TheHistoric Triangle includes three historic colonial communities located on theVirginia Peninsula, bounded by theYork River on the north andJames River on the south. The three points that form the triangle areJamestown,Colonial Williamsburg, andYorktown. They feature many restored attractions and are linked by theColonial Parkway inJames City andYork counties, and theCity of Williamsburg.
Describing the significance to the United States of the three main points of the Historic Triangle, the Reverend Dr.W.A.R. Goodwin, rector ofBruton Parish Church and co-founder ofColonial Williamsburg, said, "Williamsburg is Jamestown continued, and Yorktown is Williamsburg vindicated."
TheNational Park Service's Colonial Parkway was constructed to connect the three historic attractions of Colonial Virginia with a scenic and bucolic roadway carefully shielded from views of commercial development. Intended to help visitors mentally return to the past, it has views of waterway and natural areas, andwildlife andwaterfowl along the roadway (and crossing it). The only human development that can be seen from most of the parkway are the two loading piers of Cheatham Annex, part of theNaval Weapons Station Yorktown, which borders the inland side of much of the parkway. The peninsula has major military installations.
Near theJames River andYork River ends of the parkway, there are several pull-offs where visitors can admire the view. The Colonial Parkway is free of tolls or user fees.
The Parkway starts in Yorktown, passes through Colonial Williamsburg and ends in Jamestown. No commercial vehicles are allowed to use the parkway for transportation, although commuter traffic has increased dramatically in the early 21st century.
Some visitors from the South travel to the area across theJames River by ferry fromSurry County.State Route 10 andState Route 31 (the John Rolfe Highway) lead toScotland Wharf. Visitors can take one of the fourJamestown Ferries, which include thePocahontas andWilliamsburg. As passengers cross, they can leave their vehicles and can walk about or go up to an enclosed viewing level with restrooms.
During favorable weather and daylight hours, northbound passengers usually see theJamestown Island much as the first colonists may have approached it. Replicas ofChristopher Newport's three tiny ships,Susan Constant,Godspeed, andDiscovery are docked near the northern ferry landing at Glass House Point.
The state-operated Jamestown Ferry service is toll-free.
The first permanent English settlement in the New World was established at Jamestown on May 13, 1607.[1] There are two major heritage sites at Jamestown:Jamestown Settlement, aliving history museum which includes a reconstructedNative American village, colonial fort, and replica ships, operated by the Commonwealth of Virginia; andHistoric Jamestowne, the National Park Service site which includes Jamestown Island and the ongoing archaeological projects.
In 1699, the capital of Virginia was moved from Jamestown to a location on high ground atMiddle Plantation at the suggestion of students from theCollege of William and Mary, which had been established there in 1693. Middle Plantation was soon renamedWilliamsburg, in honor ofKing William III, and it was a busy place until theAmerican Revolution.
In 1780, during theAmerican Revolutionary War, the capital and government were moved to a more secure location atRichmond. Williamsburg became a largely sleepy little town for almost 150 years, as many young people left the Tidewater area in search of new lands to the west and other frontiers. In the early 20th century, the town was revived due to the preservation efforts of Reverend Dr.W.A.R. Goodwin, rector ofBruton Parish Church, and the generosity ofStandard Oil heirJohn D. Rockefeller Jr. and his family, who shared a dream of restoring the old colonial capital city to its 18th-century state. They worked for decades to develop that vision to honor the later colonial capital.
The result of those efforts,Colonial Williamsburg, is a largeliving museum of early American life. It has 88 original buildings and dozens of restored and recreated buildings and re-enactors. It is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. The Visitor Center (right off the Colonial Parkway) features a short movie. It has a parking area, as automobiles are restricted from the restored area. A wheelchair-accessible shuttlebus service is provided.
The third point of the triangle is Yorktown, where General Cornwallis surrendered toGeorge Washington in 1781 in the last land battle of theAmerican Revolution. There are two large visitor centers, battlefield drives, and a waterfront area. The historic area of downtown has numerous buildings from the pre-Revolutionary era.
The three Historic Triangle areas (and the Colonial Parkway between them) have been restored to promote a sense of the past. Nearby are many modern hotels, motels, campgrounds, restaurants, shops and stores, gasoline stations, and amusements.
Other major attractions include: