Downtown in Norfolk, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Northern Limit of Old Norfolk

Photographed by Laura Troy, November 4, 2007

1. Northern Limit of Old Norfolk Marker

Inscription. This marks the Northern limit of the fifty acres constituting the original town of Norfolk. It was bounded on the North by Town Back Creek and Dun-In-The-Mire Creek. The land was purchased as a port for lower Norfolk county for “tenn thousand pounds of tobacco and caske,” being deeded to feoffees in trust for the County in 1682. It was divided into streets and sold in half-acre lots.

Erected 1931 by City of Norfolk.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Colonial Era • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1682.

Location. 36° 50.82′ N, 76° 17.115′ W. Marker is in Norfolk, Virginia. It is in Downtown. It is at the intersection of St Paul's Boulevard and East City Hall Avenue, on the right when traveling north on St Paul's Boulevard. This markers sits on the wall that surrounds St Paul’s Church. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Norfolk VA 23510, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Virginia’s Hampton Roads,

specifically in Coastal Virginia,

and in the Hampton Roads Metropolitan Area.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

and in the Tidewater.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: St. Paul’s Church, 1739 (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); East Main Street (about 600 feet away); Willoughby-Baylor House, 1794 (approx. 0.2 miles away); St. Joseph’s Catholic Church & School (approx. 0.2 miles away);

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Francis Drake, Free Black Barber (approx. 0.2 miles away); Commercial Place (approx. 0.2 miles away); Old City Hall and Courthouse, 1850 (approx. 0.2 miles away); Whitehead House, 1791 (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Norfolk.

More about this marker. “Feoffees” is an old English law term roughly equivalent to today’s “trustee.” Marker was originally erected at the corner of Cove and Church Streets in the late 1920s or early 1930s. Cove Street no longer exists.

Photographed by Mike Wintermantel, June 23, 2015

2. Northern Limit of Old Norfolk Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on October 26, 2023. It was originally submitted on November 6, 2007, by Laura Troy of Burke, Virginia. This page has been viewed 1,429 times since then and 29 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on November 6, 2007, by Laura Troy of Burke, Virginia. 2. submitted on June 26, 2015, by Mike Wintermantel of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. • J. J. Prats was the editor who published this page.