York County (formerly Charles River County) is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

in the eastern part of the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

, located in the

Tidewater Tidewater may refer to: * Tidewater (region), a geographic area of southeast Virginia, southern Maryland, and northeast North Carolina. ** Tidewater accent, an accent of American English associated with the Tidewater region of Virginia * Tidewater ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 70,045. The

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

is the unincorporated town of Yorktown. Located on the north side of the

Virginia Peninsula The Virginia Peninsula is a peninsula in southeast Virginia, USA, bounded by the York River, James River, Hampton Roads and Chesapeake Bay. It is sometimes known as the ''Lower Peninsula'' to distinguish it from two other peninsulas to the n ...

, with the York River as its northern border, York County is included in the

Virginia Beach Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 census. Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous ci ...

–

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the Nor ...

– Newport News, VA– NC

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally incorporated as a city or tow ...

. York County contains many tributaries of the York River. It shares land borders with the independent cities of Williamsburg, Newport News, Hampton, and Poquoson, as well as James City County, and shares a border along the York River with Gloucester County. Formed in 1634 as Charles River Shire, one of the eight original shires (counties) of the Virginia Colony,William Waller Hening, editor, ''The Statutes at Large; Being a Collection of all the Laws of Virginia, from the First Session of the Legislature in the year 1619'', 13 vols. (Richmond: Samuel Pleasants, Junior, 1809), vol. 1, page 224, in 1634 Charles River Shire created as one of the original 8 shires, digital images, ''Internet Archive'' (https://archive.org : 2 April 2019). and renamed York County in 1643,William Waller Hening, editor, ''The Statutes at Large; Being a Collection of all the Laws of Virginia, from the First Session of the Legislature in the year 1619'', 13 vols. (Richmond: Samuel Pleasants, Junior, 1809), vol. 1, page 249, "Act XIII," 2 March 1642/3, "Charles River county shall be distinguished by this name (the County of York)", digital images, ''Internet Archive'' (https://archive.org : 2 April 2019). York County is one of the oldest counties in the United States. Yorktown is one of the three points of the

Historic Triangle of Colonial Virginia The Historic Triangle includes three historic colonial communities located on the Virginia Peninsula of the United States and is bounded by the York River on the north and the James River on the south. The points that form the triangle are James ...

. It is the site of the last battle and surrender of British forces in 1781 at the conclusion of the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, when the patriots gained independence from

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It ...

. In modern times, several important U.S. military installations have been developed in the county. It also has miles of waterfront residential and recreational areas. York County adjoins the

Busch Gardens Williamsburg Busch Gardens Williamsburg (formerly known as Busch Gardens Europe and Busch Gardens: The Old Country) is a amusement park located in James City County near Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. Located approximately northwest of Virginia ...

theme park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

and includes within its borders the affiliated Water Country USA

water park A water park (or waterpark, water world) is an amusement park that features water play areas such as swimming pools, water slides, splash pads, water playgrounds, and lazy rivers, as well as areas for floating, bathing, swimming, and other bare ...

, the Yorktown Riverfront area, Yorktown Battlefield and Visitor Center and

American Revolution Museum at Yorktown American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

. Yorktown is linked by the National Park Service's bucolic

Colonial Parkway Colonial Parkway is a scenic parkway linking the three points of Virginia's Historic Triangle, Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown. It is part of the National Park Service's Colonial National Historical Park. Virginia's official state c ...

with

Colonial Williamsburg Colonial Williamsburg is a living-history museum and private foundation presenting a part of the historic district in the city of Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation has 7300 employees at this location ...

and historic attractions at

Jamestown, Virginia The Jamestown settlement in the Colony of Virginia was the first permanent English settlement in the Americas. It was located on the northeast bank of the James (Powhatan) River about southwest of the center of modern Williamsburg. It was ...

. Heritage tourism to the Historic Triangle draws international visitors and is a major economic activity for the county.

History

Native American Indians

The area which is now York County was long inhabited by succeeding cultures of Native Americans. These were

hunter-gatherer A traditional hunter-gatherer or forager is a human living an ancestrally derived lifestyle in which most or all food is obtained by foraging, that is, by gathering food from local sources, especially edible wild plants but also insects, fung ...

groups during the late

Woodland Period In the classification of archaeological cultures of North America, the Woodland period of North American pre-Columbian cultures spanned a period from roughly 1000 BCE to European contact in the eastern part of North America, with some archaeo ...

