Yorktown

Before the American Revolutionary War, Yorktown was a prosperous, thriving tobacco port and the capital of the county of that name, situated on rising ground that descended into a valley. During the climactic military campaign of the war, General George Washington’s victory over British General Charles Lord Cornwallis in the 1781 siege damaged or destroyed approximately 80% of the town. Although Yorktown never regained its colonial prominence, it remains a vibrant community with shops, restaurants, places of lodging, churches, and a county courthouse, and its historic homes, buildings, and military earthworks still reflect its important contributions to the founding of the United States of America.

Yorktown, Virginia · United States