Eastern Shore of Virginia | |
|---|---|
 Eastern Shore ofVirginia | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Virginia |
| Largest city | Chincoteague |
| Counties | |
| Area | |
• Total | 2,105 sq mi (5,450 km2) |
| Population (2020 Census) | |
• Total | 45,695 |
| • Density | 22/sq mi (8.4/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (EST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
TheEastern Shore of Virginia is the easternmost region of theCommonwealth ofVirginia in theUnited States. It consists of twocounties (Accomack andNorthampton) on theAtlantic coast. It is detached from the mainland of Virginia by theChesapeake Bay. The 70-mile-long (110 km) region is part of theDelmarva Peninsula. Its population was 45,695 as of 2020.[1]
Accomac Shire was established in theVirginia Colony by theHouse of Burgesses in 1634 under the direction of KingCharles I. It was one of the original eightshires of Virginia, and consisted of the whole of Virginia's Delmarva territory. The shire's name comes from the Native American word Accawmack, which means, "the other shore".[2]
In 1642, the name was changed toNorthampton County. (In England, "shires" and "counties" are the same thing.) In 1663, Northampton County was split into two counties. The northern two thirds took the original Accomac name, while the southern third remained as Northampton.[2]
In 1670, theVirginia Colony'sRoyal GovernorWilliam Berkeley abolished Accomac County, but theVirginia General Assembly re-created it in 1671. In 1940, the General Assembly officially added a "k" to the end of the county's name to arrive at its current spelling, which isAccomack.[3][4]
The terrain is overall very flat, ranging from sea level to just 50 feet (15 m) above sea level. It is characterized bysandy and deep soil. The weather in the area has temperate summers and winters, significantly affected by theChesapeake Bay and theAtlantic Ocean.[5] The rural area has long been devoted tocotton,soybean, vegetable andtruck farming, and large-scale chicken farms.[6] Since the late 20th century, vineyards have been developed in both counties, and the Eastern Shore has received recognition as anAmerican Viticultural Area (AVA).
The region has more than 78,000 acres of preserved parks, refuges, preserves and a national seashore and is a popular outdoor recreation destination for fishing, boating, hiking and kayaking. It is also an important birding hotspot along theAtlantic Flyway at the southernmost tip of the Delmarva Peninsula. There are public beaches atCape Charles,Kiptopeke State Park,Savage Neck Dunes Natural Area Preserve,Tangier Island and theChincoteague National Wildlife Refuge abutting theAssateague Island National Seashore.
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The area includes 70 miles ofbarrier islands, the longest chain of undeveloped barrier islands in the global temperate zone and a United Nations International Biosphere Reserve. At the northern end of the Atlantic side is the beach community ofChincoteague, famous for its annualwild pony roundup, gathered fromAssateague Island.Wallops Flight Facility, aNASA space launch base, is located near Chincoteague. At the southern end of the Chesapeake Bay coast, the beach community ofCape Charles, a historic railroad town, is home to the Cape Charles Yacht Center, a super yacht service center. The town ofWachapreague on the Atlantic coast is a popular destination for fishing and guided trips out to the wild barrier islands.Onancock, a harbor town on the Chesapeake Bay, has a ferry service toTangier Island, off the western shore in the Chesapeake Bay, during spring, summer and fall.
Some maps of Virginia do not include the Eastern Shore.Encyclopedia Virginia's logo began depicting the region in 2018, after the inauguration ofRalph Northam, the secondGovernor of Virginia from the Eastern Shore.[7] Geographically removed from the rest of Virginia, it has had a unique history of settlement and development influenced by agriculture, fishing, tourism, and thePennsylvania Railroad. William G. Thomas describes the Eastern Shore during the late 19th and early 20th century as "a highly complex and interdependent landscape". He continues:
It was a liminal place, a zone of interpenetration, where the settlement patterns, speech, demography, and political outcomes defined its place in the South but its engagement with technology and rapid transformation of the landscape betrayed other allegiances, motives, forces, and effects.[6]
The 17.6-mile-long (28.3 km)Chesapeake Bay Bridge–Tunnel, which is part ofU.S. Route 13, spans the mouth of the Bay and connects the Eastern Shore toSouth Hampton Roads and the rest of Virginia. Before the Chesapeake Bay Bridge–Tunnel was built in 1964, theLittle Creek-Cape Charles Ferry provided the continuation of U.S. 13 across this stretch of water.
