Virginia |
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| Entered the Union: June 25, 1788 (10) | Capital: Richmond | |
| Origin of Name: in honor of Elizabeth “Virgin Queen” of England | ||
| State Nickname: The Old Dominion • Mother of Presidents | ||
| State Motto: Sic semper tyrannis (Thus always to tyrants) | ||
| State Flower Dogwood | State Bird: Cardinal | |
| State Tree: Dogwood | State Fish: Brook Trout | |
| State Dog: American Foxhound | State Shell: Oyster | |
| State Butterfly: Tiger Swallowtail | State Beverage: Milk | |
| State Song "Carry Me Back to Old Virginia" | ||
| National Forests: 2 • State Forests: 26 • State Parks: 44 | ||
| Famous For: Presidential homes, Arlington Military Cemetery, Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, Chincoteague Ponies | ||
| Famous Virginians: George Washington • Thomas Jefferson • James Madison • James Monroe • William H. Harrison • John Tyler • Zachary Taylor • Woodrow Wilson (Presidents), Arthur Ashe (tennis), Pearl Bailey (singer), Warren Beatty (actor), Richard Byrd (polar explorer), Roy Clark (country music), William Clark & Meriwether Lewis (explorers), Henry Clay (statesman), Ella Fitzgerald (singer), Patrick Henry (statesman), Sam Houston (political leader), Robert E. Lee (Confederate general), Moses Malone (basketball), John Marshall (US Supreme Court), Cyrus McCormick (inventor), George C. Scott (actor), Sam Snead (golfer), Booker T. Washington (educator) | ||
| Animals and Birds: Click on photos of the animals and birds on this page to find out more about them and to hear the sounds they make. | ||
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| Several Native American tribes lived in Virginia -- Cherokee, Powhatan, Manahoac, Meherrin, Monacan, Nahyssan, Nottaway, Occaneechi, Saponi, Shawnee, and Tutelo. | |||||||||||||||||
| In 1570, Spanish missionaries built a settlement along the York River, but were killed only a few months later. English explorers arrived in the late 1580s, but their expedition failed due to lack of supplies. | |||||||||||||||||
| In 1607, Captain John Smith established the first permanent English settlement in North America at Jamestown. Many settlers died that winter from starvation. Fortunately, ships bringing new colonists with food and supplies arrived early in the spring. | |||||||||||||||||
| John Rolfe of Jamestown began planting tobacco in 1612. He developed a method that enabled tobacco to be exported, allowing it to become the leading industry in Virginia. | |||||||||||||||||
| The surrenders ending both the American Revolution (Yorktown) and the Civil War (Appomattox) occurred in Virginia. | |||||||||||||||||
| Virginia's nickname is “Mother of Presidents” because eight U.S. presidents were born there. | |||||||||||||||||
| The Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel is the world's largest bridge-tunnel complex. It 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. | |||||||||||||||||
| The states of Kentucky & West Virginia were formed from sections of the state of Virginia. | |||||||||||||||||
| Patrick Henry made his "Give me Liberty or Give me Death" speech in St. John's Church in Richmond. | |||||||||||||||||
| Virginia is the home base for the United States Navy's Atlantic Fleet. | |||||||||||||||||
| Virginia is known as "the birthplace of a nation." | |||||||||||||||||
| Jamestown was the first English settlement in the U.S. It was also the first capital of Virginia. | |||||||||||||||||
| Jamestown, the first of the original 13 Colonies was founded for the purpose of silk cultivation. Silk to be traded with the Court of King James. After blight fungus destroyed the mulberry trees (silkworm food), sericulturist planted tobacco as a cash crop. | |||||||||||||||||
| The major cash crop of Virginia is tobacco and many of the people who live there earn their living from the tobacco industry. | |||||||||||||||||
| The state capital of Richmond was also the capital of the Confederacy. | |||||||||||||||||
| Over 2,200 of the 4,000 battles fought in the civil war were fought in Virginia. | |||||||||||||||||
| The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg is the second oldest in the United States, it was founded in 1693. | |||||||||||||||||
| The first peanuts grown in the United States were grown in Virginia. | |||||||||||||||||
| About 1/2 of all the people in the United States live within a 500 mile radius of the Capital of Virginia. | |||||||||||||||||
| About one fourth of Virginians work for the United States government. | |||||||||||||||||
| Virginia's largest private employer is also the world's largest ship building yard. | |||||||||||||||||
| The tomb of the Unknown Soldier is in Arlington National Cemetery. | |||||||||||||||||
| The Pentagon building in Arlington is the largest office building in the world. | |||||||||||||||||