(1000 BC to AD 1000) and earlier. By the late 16th century, much of the

coastal plain A coastal plain is flat, low-lying land adjacent to a sea coast. A fall line commonly marks the border between a coastal plain and a piedmont area. Some of the largest coastal plains are in Alaska and the southeastern United States. The Gulf Co ...

draining to the

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the Eastern Shore of Maryland / ...

of the current Commonwealth of Virginia was called '' Tenakomakah'' in Algonquian, meaning "densely inhabited land". The historic tribes of the Tidewater area spoke related Algonquian languages. Other Algonquian-speaking peoples occupied coastal areas north and into present-day Canada, as well as to the south. In the Virginia region, a weroance (or chief) named

Wahunsunacock Powhatan ( c. 1547 – c. 1618), whose proper name was Wahunsenacawh (alternately spelled Wahunsenacah, Wahunsunacock or Wahunsonacock), was the leader of the Powhatan, an alliance of Algonquian-speaking Native Americans living in Tsenacommacah ...

(1547–1618) of the Powhatan people created a powerful empire of eastern-Algonquian language-speaking peoples known as the

Powhatan Confederacy The Powhatan people (; also spelled Powatan) may refer to any of the indigenous Algonquian people that are traditionally from eastern Virginia. All of the Powhatan groups descend from the Powhatan Confederacy. In some instances, The Powhata ...

; he conquered or allied by agreement with approximately 30 tribes. Known as the Powhatan, meaning the paramount chief, he was from a village also known as "Powhatan", near the

fall line A fall line (or fall zone) is the area where an upland region and a coastal plain meet and is typically prominent where rivers cross it, with resulting rapids or waterfalls. The uplands are relatively hard crystalline basement rock, and the coa ...

of the

James River The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 to Chesap ...

. (The Powhatan Hill neighborhood of the current city of

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, Californi ...

was developed near this former site.) Chief Powhatan later established a second capital village, known as Werowocomoco, in a centrally located position in Tenakomakah. Rediscovered in the early 21st century by archeological work, it was located along the north bank of the York River in present-day Gloucester County. The Chiskiack tribe of the Powhatan Confederacy lived in York County along the York River until the 1630s. Escalating conflicts with the expanding English colony based at Jamestown caused them to move to the west. The English developed a village settlement near the village of Chiskiack and adopted its name. (It is sometimes spelled "Kiskiack"). This became part of the developments included within the present-day Naval Weapons Station Yorktown near Yorktown and are included in the military base. Cheesecake Road and Cheesecake Cemetery are also within the base; their names are thought to derive from the early Chiskiack people. After the Powhatan moved his capital from this area in 1609, the site believed to have been Werowocomoco near Purtan Bay was lost to history. It was rediscovered in the early 21st century, and has been under continuing

archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

study projects. The discoveries and ongoing research led by the

College of William and Mary The College of William & Mary (officially The College of William and Mary in Virginia, abbreviated as William & Mary, W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Founded in 1693 by letters patent issued by King William ...

hold great promise in expanding understanding of the lives of the Native Americans in the area during that era of York County's history.

Ajacán Mission

In 1570, Spanish

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

priests founded the Ajacán Mission in this area. They were guided by interpreter Don Luis, a Native American from this area who had been taken captive by an earlier expedition. He was taken to Spain and later to Mexico, where he was baptized as Don Luis and educated in the Jesuit system. Ten years later after returning to Virginia, he soon abandoned the Spanish group. In February 1571 he led an attack on the Jesuits; all of the party except a young boy were killed. The following year, a Spanish force returned to the region for punishment and reclaimed the youth Alonso. The Spanish did not attempt another mission in this part of North America.

Virginia Colony

About 30 years later, English colonists arrived and established Jamestown in 1607 on the southern shore of the

in the

Colony of Virginia The Colony of Virginia, chartered in 1606 and settled in 1607, was the first enduring English colony in North America, following failed attempts at settlement on Newfoundland by Sir Humphrey GilbertGilbert (Saunders Family), Sir Humphrey" (histor ...

. In 1619, the area which is now York County was included in two of the four incorporations (or "citties") of the proprietary Virginia Company of London which were known as

Elizabeth Cittie Elizabeth City (or Elizabeth Cittie as it was then called) was one of four incorporations established in the Virginia Colony in 1619 by the proprietor, the Virginia Company of London, acting in accordance with instructions issued by Sir George Yeard ...

and James Cittie. In 1634, what is now York County was formed as Charles River Shire, one of the eight original shires of Virginia and named for King Charles I. Charles River Shire took its name from the younger son of King

James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) *James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) *James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu *James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...

