An Innovative Use of Resources
The vessel and wagon you see before you represent CSN Captain John Taylor Wood's use of available resources in an innovative way during the Civil War. Wood was one of the most illustrious military men to fight . . . — — Map (db m176040) HM
Explorer is a full scale replica of the boat Captain John Smith used to explore and map Chesapeake Bay 1607-1608. The boat was built by the Deltaville Maritime Museum as a community project to help Jamestown celebrate her 400th birthday in . . . — — Map (db m97222) HM
Early Compass Rose
The compass rose originated around 1200 AD. It evolved from the wind rose, a device that used a wind vane and card with a rose-like design to indicated wind direction. The compass was born when first a lodestone, then a . . . — — Map (db m97219) HM
The vessel and wagon you see before you are a representation of an idea by one of the most illustrious military men to fight in Middlesex County during the Civil War, John Taylor Wood. The grandson of Zachery Taylor and the nephew of Jefferson . . . — — Map (db m97218) HM
A Daunting Task Made Easier
Many Deltaville boats were built in backyards and barns away from the water. When the boat was finished, the builder was faced with the daunting task of launching it. Prior to the advent of travel lifts, boat . . . — — Map (db m176033) HM
An Epic Voyage
In the spring of 1608, Captain John Smith and 14 men set out in a shallop on an epic voyage to explore and map the Chesapeake Bay. For 140 days Smith and his men endured Indian attacks, heat, disease, thirst and starvation, . . . — — Map (db m176031) HM
Built in 1924 in Seaford, VA by Alex Gaines and John Smith
This historic vessel is the last largest log boat built for power.
The Deltaville Maritime Museum, with John England as project manager, is restoring the “Crockett” for the . . . — — Map (db m59626) HM
Nearby Stingray Point was named for a fish that almost killed John Smith in July 1608. After running aground in the sandy flats near the point, the explorers speared fish with their swords as they waited for the tide to rise.
Not realizing . . . — — Map (db m97223) HM
A gaff-rigged flagpole
The flagpole you see before you is a gaff-rigged with a yardarm or crosstree. The pole is 40 feet tall and 8 inches in diameter at its base. It sits in a 12 inch by 48 inch steel flagpole ground sleeve buried . . . — — Map (db m97217) HM
From Water to Land
The winch and rails before you represent the arrangement that many boatyards used to haul boats from the water before the advent of the Travel Lift.
The rails extended far enough into the water for a boat to be floated . . . — — Map (db m176036) HM
Oysters were originally harvested by the Powhatan or colonist by wading into the water and picking them up off the oyster bar, but as the number of people eating the oysters increased, boats were needed to collect them from bars farther out into the . . . — — Map (db m97220) HM
Oysters have been a prominent part of life on the Chesapeake Bay since before Colonial times and harvesting oysters always has been an important occupation. The tools used to harvest oysters have evolved over time, as oysters in shallow water . . . — — Map (db m176044) HM
In grateful memory of the woman whose generous gift made the Deltaville Maritime Museum & Holly Point Nature Park possible.
