College Creek
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College Creek (formerly named Archer's Hope Creek) is located in
James City County James City County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 78,254. Although politically separate from the county, the county seat is the adjacent independent city of Williamsburg. Located o ...
in the
Virginia Peninsula The Virginia Peninsula is the natural landform located in southeast Virginia outlined 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 penins ...
area of the
Hampton Roads Hampton Roads is a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James River, James, Nansemond River, Nansemond, and Elizabeth River (Virginia), Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's Point near whe ...
region of southeastern
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
in the
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. From a point of origin near the
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 ...
of
Williamsburg Williamsburg may refer to: Places *Colonial Williamsburg, a living-history museum and private foundation in Virginia *Williamsburg, Brooklyn, neighborhood in New York City *Williamsburg, former name of Kernville (former town), California *Williams ...
, it is a tributary of the
James River The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confluence of the Cowpasture and Jackson Rivers in Botetourt County U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowli ...
.


Description

The College Creek watershed of James City County includes the residential subdivisions of
Kingsmill Kingsmill or Kingsmills may refer to: Places * Kingsmill, Virginia, an area of James City County, Virginia, United States * Kingsmill, County Armagh, Northern Ireland, site of the 1976 Kingsmill massacre * Kingsmill, Ontario, Canada * Kingsmill ...
, Kingspoint, James Terrace, and the Vineyards. The watershed also contains Kingsmill Pond, Busch Corporate Center and the
Anheuser-Busch Anheuser-Busch Companies, LLC ( ) is an American brewing company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Since 2008, it has been wholly owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (AB InBev), now the world's largest brewing company, which owns multiple ...
Brewery.


