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Facts about Virginia

History | Symbols | Interesting Facts | Famous People

Demographics
Statehood:  June 25, 1788, the 10th state

Capital:  Richmond

Total Area:  35th among states, 110,785 sq km (42,774 sq mi)

Water Area:  7,068 sq km (2,729 sq mi)

Highest Point:  Mount Roger, 1,746 m (5,729 ft)

Total Population:   12th among states
2010 census -  
8,001,024

Population Density in 2010:  202.6 people per sq mi

Distribution in 2000:  71.5% Urban, 28.5% Rural

Economy:  
Gross State Product - $427.7 billion (2010)
Personal income per Capita - $43,874 (2009)

Largest cities in 2010: 
Virginia Beach:  437,994
Norfolk:  242,803
Chesapeake:  222,209

  • The Atlantic Flyway, a route for birds migrating along the Atlantic coast, crosses Virginia, and the state provides important resting and feeding grounds.
     

  • Because of Virginia's prestige, the Confederate capital was moved on May 21, 1861, from Montgomery, Alabama, to Richmond.
     

  • Virginia was the birthplace of many U.S. presidents, including George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, Zachary Taylor, and Woodrow Wilson.

  • Virginia was the site of the surrenders ending the American Revolution (Yorktown) and the Civil War (Appomattox).

  • Tobacco was once Virginia's sole economic crop.

  • The Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel is the world's largest bridge-tunnel complex.

  • Patrick Henry made his "Give me Liberty or Give me Death" speech in St. John's Church in Richmond.

  • Opened in 1964, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is 18 miles long and has two bridges and two mile-long tunnels. It extends over the mouth of Chesapeake Bay and connects the cities of Cape Charles and Norfolk.

  • Government employment, especially the Federal government and military, has replaced tobacco as the state's number one industry.

  • Jamestown was the first English settlement in the U.S. It was also the first capital of Virginia.

  • Virginia has had 3 capital cities: Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Richmond.

  • Virginia is the home base for the United States Navy's Atlantic Fleet.