Pette was born in New Mexico Territory, where she grew up on a large ranch and developed a great affinity for the . . . — — Map (db m176030) HM
Founding Member and Third President of the Deltaville Maritime Museum & Holly Point Nature Park (DMM & HPNP)
Gene's longtime commitment to the creation of a watermen's museum resulted in the establishment of the DMM&HPNP in 2002. In . . . — — Map (db m176056) HM
Capt. John Smith led two exploratory voyages in Chesapeake Bay during the summer of 1608. His boat ran aground at the mouth of the Rappahannock River three miles east, on 17 July. While awaiting high tide to float the vessel, he and his men impaled . . . — — Map (db m26571) HM
Six enslaved men (Alexander Franklin, David Harris, John Hunter, Miles Hunter, Peter Hunter, and Samuel Hunter), fearing impressment into Confederate service, sought refuge in the Stingray Point Lighthouse near here on 15 July 1861 and hailed the . . . — — Map (db m179743) HM
An exact, full scale recreation of the Stingray Point screwpile lighthouse, built in 1858 and demolished in 1965. It was located 1.8 miles due east of this spot and marked the shoal extending from Stingray Point, dividing the Rappahannock and . . . — — Map (db m176057) HM
A Restored Chesapeake Buy Boat
A Chesapeake Bay buy boat, often called a deck boat because of its large decks, is a type of motor-powered workboat once used for transporting freight throughout the Chesapeake region. It has an aft pilot . . . — — Map (db m176052) HM
Built 1717, this was the second lower chapel of Christ Church Parish, Middlesex County. It occupies the site of the first lower chapel of this parish, built before 1661 as the church of Piankatank Parish. Bartholomew Yates was the first minister of . . . — — Map (db m14109) HM
In Aug. 1863, Confederate Navy Lt. John Taylor Wood, moving overland with boarding cutters carried on modified wagons and a contingent of 82 men, embarked on an expedition to attack Union ships. At Wilton Creek, Wood and his men repulsed forces from . . . — — Map (db m74703) HM
Eight miles east, where the Rappahannock River joins Chesapeake Bay. Near there, in June, 1608, Captain John Smith, the explorer, was hurt by a stingray while fishing in the river. The point took its name from this incident. — — Map (db m26572) HM
This church was constituted in 1772 by the noted Baptist preacher, John Waller. The first building stood on the old Glebe overlooking the Rappahannock River; hence the name Glebe Landing. The present building was erected in 1839. — — Map (db m2976) HM
Walking straight into the mouth of early death facing superior enemy fire power and while greatly outnumbered, this soldier displayed courage and valor, above and beyond the call of duty. His act of conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity occurred May . . . — — Map (db m14112) HM
Half a mile east is Christ Church, Middlesex. The first building was erected about 1666; the present one in 1712. About 1840 the church was restored. The colonial governor, Sir Henry Chicheley, is buried there. — — Map (db m27001) HM
To commemorate the valor and patriotism of the men, and the devotion and sacrifice of the women of Middlesex in defense of their liberties and their homes. — — Map (db m14111) HM
In 1849, the county seat of Middlesex was moved from Urbanna to Saluda. Engineer John P. Hill completed the present courthouse in 1852. During the Civil War, Federal cavalrymen stationed in Yorktown made several excursions through the county. Court . . . — — Map (db m14110) HM
The resistance of Irene Morgan (1917-2007) to segregation led to an important court case. On 16 July 1944, Morgan refused to give up her seat on a Greyhound bus to a white passenger. After a struggle with Middlesex County sheriffs she was arrested. . . . — — Map (db m74700) HM
Two miles to the north, in the colonial port of entry of Urbanna, is a restored eighteenth century storehouse. Scottish merchants became active commercial factors in the colony subsequent to the Act of Union of England and Scotland. Urbanna was . . . — — Map (db m26861) HM
African American residents of Middlesex County established the Langston Training School (later the Middlesex Training School) in 1917 to serve elementary and high school students. The Rosenwald Fund supported construction of a new building ca. 1921. . . . — — Map (db m175980) HM
In Christ Churchyard immediately to the north lies buried Lieutenant General Lewis Burwell Puller, USMC. He led Marines in 19 campaigns from Haiti and Nicaragua through the Korean War, receiving 53 decorations and the admiration and affection of . . . — — Map (db m26976) HM
Every week for more than thirty years Dr. David Buell Nichols made the voyage from Hummel Field in Middlesex County to Tangier Island in the Chesapeake Bay to administer health care to those in need. For an island with no resident doctor, the sound . . . — — Map (db m99413) HM
As you look toward the water, you are viewing a historical landscape. The houses in front of you weren't here 250 years ago, but the Customs House - the building across the street to your left - would have been. Imagine what this place was like back . . . — — Map (db m26632) HM
