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Interesting Facts
- Coveted for its strategic location on the Elizabeth River, Norfolk was originally purchased by Virginia's General Assembly in 1682 for 10,000 pounds of tobacco. Today, Norfolk is the second largest city in Virginia and the headquarters for the Navy's Atlantic Fleet.
- Linking Norfolk with Newport News and Portsmouth, Hampton Roads is one of the world's largest natural harbors. The name Hampton Roads refers to the point where the Chesapeake Bay, and the Elizabeth, James, and Nansemond Rivers all converge. The educational Hampton Roads Naval Museum chronicles the area's naval and maritime history.
- Most people regard Norfolk as a "Navy Town." But with three four-year institutions of higher learning, it's also a college town. Old Dominion University, Virginia Wesleyan College, and Norfolk State University are all located within the city.
- Norfolk's historic district, Ghent, was once a rich farming area known in the eighteenth century as Pleasant Point. However, after the War of 1812, landowner James Morgan re-named the region Ghent in honor of the Treaty of Ghent, which is the city in Belgium where the treaty was reached.
- Due to its strategic location on a deep, natural harbor, Norfolk played a prominent role in the American Revolution, the War of 1812, and the Civil War. It was during the later that the famous first Battle of the Ironclads – the Monitor versus the Merrimac – took place on March 8-9, 1862.
- One of Norfolk's most popular attractions is Nauticus, the National Maritime Center, located on the downtown waterfront. Housed in the replica of a large battleship, the museum features computer-simulated battles, interactive oceanography exhibits, and 3-D virtual reality adventures.
- The famous Chrysler Museum, founded by the famous automobile heir, Walter P. Chrysler, Jr., is located just north of the waterfront. Drawing in thousands of tourists each year, the museum boasts an impressive collection of some 30,000 pieces from virtually every major period of art history. It is generally considered one of the finest exhibits in the country.
- The town of Norfolk also has the distinction of housing the remains of General Douglas Macarthur, whose mother was born there. The Memorial contains a number of exhibits that feature everything from the General's personal papers and medals to his famous corncob pipe.
- Another highly popular attraction is the Norfolk Botanical Gardens, which stretches out over 155 acres right next to the airport. Founded in 1938 with a relatively modest assortment of flowers, the gardens now contain one of the largest collections of azaleas and camellias in the world. The best time to go is April, when the Botanical Gardens hosts the annual Virginia Azalea Celebration.
- Will that be a cone or a cup? It's a little known fact that Norfolk was the home of one Abe Doumar, who is said to have created the ice cream cone at the 1904 St. Louis Exposition. Originally called an "ice cream cornucopia," Doumar's delicious creation can still be enjoyed at Doumar's Drive-In, which he founded in the early 1930's.
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