. In the 21st century, it was one of the five original shires considered extant in essentially its same political form, making it one of the oldest counties in the United States. In 1643 Charles River County and the Charles River (also named for the king) were changed to York County and York River, respectively. The river, county, and town of Yorktown are believed to have been named for

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

, a city in

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

Yorktown

The first courthouse and jail were located near what is now Yorktown although the community, founded as a port for shipping

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

to Europe, as variously called Port of York, Borough of York, York, Town of York, until Yorktown was established in 1691, when the

House of Burgesses The House of Burgesses was the elected representative element of the Virginia General Assembly, the legislative body of the Colony of Virginia. With the creation of the House of Burgesses in 1642, the General Assembly, which had been establishe ...

required each county to designate a port of entry and build warehousing. Although never formally incorporated as a town, Yorktown is the

of York County. The only town ever incorporated within the county's boundaries was Poquoson, which was incorporated in 1952 and became an

independent city An independent city or independent town is a city or town that does not form part of another general-purpose local government entity (such as a province). Historical precursors In the Holy Roman Empire, and to a degree in its successor states ...

in 1975. Porto Bello, the hunting lodge of Lord Dunmore, last royal governor of Virginia, still stands on the grounds of Camp Peary. It is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

. It is most famous as the site of the surrender of General Cornwallis to General

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

in 1781, ending the

. Yorktown also figured prominently in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...

during the Peninsula Campaign in 1862.

Other communities, boundary changes

The small unincorporated town of

Lackey Lackey may refer to: __NOTOC__ Places * Lackey, Kentucky, United States, an unincorporated community * Lackey, Mississippi, United States, an unincorporated community * Lackey, Virginia, United States, an unincorporated community * Lackey Ridge, ...

and a nearby area known as "the Reservation" were taken over by the U.S. Navy during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. This is now part of the Naval Weapons Station Yorktown. Many of the displaced

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

landowners were eventually relocated to Grove, along the border between York and James counties. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, the sites of three other small York County towns were absorbed into U.S. government reservations. Penniman was the site of a

munitions facility operated by the

DuPont DuPont de Nemours, Inc., commonly shortened to DuPont, is an American multinational chemical company first formed in 1802 by French-American chemist and industrialist Éleuthère Irénée du Pont de Nemours. The company played a major role in ...

company, and was made a part of

Cheatham Annex Cheatham Annex is a Naval Base, located near Williamsburg, Virginia on the York River approximately 35 miles northwest of Norfolk in the heart of the famous Jamestown–Williamsburg–Yorktown "Historic Triangle." Although Cheatham Annex was not co ...

) in 1943. To the west of Penniman, which is reported to have had a peak population of 15,000, on land which is now part of Camp Peary, the smaller towns of Magruder and Bigler's Mill were located. Much of Magruder's population and at least one church were relocated to Grove, increasing its population. In 1949, the county grew by , as land in that amount was ceded to York County by neighboring Warwick County. At the time, the move was part of a successful attempt by Warwick County to block an annexation suit brought by the

City of Newport News Newport News () is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the 5th most populous city in Virginia and 140th most populous city in the Uni ...

. Warwick eventually consolidated with the city in 1958 by mutual agreement. (The reduction in size allowed Warwick County to claim an exemption from the proposed annexation at the time). In 1975, the county lost of land as the

incorporated town An incorporated town is a town that is a municipal corporation. Canada Incorporated towns are a form of local government in Canada, which is a responsibility of provincial rather than federal government. United Kingdom United States An in ...

of Poquoson, which had been within York County, became an

, although ties between the county and the new city remained close. Over 40 years later, they continue to share courts, sheriff's office, a jail, and some constitutional services. York County also adjoins another small independent city, Williamsburg, which was long located within James City County. In the 20th century, some areas of York County adjacent to Williamsburg were lost to the growing small city through annexation.

York County in the late 20th and early 21st centuries

From the 1980s to modern times, York County experienced a rapid transition from a rural county to a bedroom community for the neighboring core cities of Hampton and Newport News. In modern times, York County and Yorktown in particular are part of an important historical area of attractions known as the

, which includes Yorktown, Jamestown and Williamsburg. Yorktown is the northern terminus of the scenic

operated by the U.S.

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational properti ...

which links the three. In 2005, the county completed Riverwalk Landing, a successful pseudo-colonial waterfront development at Yorktown to revitalize the previously deteriorating beach and town district and complement the 2007 celebration of Jamestown.