History


Seventeenth Century

As Jamestown in the
Colony of Virginia The Colony of Virginia was a British Empire, British colonial settlement in North America from 1606 to 1776. The first effort to create an English settlement in the area was chartered in 1584 and established in 1585; the resulting Roanoke Colo ...
was first settled by English colonists beginning in 1607, a nearby tributary of the
James River The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confluence of the Cowpasture and Jackson Rivers in Botetourt County U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowli ...
was named Archer's Hope Creek. It took its name from a point of land near the mouth named Archer's Hope after Gabriel Archer. Captain Archer was particularly impressed with this location and urged that it be the point of settlement. The soil seemed good, timber and wildlife were abundant, and it appeared adaptable for defensive measures if these should become necessary. It was not possible, however, to bring the ships close to the shore, and consequently Archer's Hope was rejected. From this site the ships moved directly to Jamestown, where they arrived May 13. The present-day
National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...
's
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 cl ...
has a scenic turnout at Archer's Hope. Archer's Hope Creek drained the southern half of the nearby section of the
Virginia Peninsula The Virginia Peninsula is the natural landform located in southeast Virginia outlined 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 penins ...
, with a watershed extending to a high point ridge near the center. The idea of a
palisade A palisade, sometimes called a stakewall or a paling, is typically a row of closely placed, high vertical standing tree trunks or wooden or iron stakes used as a fence for enclosure or as a defensive wall. Palisades can form a stockade. Etymo ...
or fortification across the peninsula was discussed as early as 1611. But, during the era of the marriage of colonist
John Rolfe John Rolfe ( – March 1622) was an English explorer, farmer and merchant. He is best known for being the husband of Pocahontas and the first settler in the colony of Virginia to successfully cultivate a tobacco crop for export. He played a ...
and
Pocahontas Pocahontas (, ; born Amonute, also known as Matoaka and Rebecca Rolfe; 1596 – March 1617) was a Native American woman belonging to the Powhatan people, notable for her association with the colonial settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. S ...
, daughter of the
Powhatan Powhatan people () are Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands who belong to member tribes of the Powhatan Confederacy, or Tsenacommacah. They are Algonquian peoples whose historic territories were in eastern Virginia. Their Powh ...
chief, who were wed in 1614, there was a period of peaceful relations with the Natives, and nothing was immediately done in furtherance of the suggestion. The idea of building a palisade was renewed around 1623, following the
Indian massacre of 1622 The Indian massacre of 1622 took place in the English Colony of Virginia on March 22, 1621/22 ( O.S./N.S.). The English explorer John Smith, though he was not an eyewitness, wrote in his ''History of Virginia'' that warriors of the Powhatan "cam ...
. At that time, of the settlers in
Martin's Hundred Martin's Hundred was an early 17th-century plantation located along about of the north shore of the James River in the Virginia Colony east of Jamestown in the southeastern portion of present-day James City County, Virginia. The Martin's Hundred ...
at Wolstenholme Towne, situated on the James about below Jamestown, seventy-three were slain, and the survivors were so alarmed and weakened that the settlement was temporarily abandoned. Governor Francis Wyatt and his Council wrote to the
Earl of Southampton Earl of Southampton was a title that was created three times in the Peerage of England. Its first creation came in 1537 in favour of the courtier William FitzWilliam. He was childless and the title became extinct on his death in 1542. Its s ...
that they had under consideration a plan of "winning the forest" by running a pale between the James and York. Dr.
John Pott John Pott (or Potts) was a physician and Colonial Governor of Virginia at the Jamestown settlement in the Virginia Colony in the early 17th century. Biography Education John Potts is said to have taken his degree of M.A., at Oxford University ...
s blazed the way by obtaining on July 12, 1632, a patent for at the head of Archer's Hope Creek, midway between the James River at Archer's Hope and the former Native American village of
Chiskiack Kiskiack (or Chisiack or Chiskiack) was a Native American tribal group of the Powhatan Confederacy in what is present-day York County, Virginia. The name means "Wide Land" or "Broad Place" in the native language, one of the Virginia Algonquian ...
near the York River. On September 4, 1632, the
General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...
directed that the encouragement of land offered two years before to inhabitants at Chiskiack, should also be granted to all persons settling between
Queen's Creek Queen's Creek is located in York County, Virginia, 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 Count ...
and Archer's Hope Creek. In February, 1633, it was enacted that a fortieth part of the men in "the compasse of the forest" east of Archer's Hope and Queen's Creek to
Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula, including parts of the Ea ...
(essentially all of the lower peninsula) should be present "before the first day of March next" at Dr. John Potts' plantation, "newlie built," to erect houses and secure the land in that quarter. Work on the palisade commenced by March 1, 1633. With this labor, palisades, in length, were run from creek to creek, as the palisade continued to reach Queen's Creek, which drained the northern half of the nearby section of the Peninsula, with a watershed leading to the York River. The two creeks and the palisade in between created a barrier from river to river. At the high ridge at the midpoint, a settlement to be called Middle Plantation was made. By 1634, the palisade (or stockade) was completed, providing some security from attacks by the Native Americans for colonists farming and fishing lower on the Peninsula from that point. Anchored at its center by Middle Plantation, the palisade is partially described in the following extract from a letter written in 1634, from Jamestown, by Captain Thomas Yonge: "a strong palisade ... upon a streight between both rivers and ... a sufficient force of men to defence of the same, whereby all the lower part of Virginia have a range for their cattle, near fortie miles in length and in most places broade. The pallisades is very neare six miles (10 km) long, bounded in by two large Creekes. ... in this manner to take also in all the grounde between those two Rivers, and so utterly excluded the Indians from thence; which work is conceived to be of extraordinary benefit to the country ..." After 1644, the Native Americans of the Powhatan Confederacy had been overcome and were no longer a threat, and the palisade fell into disrepair, with almost all traces eventually disappearing. However, Middle Plantation began to grow as a settlement, largely due to early efforts of the Ludwell brothers and Colonel John Page and his sons, who built fine brick homes and helped with the establishment of a fine brick
Bruton Parish Church Bruton Parish Church is located in the restored area of Colonial Williamsburg in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. It was established in 1674 by the consolidation of two previous parishes in the Virginia Colony, and remains an active Epi ...
. The 1690s saw a quick rise to prominence as Reverend Dr. James Blair, Commissary of the
Bishop of London The bishop of London is the Ordinary (church officer), ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury. By custom the Bishop is also Dean of the Chapel Royal since 1723. The diocese covers of 17 boroughs o ...
in the colony, returned from a successful trip to
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
and a
royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but ...
for the new
College of William & Mary The College of William & Mary (abbreviated as W&M) is a public university, public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1693 under a royal charter issued by King William III of England, William III and Queen ...
. Blair and the trustees of the College of William & Mary bought a parcel of from Thomas Ballard, the proprietor of Rich Neck Plantation, for the new school, on the western outskirts of Middle Plantation, just a short distance from the almost new brick
Bruton Parish Church Bruton Parish Church is located in the restored area of Colonial Williamsburg in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. It was established in 1674 by the consolidation of two previous parishes in the Virginia Colony, and remains an active Epi ...
, a focal point of the extant community. The new school opened in temporary buildings in 1694. Properly called the "College Building," the first version of the
Wren Building The Wren Building (original build, 1695–1699) is the oldest building on the campus of the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, which is the "second oldest seat of higher learning" in the United States. Situated in Old College ...
was built at Middle Plantation beginning on August 8, 1695, and occupied by 1700 on a picturesque site. (The present-day College still stands upon those grounds, adjacent to and just west of the restored historic area known in modern times as
Colonial Williamsburg Colonial Williamsburg is a living-history museum and private foundation presenting a part of the historic district in Williamsburg, Virginia. Its historic area includes several hundred restored or recreated buildings from the 18th century, wh ...
). After the statehouse at Jamestown burned in 1698, the legislature moved temporarily to Middle Plantation, as it had in the past. Upon suggestion of students of the college, the capital was permanently relocated there, and Middle Plantation was renamed
Williamsburg Williamsburg may refer to: Places *Colonial Williamsburg, a living-history museum and private foundation in Virginia *Williamsburg, Brooklyn, neighborhood in New York City *Williamsburg, former name of Kernville (former town), California *Williams ...
in 1699. Nearby, Archer's Hope Creek was also renamed. It became College Creek.


