The WPA Guide to Virginia: The Old Dominion StateDuring the 1930s in the United States, the Works Progress Administration developed the Federal Writers’ Project to support writers and artists while making a national effort to document the country’s shared history and culture. The American Guide series consists of individual guides to each of the states. Little-known authors—many of whom would later become celebrated literary figures—were commissioned to write these important books. John Steinbeck, Saul Bellow, Zora Neale Hurston, and Ralph Ellison are among the more than 6,000 writers, editors, historians, and researchers who documented this celebration of local histories. Photographs, drawings, driving tours, detailed descriptions of towns, and rich cultural details exhibit each state’s unique flavor. The WPA Guide to Virgina documents the vital role the Old Dominion played in the history of the first 150 years of the United States and before. It is packed with historical information, particularly from the Colonial and Revolutionary years, and supplemented with photos of historic buildings and sites. Also worth note are the artistic photographs of the state’s ordinary people and its natural beauty, including the Shenandoah and Chesapeake Bay regions. |
Contents
| 23 | |
THE NEGRO | |
TRANSPORTATION | |
AGRICULTURE | |
EDUCATION | |
ALEXANDRIA | |
CHARLOTTESVILLE | |
FREDERICKSBURG | |
HAMPTON | |
NORFOLK | |
PORTSMOUTH | |
NEWPORT NEWS | |
PETERSBURG | |
NEWSPAPERS | |
FOLKLORE AND MUSIC | |
THE THEATER | |
RICHMOND | |
ROANOKE | |
Common terms and phrases
acres Alexandria American army assembly Battle became Blue Ridge brick building brick house British built Captain Carolina century Charlottesville chartered Chesapeake chimneys church College Colonel Colonial Confederate court Creek dormers early erected established Fairfax farm Federal Flemish bond frame building frame house Fredericksburg gabled roof garden George Washington Governor hall Hampton Hampton Roads highway Hill hip roof Indians industrial J. E. B. Stuart James River Jamestown John junction with County land later Lee’s Left Line Lynchburg Mary miles mill mountain named Negro Norfolk North Parish Park Petersburg Photograph by courtesy Piedmont plantation portico Potomac President railroad Rappahannock Rappahannock River red brick Revolution Richmond Right road Roanoke seat settlement Shenandoah Shenandoah Valley slaves South Southern Staunton stone streets structure tavern Thomas Jefferson Tidewater tobacco Tour town twostory Valley Virginia walls West William William Byrd II Williamsburg