Here in the garden of Lansdowne was buried Arthur Lee, 1740-1792. The youngest son of Thomas Lee of Stratford. He was graduated in medicine at Edinburgh in 1764 and practiced briefly at Williamsburg, but his zeal for the cause of the American . . . — — Map (db m33887) HM
From the town's beginning, there has been either a ferry or a bridge near this site. County residents traveling to and from the courthouse in Urbanna complained over generations of the slow moving ferry across the creek. The construction of the . . . — — Map (db m186701) HM
in 1678, Christopher Robinson purchased 300 acres here that became Hewick, the Virginia seat of the Robinson family. Robinson’s distinguished service to Virginia began as the clerk of Middlesex County Court from 1677 to 1688. He was elected to the . . . — — Map (db m27178) HM
During the Civil War, ships came and went into Urbanna Creek as the town was occupied at different times by Federal and Confederate forces. Just off the mouth of the creek, on November 8, 1861, a Union tug and steamer armed with cannons fired . . . — — Map (db m186742) HM
This building was built in the 1940s to house a Coca-Cola Bottling Plant. The Coca-Cola Company of Chattanooga sold a franchise in 1921 allowing the sale and distribution of Cokes and other soda pop in Middlesex and six surrounding counties. . . . — — Map (db m186713) HM
The courtyard of Middlesex County's colonial courthouse was directly behind the brick courthouse building in view from this panel. In the year 1748, the Town of Urbanna became the county seat of Middlsex County. It remained so for 104 years when . . . — — Map (db m186686) HM
Cross Street extends over the three main streets in town, Watling, Prince George and Virginia streets. Throughout the town's hisotry, these four streets vied for commercial dominance. At the turn of the 20th century, Cross Street, briefly named . . . — — Map (db m186689) HM
Watermen's Park is a tribute to generations of Urbanna men and women who have made their livings working the water. In June 1680, Virginia's Colonial Assembly approved "An Act for cohabitation and encouragement of trade and manufacture" and . . . — — Map (db m186730) HM
Born in Lancaster County on 13 Apr. 1711, John Mitchell studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh and in 1734 opened a practice of medicine here in Urbanna. In 1746, he moved to London, where he published his Map of the British and French . . . — — Map (db m26575) HM
In 1763 Ralph Wormeley III of Rosegill sold this house to James Mills, a Scottish merchant. In 1791 Arthur Lee bought it and 1,000 adjacent acres to be his home in retirement. Lee named this estate Landsdowne in honor of his friend, William . . . — — Map (db m27015) HM
This building served as the Middlesex County courthouse from 1748 to 1852. Although much altered from its original appearance, it is one of Virginia’s rare colonial courthouse buildings. During the American Revolution, the local Committee of Safety . . . — — Map (db m27011) HM
Traditionally known as the Old Tobacco Warehouse. Built 1766 by James Mills, Scottish merchant. First used as a store and/or warehouse.Owned and authentically restored by the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities. — — Map (db m26605) HM
In 1608, Capt. John Smith mapped Opiscopank near here as an Indian town where a chief lived. Oddly, his narratives did not mention visiting the town or how he learned about it. In 1649, Ralph Wormeley patented 3,200 acres here that included “the . . . — — Map (db m74697) HM
From 1850s to the 1950s, the town's fall and winter economy was driven by oysters. Urbanna's strategic location to fertile Rappahannock River oyster beds encouraged oyster hand-tongers to come to town from September to March. Oystermen from . . . — — Map (db m186726) HM
This historical landscape hasn't really changed in the past 250 years. The Factor Store has gone through many transitions from a tobacco inspection facility and general store, to private homes, to the Urbanna Library and, finally, to the museum you . . . — — Map (db m26631) HM
Prince George Street is one of the original streets shown on early 1700s town survyes. The Middlesex County Courtyard backed up to the street and today the colonial "Old Tavern" still stands. Taverns or ordinaries were important to Middlesex's . . . — — Map (db m186702) HM
A short distance east is Rosegill. The house was built about 1650 by the first Ralph Wormeley; it became the summer home of the colonial governors, Sir Henry Chicheley and Lord Howard of Effingham. In 1776, the owner, the fifth Ralph Wormeley, was . . . — — Map (db m27005) HM
Sandwich, circa 1754, is registered as a Virginia Historic Landmark and placed on the National Register of Historic Places. 2008. — — Map (db m26858) HM
(panel 1)
Smith's Snapshot
The semi-permanent nature of their towns reflected the highly sustainable lifestyle of Virginia’s Indians. They located towns next to waterways, in places with the best soils. As farming depleted . . . — — Map (db m97249) HM
The golden era of steamboats began when two steam-powered side-wheel vessels out of Norfolk named Petersburg and Albemarle arrived in 1821 at the mouth of Urbanna Creek. In 1828, a Baltimore firm started the first commercial . . . — — Map (db m186696) HM
The quiet landscape you see today was once teeming with activity.