| The Pentagon has nearly 68,000 miles of internal telephone lines. | |||||||||||||||||
| Dulles International Airport is one of the busiest airports in the world. | |||||||||||||||||
| The first Thanksgiving in North America was held in Virginia in 1619. | |||||||||||||||||
| The American Revolution ended with the surrender of General Cornwallis in Yorktown. | |||||||||||||||||
| Virginia has been dubbed the "Internet Capital of the world". | |||||||||||||||||
| The Atlantic headquarters of NATO is located in Norfolk. | |||||||||||||||||
| The Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel is the world's largest bridge-tunnel complex. | |||||||||||||||||
| President Thomas Jefferson designed his own home and called it Monticello. | |||||||||||||||||
| George Washington's home, Mount Vernon, is located in Virginia. | |||||||||||||||||
| General Robert E. Lee surrendered his men to General Ulysses Grant on April 9, 1865 at the Appomattox Court House. | |||||||||||||||||
| Virginia Ethnic Roots: African 19.6%, German 11.7%, American 11.2%, English 11.1%, Irish 9.8%, Asian 5.2%. | |||||||||||||||||
| Religion in Virginia: Christian 84% (Protestant 69%, Catholic – 14%, other 1%), No Religion 12%, Other Religions 2%. | |||||||||||||||||
| Bristol is legally two cities but they share the same main street. One in Virginia and one in Tennessee each with its own government and city services. | |||||||||||||||||
| For centuries, wild ponies have roamed the islands of Chincoteague and Assateague off the coast of Maryland and Virginia. To protect the natural resources of the wildlife refuge, the size of the herds are limited. In Virginia, the yearly "Pony Penning" roundup and auction maintains the limit of 150 adult animals. | |||||||||||||||||
At a Glance
Virginia Quick Facts
| Entered the Union | June 25, 1788 (10) |
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| Capital | Richmond |
| Nickname | The Old Dominion • Mother of Presidents |
| State Bird | Cardinal |
| State Flower | Dogwood |
| State Tree | Dogwood |
New for 2026
More Virginia Facts & Photos
Thomas Jefferson bought the 215-foot Natural Bridge and 157 surrounding acres from King George III in 1774, calling it "the most sublime of nature's works." Since 2016 the limestone arch has been the centerpiece of Natural Bridge State Park.
Deep inside Luray Caverns, the Great Stalacpipe Organ makes music by tapping stalactites spread across 3.5 acres with rubber mallets. Begun by Leland Sprinkle in 1956, it is recognized by Guinness World Records as the largest natural underground musical instrument in the world.
Shenandoah National Park was established in 1935, and its Skyline Drive runs 105 miles along the crest of the Blue Ridge, the only public road through the park, with about 75 overlooks above the Shenandoah Valley and the Piedmont.
Virginia's state fossil, the extinct scallop Chesapecten jeffersonius, was the first North American fossil illustrated in scientific literature, in 1687. It was later named in honor of Thomas Jefferson and adopted as the official state fossil in 1993.
The Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, created in 1974, protects more than 100,000 acres of forested wetland along the Virginia-North Carolina line. At its heart lies Lake Drummond, one of only two natural lakes in Virginia.
Voices of America
In Their Own Words
Woodrow Wilson
"The Bible...is the one supreme source of revelation of the meaning of life, the nature of God and spiritual nature and needs of men. It is the only guide of life which really leads the spirit in the way of peace and salvation. America was born a Christian nation."
President
James Monroe
"The liberty, prosperity, and the happiness of our country will always be the object of my most fervent prayers to the Supreme Author of All Good."
March 5, 1821 Inaugural Address
President
James Madison
"Before any man can be considered as a member of civil society, he must be considered as a subject of the Governor of the Universe. And to the same Divine Author of every good and perfect gift [James 1:17] we are indebted for all those privileges and advantages, religious as well as civil, which are so richly enjoyed in this favored land."
President
George Washington
"Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports."Farewell Address
President
Thomas Jefferson
“I have always said and always will say that the studious perusal of the Sacred Volume will make better citizens, better fathers, better husbands... the Bible makes the best people in the world."
President
Thomas Jefferson
"It is our duty still to endeavor to avoid war; but if it shall actually take place, no matter by whom brought on, we must defend ourselves. If our house be on fire, without inquiring whether it was fired from within or without, we must try to extinguish it."
President
Last updated: July 2026