Making Connections Colonial National Historical Park Enhances Economic Vitality in Virginia’s Historic Triangle Colonial National Historical Park ...at a glance k To To e To 64 Exit 238 ek e re r Richmond C Fredericksburg C n e e u k c Waller Mill 143 Q e n Colonial NHP (park Picnic area Reservoir r Cheatham e boundaries are b Pond im approximate) Campground Queens Lake T 11 mi Distance Wheelchair- ���������������������� 16 km 60 indicator accessible �������������� 132 AL R Y 615 NI PA KWA O Roadside marker LO Y � O Penniman Spit R � C K � � � 60 0 1 Kilometer 2 � Colonial Jones Mill � Williamsburg R 199 � 163 Pond 13 mi I � Information F 21 km V 0 1 Mile 2 � e E 17 l C � O Center g LONIAL R � k a e t � re e � � C ' Sandy Point s North 321 64 P 716 C A The r R Governorʼs e g K Palace Capitol Kin e W k College A Wren Y k Matoaka of Building 143 e Indian Field re Lake William C 616 Creek and Mary 199 h ���������� ra Sa ������������ WILLIAMSBURG Water 60 Country 615 Black Swamp ������ � ������ � Exit 242 ������ � � Roosevelt � Virginia Institute � 5 Pond Yorktown � of Marine Science � 132 Victory Center � (Commonwealth of Virginia) Gloucester Point � GREEN SPRING � � ������������������������ ����������� P � � ow � ����������� h ���� � at 5 � a �� rd 199 la YORKTOWN l � � a B Virginia Byway to � � � � James River Plantations � � � � Victory Monument � � � � C Exit 243 � � r � e � � �������������� Visitor Center e C � � k � o � ll �� � eg Busch Gardens � � � 31 e Amusement Park 238 Moore � � G Creek � B re � a House l t o y a w lfw 238 a s Lake C H M r Pasbehegh e 614 i e l Lake Powell l k C 238 r G e Wormley r e o k Pond Jamestown v e YORKTOWN 704 Beach Campsites C re M e � BATTLEFIELD t i k � tis ll p Run � a B Neck of Land � C 64 � r � Jamestown e � e BATTLEFIELD k � Information Station Jamestown Settlement 143 � ALLIED TOUR (seasonal) Sk � Endview (Commonwealth of Virginia) iff � es Exit � ENCAMPMENT C Surrender � Plantation Y reek 247 TOUR RKWA � Field Jamestown PA Glasshouse L Sandy NIA 60 COLO 11 mi k Bay Visitor Center 16 km General e e r Th Washingtonʼs C e T horo Headquarters fare Archaearium JAMESTOWN Lee Hall J A M E S Mansion Association for the Newport News 17 Preservation of ISLAND R I Park Virginia Antiquities Isla V HISTORIC nd E Swanns R JAMESTOWNE dam Point Drive eaver B k F e r e e r e P C a ss f mo C e re Creek 60 it r y r s R r y e eservoi f if J A Sk Visitor Information Center 105 M Newport News Park E S Hog Island R I V To Army Exit 250 E R Transportation Museum 143 �������������������������������� Scotland Wharf To Newport News and Norfolk Map: National Park Service, 2007 Park Facts • Colonial National Historical Park (NHP) includes Cape Henry Memorial, Historic Jamestowne, Yorktown Battlefield, and the Colonial Parkway, a scenic highway connecting Jamestown, Colonial Williamsburg, and Yorktown—also known as the Historic Triangle. • Authorized in 1930 as a national monument, Colonial was designated a national historical park in 1936. • The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation operates a town-sized, private living history museum at Williamsburg, within the legislative boundaries of the park. Preservation Virginia owns acreage and facilities within park boundaries at Jamestown, and jointly manages Historic Jamestowne with the National Park Service. • The park encompasses 8,677 acres, in several parcels. Driving the 23 miles of the Colonial Parkway, visitors travel through nearly 400 years of American colonial history, and a variety of natural habitats. • The park hosted more than 3.4 million visitors in 2010—including drivers on the Colonial Parkway. Some 363,000 of these stopped in at park visitor centers and participated in programs. • In 2010, $42.5 million in park visitor spending supported 1,184 local, private-sector jobs.† • In 2009, the National Park Service employed 81 staff members, whose wages supported an additional 39 local jobs.† • Portions of the park are located in the City of Williamsburg and in two counties: York and James City. † See p. 6 of this report for more detail. Since 1919, the non-profit, non-partisan National Parks Conservation Association has been the leading voice of the American people in protecting and enhancing our National Park System. NPCA, its members, and partners work together to protect the park system and preserve our nation’s natural, historical, and cultural heritage for generations to come. www.npca.org Every national park exists in a context. Colonial National Historical Park’s context is marked by a long tradition of support and partner- ship. Uniquely, Colonial NHP connects an array of public and private sites that complement each other in preserving and interpreting a rich history spanning the American colonial period and beyond. The Historic Triangle region has built an extraordinarily successful tourism industry. Colonial NHP is a strong component. This Making Connections report explores the park’s economic contributions to its neighboring communities, delving beyond its role as a destination for history-seeking travelers. This report also identifies some issues and opportunities that could affect the future of the park, Historic Triangle communities, and the In this report broader region. Making Connections is also an invitation. We hope after you read this report, you will be more involved, and forge new Introduction ........................ 