There was a garden behind the store that provided vegetables for home use and possibly for sale or trade. There was a larger garden area as well, which was probably tended by . . . — — Map (db m26606) HM
Nearby, in the garden of Lansdowne, was buried Arthur Lee, 1740-1792, the youngest son of Thomas Lee of Stratford. Early in 1776 he secretly obtained the original grant of French military supplies for the Continental Army, which made possible the . . . — — Map (db m33886) HM
Right in front of you is one of the oldest roads in America, Prettyman's Rolling Road descends to the waterfront at the end of Virginia Street. The early economy of Virginia was built from the growing and selling of tobacco. Urbanna Creek . . . — — Map (db m186723) HM
In Colonial Virginia, tobacco was money - a product in high demand in England. Acts were passed providing for the inspection of tobacco to ensure quality and to make sure that correct payments were made for its sale and purchase.
All tobacco . . . — — Map (db m26630) HM
Before being developed, this area in town was home field to the Urbanna semi-pro baseball team. Alvin G. Loving purchased the land in the 1930s and built a baseball field complete with stands and removable canvases for outfield walls. Urbanna . . . — — Map (db m186710) HM
First known as Nimcock Creek, this creek was mentioned in a legislative act of 1680 as “Wormley’s Creek.” After the town of Urbanna was named in 1705 for Queen Anne, the stream was given the same name. British privateersmen entered the . . . — — Map (db m27009) HM
Taber Park was once home to Urbanna High School, later known as Urbanna Graded School. The two-story brick school building then located here was completed in 1911 by Sidney Muire as a state-of-the-art school facility. It served elementary and . . . — — Map (db m186704) HM
Welcome to Urbanna, Virginia
Along this walking tour you will find illustrated panels presenting many lively stories and facts about the town, its buildings, its residents and their lives. Urbanna's origin goes back to June 1680, when . . . — — Map (db m186685) HM
Virginia Street is one of the oldest streets in America and the busiest in Urbanna. There are five original colonial buildings standing. Three of Urbanna's most famous residents, Dr. Arthur Lee, Dr. John Mitchell, and Andrew Jackson Montague . . . — — Map (db m186717) HM
The colonial ferry, later a one-lane bridge, and a steamboat landing paved the way over time for Watling Street to become a main avenue into town. Originally named Wadling Lane, the street in the 1880s wound from the bridge to a carpenter shop . . . — — Map (db m186692) HM
Town buildings provide an interesting contrast in American architectural periods. This colonial one and a half story (circa 1747), Wormeley, Lee, Montague House, is the oldest post and beam structure in town. In 1791, Revolutionary War dimplomat . . . — — Map (db m186703) HM
Three miles east is Hewick, built about 1678 by Christopher Robinson, Clerk of Middlesex County. It was the birthplace of John Robinson, Speaker of the House of Burgesses and Treasurer of Virginia, 1738-1766, the leading man of the colony. — — Map (db m7514) HM