Geography

Entering Coleman Bridge from Yorktown Side

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (51.3%) is water. It is the third-smallest county in Virginia by land area. It is near the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. Also, in terms of population clusters, the county is divided by a vast expanse of federal land in the midsection of the county, much of which is densely wooded park land, and military training areas. The southern portion of the County is dense with suburban developments and contains the majority of the county's population. There is little room for additional growth in the southern portion of York County because it is a relatively small area, and was essentially fully developed by the early 2000s. A small industrial area along the York River just east of Yorktown contains a power plant owned by Dominion Virginia Power, and a petroleum terminal on the former site of an oil refinery that ceased operation in 2010. The northern portion is more connected with the Williamsburg community than Yorktown and, although less populous than the south, is also fairly dense. Having not seen a significant amount of growth until recently, the northern portion is now seeing the development of new residential communities and shopping areas.

Adjacent counties and cities

National protected area

* Colonial National Historical Park (part)

Climate

Demographics

2020 census

''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.''

2010 Census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

of 2000, there were 56,297 people, 20,000 households, and 15,880 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

was 533 people per square mile (206/km²). There were 20,701 housing units at an average density of 196 per square mile (76/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 76.4%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

, 13.4%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...

, 0.4% Native American, 4.9% Asian, 0.2%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 1.4% from other races, and 3.4% from two or more races. 4.4% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race. There were 20,000 households, out of which 42.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.30% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

living together, 9.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.60% were non-families. 16.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.78 and the average family size was 3.15. In the county, the population was spread out, with 29.10% under the age of 18, 6.60% from 18 to 24, 30.70% from 25 to 44, 24.40% from 45 to 64, and 9.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 96.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.50 males. As of the 2010 Census, the population had grown to 65,464 and the median household income was $84,167, the highest in the Hampton Roads region. Males had a median income of $42,948 versus $28,713 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the county was $36,755. About 2.70% of families and 3.50% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 3.90% of those under age 18 and 3.80% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Public Transportation

York County is served by

Williamsburg Area Transit Authority Williamsburg Area Transit Authority (WATA) is a multi-jurisdiction transportation agency providing transit bus and ADA Paratransit services in the City of Williamsburg, James City County, York County in the Historic Triangle area and Surry Cou ...

(WATA) as well as

Hampton Roads Transit Hampton Roads Transit (HRT), incorporated on October 1, 1999, began through the voluntary merger of PENTRAN (Peninsula Transportation District Commission) on the Virginia Peninsula and TRT ( Tidewater Regional Transit a.k.a. Tidewater Transit Di ...

(HRT). WATA's buses stop at different communities in the northwestern part of the county adjacent to Williamsburg, while HRT operates several routes that run close to the county's populated southeast (but not entering the county). In addition, Yorktown offers a complimentary sightseeing trolley bus around the town on a daily basis. There is no train station in York County. The closest Amtrak stations are in Williamsburg and Newport News, respectively. Greyhound also have services in these two cities. A section of Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport, the only regional airport on the southern tip of the peninsula, is located in York County. Other major airport in the region are Norfolk International Airport and Richmond International Airport.

Highways

The only interstate highway in the county is

Interstate 64 Interstate 64 (I-64) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Eastern United States. Its western terminus is at I-70, U.S. Route 40 (US 40), and US 61 in Wentzville, Missouri. Its eastern terminus is at an interchang ...

. U.S. Route 17 crosses the York River from

Gloucester Point Gloucester Point is a census-designated place (CDP) in Gloucester County, Virginia, United States. The population was 9,402 at the 2010 census. It is home to the College of William & Mary's Virginia Institute of Marine Science, a graduate school ...

via the Coleman Memorial Bridge. State Route 199, which circumvents Williamsburg, joins Interstate 64 close to the Water Country USA in the county. Two sections of U.S. Routes 60 passes York County to the north of Williamsburg and west of Water Country USA.

Virginia State Route 134 State Route 134 (SR 134) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. The state highway runs from U.S. Route 60 (US 60) and SR 143 in the independent city of Hampton north to US 17 in Tabb. SR 134 is the main connection between ...

connects York County to

Langley Air Force Base Langley Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in Hampton, Virginia, adjacent to Newport News. It was one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the entry of the United States into World War I in April 1 ...

and

Hampton, Virginia Hampton () is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 137,148. It is the List ...

, bypassing the more developed portion of US-17 between Tabb and I-64. Victory Boulevard connects Newport News and York County to Poquoson.

