Nelson House, circa 1730

Thomas Nelson, Jr. devoted his life to American independence, first supporting political freedom from Great Britain in Virginia’s colonial legislature, protesting British taxes, leading Yorktown’s tea party, and serving as one of Virginia’s delegates to the Continental Congress. In May 1776, he urged Virginia to officially support independence, a step that helped lead to the Declaration of Independence, which he signed with 55 others. He continued to back the revolution through political action and by using his own money to buy military supplies. Elected the third governor of Virginia on June 12, 1781, he confronted the invasion of the British army and, as governor and general of Virginia’s militia, took part in the victory at Yorktown. The day after the British surrender, he wrote that the enemy’s loss must be between 6 and 7000 men and that the blow must be decisive. He resigned in November 1781, poor in health and in debt, and died on January 4, 1789; he was buried at Grace Church beside his father and grandfather. His home, built around 1730 by his grandfather Thomas, still bears scars from Allied cannon fire during the 1781 siege, remained in Nelson family ownership until 1908, and was purchased and restored by the National Park Service in 1968.

Yorktown, Virginia · United States