoing dramatic changes to accommodate its growing affluence and relative
significance as a major metropolitan nexus in the Hampton Roads region. The
city's traditional downtown, located on the James River waterfront, is home to,
almost exclusively, Northrop Grumman Newport News shipyard and municipal
offices. While the downtown area has generally remained the only true area of
the city that offered genuine urban layout, that is changing with the
introduction of a number of successful New Urbanism projects in the city such as
Port Warwick, named after the fictional city in William Styron's novel, Lie Down
in Darkness. Port Warwick includes housing for everyone from the retired
community to off campus housing for Christopher Newport University students.
Also included are several high-end restaurants and upscale shopping. Oyster
Point City Center, located near Port Warwick in the thriving Oyster Point
Retail/Central Business District (often cited as the busiest in Hampton Roads),
has been touted as the new "downtown" because of its new geographic centrality
on the Virginia Peninsula, its proximity to the retail/business nucleus of the
city, etc. The Virginia Living Museum also recently completed a $22.6 million
expansion plan.
Currently under planning stages are a number of other New Urbanism projects,
including "Asheton", a mega-development at the north end of the city bordering
the Historic Triangle of Jamestown, Colonial Williamsburg, and Yorktown. Asheton
is designed to compliment the historic attraction of the region. There are also
plans to develop a light rail line on the Peninsula, largely in Newport News, as
well as continue the gradual urbanization of the city to transform it from its
currently suburban layout into a more cohesive, attractive, and enticing
destination. It looks to be well on its way, judging from the rapid pace of
infill redevelopment over the past 5-11 years.
Downtown Newport News Victory Arch, built to commemorate the Great War, sits on
the downtown waterfront in Newport News. The "Eternal Flame" which sits under
the arch was casted by Womack Foundry, Inc. in the 1960's, and was hand crafted
by the Foundry's founder and president, Ernest D. Womack. There are a number of
landmarks and architecturally interesting buildings in the downtown area that
seem to have been largely abandoned in favor of building new areas in the
northwest areas of the city. It is hoped that one day more development would be
put in the area to return it to its lost status as an urban nucleus in Hampton
Roads.