Communities

Census-designated places

* Bethel Manor * Yorktown

Other unincorporated communities

Dare Dare may refer to: Places * Dare, East Timor, a city * Darè, Italy, a commune * Dare County, North Carolina, United States * Dare, Virginia, United States, an unincorporated community Name * Dare (name), a list of people and fictional c ...

* Grafton *

* Lightfoot * Seaford * Tabb

Government

The County is traditionally organized per Virginia Law. It is governed by a

Board of Supervisors A board of supervisors is a governmental body that oversees the operation of county government in the U.S. states of Arizona, California, Iowa, Mississippi, Virginia, and Wisconsin, as well as 16 counties in New York. There are equivalent agen ...

, who are elected for four-year terms by voters from each of the county's five districts. The Board appoints a County Administrator to act as the administrative head of the county. The current county administrator is Neil Morgan.

York County Board of Supervisors

* District 1: Walter C. Zaremba * District 2: Sheila S. Noll (Chairman) * District 3: W. Chad Green * District 4: G. Stephen Roane, Jr. * District 5: Thomas G. Shepperd, Jr. (Vice Chairman)

York County School Board

* District 1: Mark J. Shafer * District 2: Brett Higginbotham * District 3: Laurel M. Garrelts (Chair) * District 4: James E. Richardson * District 5: Sean P. Myatt (Vice Chair)

Other elected officials

* Sheriff: J.D. "Danny" Diggs * Commonwealth's Attorney: Krystyn Reid * Circuit Court Clerk: Kristen N. Nelson * Commissioner of the Revenue: Ann H. Thomas * Treasurer: Candice Kelley

Politics

York County consistently votes for Republican candidates in statewide elections. Since 1968, only 2 Democratic candidates have won more than 45% of the vote:

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

in 1976, and Joe Biden in 2020.

Mark Warner Mark Robert Warner (born December 15, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Virginia, a seat he has held since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, Warner served as the 69th gov ...

is the last Democrat to win York in any statewide election, during his election to the US Senate in 2008.

Education

Elementary schools

* Bethel Manor ES * Coventry ES * Dare ES * Grafton Bethel ES * Magruder ES * Mt. Vernon ES * Seaford ES * Tabb ES * Waller Mill ES * Yorktown ES * Extend Center (Dare Elementary)

Middle schools

* Grafton MS (connected to Grafton High School) * Queens Lake MS * Tabb MS * Yorktown MS

High schools

* Bruton HS * Grafton HS (connected to Grafton Middle School) * Tabb HS * York HS * York River Academy * Virtual High School

Military bases

York County is home to several large and important military facilities of the United States. Located along the York River, small portions of each base extend into adjacent James City County as well. The Naval Weapons Station Yorktown was originally established during

by order of President

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

, and now includes the formerly separate Cheatham Annex Supply Complex. Camp Peary was established during

as a

Seabee , colors = , mascot = Bumblebee , battles = Guadalcanal, Bougainville, Cape Gloucester, Los Negros, Guam, Peleliu, Tarawa, Kwajalein, Saipan, Tinian, Iwo Jima, Philippin ...

Training Base. As the war progressed, it became valuable to the Allied Forces to house sensitive prisoners-of-war from captured German naval vessels; it was important for Nazi authorities to be unaware of their capture, since that also meant secret code books thought lost-at sea may also have been compromised. Many of these POWs made Virginia and the United States their new homeland after the War. Separating these two large military reservations is

Queen's Creek Queen's Creek is located in York County in the Virginia Peninsula area of the Hampton Roads region of southeastern Virginia in the United States. From a point of origin near the Waller Mill Reservoir in western York County, it flows northeasterly ...

, which originates in the western reaches of the county and drains to the York River. York County contains some former towns including Yorke, and a large number when the military reservations were created in the first half of the 20th century. These include the original

(known locally as "the Reservation"), Halstead's Point, Penniman, Bigler's Mill, and Magruder. Many relocated residents and their descendants, many of whom were farmers and watermen, now live in such places as Yorktown, Gloucester, Lee Hall, Grove, and Lightfoot.

Notes

References

Sources

Publications

* McCartney, Martha W. (1977) ''James City County: Keystone of the Commonwealth''; James City County, Virginia; Donning and Company;

External links

"Cast Down Your Buckets Where You Are"
An Ethnohistorical Study of the African-American Community on the Lands of the Yorktown Naval Weapons Station 1865–1918
York County website

Hampton Roads Economic Development Alliance
- serving York County {{authority control Virginia counties 1634 establishments in Virginia Populated places established in 1634 Virginia counties on the Chesapeake Bay