Nineteenth Century

In the mid-19th century, during the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
, College Creek again served as part of another cross-peninsula defensive barrier, although the center section across land was located further east, and was of a different nature. College Creek became the southern anchor of the Williamsburg Line. This was a series of 14 redoubts east of town, with earthen Fort Magruder (also known as Redoubt # 6) at the crucial junction of the two major roads leading to Williamsburg from the east. The design and construction had been oversee by the College of William & Mary's President Benjamin S. Ewell, who owned a farm in James City County, and had been commissioned as an officer in the Confederate Army after the college closed for the duration of the War in June, 1861. The Williamsburg area saw combat in the spring of 1862 during the
Peninsula Campaign The Peninsula campaign (also known as the Peninsular campaign) of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March to July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The oper ...
, an effort to take Richmond from the east from a base at
Fort Monroe Fort Monroe is a former military installation in Hampton, Virginia, at Old Point Comfort, the southern tip of the Virginia Peninsula, United States. It is currently managed by partnership between the Fort Monroe Authority for the Commonwealth o ...
. Throughout late 1861 and early 1862, the small contingent of Confederate defenders was known as the Army of the Peninsula, and led by popular General John B. Magruder. He successfully used ruse tactics to bluff the invaders as to the size and strength of his forces, and intimidated them into a slow movement up the Peninsula, gaining valuable time defenses to be constructed for the Confederate capital at Richmond. In early May, 1862, after holding the Union troops off for over a month, the defenders withdrew quietly from the
Warwick Line The Warwick Line (also known as the Warwick–Yorktown line) was a defensive works across the Virginia Peninsula maintained along the Warwick River by Confederate General John B. Magruder against much larger Union forces under General George B. ...
(stretching across the Peninsula between Yorktown and
Mulberry Island Mulberry Island a roughly (11 sq mile) geographic area located in the city of Newport News, Virginia, in southeastern Virginia. While referred to as an island, it is actually a peninsula bordered on three sides by the James River, Warwick River ...
). As General
George McClellan George Brinton McClellan (December 3, 1826 – October 29, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 24th governor of New Jersey and as Commanding General of the United States Army from November 1861 to March 186 ...
's Union forces crept up the Peninsula to pursue the retreating Confederate forces, a rear guard force led by General
James Longstreet James Longstreet (January 8, 1821January 2, 1904) was a General officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War and was the principal subordinate to General Robert E. Lee, who called him his "Old War Ho ...
and supported by General J.E.B. Stuart's cavalry blocked their westward progression at the Williamsburg Line. At the
Battle of Williamsburg The Battle of Williamsburg, also known as the Battle of Fort Magruder, took place on May 5, 1862, in York County, James City County, and Williamsburg, Virginia, as part of the Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War. It was the first pitc ...
on May 5, 1862, and the next day, May 6, the city fell to the Union. However, the retreating defenders behind the Williamsburg Line had been successful in delaying the Union forces long enough for the retreating Confederates to reach the outer defenses of Richmond safely. A siege of Richmond resulted, culminating in the
Seven Days Battles The Seven Days Battles were a series of seven battles over seven days from June 25 to July 1, 1862, near Richmond, Virginia, during the American Civil War. Confederate States Army, Confederate General Robert E. Lee drove the invading Union Army ...
, and McClellan's campaign failed. As a result, the War dragged on almost 3 more years at great cost to lives and finances for both sides before its conclusion in April 1865. Much damage was done to the community during the Union occupation, which lasted until September 1865.


Twentieth century to present

In the early 1957, College Creek was bridged near its mouth by the new Colonial Parkway which was rushed to completion for the celebration of the 350th anniversary of the establishment of
Jamestown, Virginia The Jamestown settlement in the Colony of Virginia was the first permanent British colonization of the Americas, English settlement in the Americas. It was located on the northeast bank of the James River, about southwest of present-day Willia ...
. The Williamsburg Airport was established in James City County near the western shore and the border with Williamsburg. In 1985, "Wessex Hundred" was founded for the
Williamsburg Winery The Williamsburg Winery is a winery located in Williamsburg, Virginia. It is the state's largest winery, accounting for one quarter of all wine produced in Virginia. History The Williamsburg Winery took its present form for the first time in 19 ...
near the creek.https://www.williamsburgwinery.com/gabriel-archer-of-1607-jamestowne-celebrated-by-a-virginia-reserve-wine In more recent times, four-laned limited access State Route 199, also known as the Humelsine Parkway, runs along the county-city border as it crosses College Creek on two large bridges, the more recent completed in 2006.


See also

*
List of rivers of Virginia This is a list of rivers in the U.S. state of Virginia. By drainage basin This list is arranged by drainage basin, with respective tributaries, arranged in the order of their confluence from mouth to source, indented under each larger stream's nam ...


References


External links


James City County Watersheds
{{authority control Rivers of James City County, Virginia Rivers of Virginia Tributaries of the James River