US 13
US 13 Bus. (Accomac)US 13 Bus. (Cape Charles)STAR Transit provides public transit services for both Accomack and Northampton counties, serving both with fixed-route bus andparatransit operations.
The area is served by the weekly Eastern Shore Post and the monthly publicationEastern Shore First. The predominant radio station is WESR 103.3 FM, which operates the website ShoreDailyNews.com.
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 47,601 | — | |
| 1970 | 43,446 | −8.7% | |
| 1980 | 45,893 | 5.6% | |
| 1990 | 44,764 | −2.5% | |
| 2000 | 51,398 | 14.8% | |
| 2010 | 45,553 | −11.4% | |
| 2020 | 45,695 | 0.3% | |
| 1960-1990[8] 2000[9][10] 2010[11][12]2020[13][14] | |||
| Race / Ethnicity(NH = Non Hispanic) | Pop 2010[15][16] | Pop 2020[17][18] | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 27,021 | 26,757 | 59.31% | 58.56% |
| Black alone (NH) | 13,744 | 12,395 | 30.17% | 27.13% |
| Hispanic (any race) | 3,724 | 4,498 | 8.17% | 9.84% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 258 | 329 | 0.56% | 0.72% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native alone (NH) | 123 | 123 | 0.27% | 0.27% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 36 | 9 | 0.09% | 0.02% |
| Some other race alone (NH) | 59 | 129 | 0.14% | 0.28% |
| Mixed Race or Multiracial (NH) | 588 | 1,455 | 1.29% | 3.18% |
| Total | 45,553 | 45,695 | 100.00% | 100.00% |
| Year | Democratic | Republican | Others |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 45.7%10,977 | 53.4%12,842 | 0.9%213 |
| 2020 | 47.5%11,245 | 51.2%12,127 | 1.4%322 |
| 2016 | 45.5%9,995 | 51.3%11,269 | 3.3%722 |
| 2012 | 50.6%11,396 | 48.3%10,889 | 1.1%257 |
| 2008 | 51.4%11,407 | 47.5%10,546 | 1.2%256 |
| 2004 | 44.0%8,293 | 55.1%10,395 | 0.9%167 |
| 2000 | 44.2%7,432 | 51.4%8,651 | 4.4%734 |
| 1996 | 46.9%7,789 | 40.8%6,776 | 12.3%2,037 |
| 1992 | 40.1%7,518 | 41.4%7,754 | 18.5%3,471 |
| 1988 | 40.6%6,685 | 57.6%9,488 | 1.8%296 |
| 1984 | 37.2%6,581 | 62.0%10,953 | 0.8%139 |
| 1980 | 46.9%7,235 | 48.8%7,546 | 4.3%670 |
| 1976 | 50.9%7,266 | 45.8%6,537 | 3.3%468 |
| 1972 | 28.3%3,652 | 70.3%9,083 | 1.4%184 |
| 1968 | 29.5%3,885 | 35.3%4,641 | 35.2%4,629 |
| 1964 | 51.5%5,044 | 48.3%4,731 | 0.1%11 |
| 1960 | 53.6%4,731 | 46.0%3,671 | 0.4%31 |
The Eastern Shore is politically divided, withAccomack County generally voting for theRepublican Party andNorthampton County generally voting for theDemocratic Party. As a whole, the Shore is generally a competitive region, but also leans Republican owing to Accomack's larger share of the population.
It voted against the presidential winner in 2020 and 1992. Also, Democrats won Virginia in 2016, 2020, and 2024, but lost the Eastern Shore each time. In the2017 gubernatorial election, it gave 50.5% of the vote to RepublicanEd Gillespie and 49.0% of the vote to DemocratRalph Northam, with Northam winning the election statewide.[20]
It is represented in theU.S. House of Representatives by RepublicanJen Kiggans, in theVirginia Senate by RepublicanBill DeSteph, and in theVirginia House of Delegates by RepublicanRobert Bloxom Jr.[21][22][23]
37°34′52.2″N75°47′14.9″W / 37.581167°N 75.787472°W /37.581167; -75.787472