2 connections that will continue this region’s success. Here are some Colonial National Historical ways you can contribute: Park Helps Anchor the • Visit, enjoy, and volunteer at your national park. Volunteers Area’s Identity ..................... 4 make the park and other historical sites in the area tick, both behind the scenes and interacting with visitors. Find out more at Colonial National Historical www.nps.gov/colo/supportyourpark/volunteer.htm. Park Supports Local Jobs and Economic Benefits ........ 6 • Capitalize on current events to showcase your local national park. Collaborations leading to the 400th anniversary of the founding Locals and Visitors Enjoy of Jamestown and other important commemorations suggest the Park Attractions and power of organizing around events such as the 150th anniversary Landscapes ......................... 8 of the Civil War (2011-2015) and the 100th anniversary of the Colonial National Historical National Park Service (2016). Park Could Help Diversify • Participate early and constructively in community planning and Tourism in the Region ......... 9 economic development processes. Colonial National Historical • Choose clean air and clean water. A healthy environment Park Could Help the Region makes good economic sense. Join Virginians for Healthy Air at Diversify its Economy ........ 12 www.npca.org/vahealthyair and the Choose Clean Water Coali- tion at www.choosecleanwater.org. Making Connections, Making Progress ............... 15 • Add your voice in support of our parks by joining National Parks Conservation Association at www.npca.org. End Notes ......................... 16 For more information about how you can get involved, contact: National Parks Conservation Association Chesapeake & Virginia Program Office 777 6th Street, NW, Suite 700 Washington, DC 20001 Photo above: Park volunteers Tel: 202-454-3365 E-mail: [email protected] in Royal Artillery uniforms fire a www.npca.org six-pound cannon during a living history demonstration. Photo: NPS Making Connections 1 Introduction In the late 1920s, Virginia Governor Harry Flood Byrd began referring to Virginia as a “virtual museum of the founding and growth of America.” Much of that early history is concentrated, commemorated, and preserved in the “Historic Triangle” of Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown. By the 1920s, however, many of these memorials to America’s formative years had fallen into disrepair. A convergence of private and public interest then put the area on the road to renewal. Inspired by efforts of the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities and others to preserve and promote interest in historical sites such as Jamestown, state leaders began to see tourism as a pathway to economic growth. Under the leadership of Virginia businessman William Carson—not- ed for proclamations such as, “Scenery will be Virginia’s next big cash crop”— the Virginia Conservation and Development Commission (CDC) focused on developing the state’s natural and historic treasures into visitor attractions. At the same time, philanthropist and national parks activist John D. Rockefeller committed to restore Williamsburg, Virginia’s colonial capital. Public and private support began to coalesce around the vision of national recognition for the sites encompassed within the Historic Triangle. The lob- Map of the region surrounding Colonial National Historical Park Maryland and the Historic Triangle. The focal area for this report includes James City County,York County, and the James City Map Area municipalities of Hampton, Newport County News, Poquosin, and Williamsburg. Virginia Map: Dan Servian, Direwolf Graphics Williamsburg Legend • Colonial NHP •Yorktown Jamestown • James City County York County City of Hampton Poquosin • City of Newport News City of Poquosin Hampton • York County Newport News • City of Williamsburg Department of Defense Norfolk • Interstate/major highway 2 bying seems to have begun in earnest when Kenneth Chorley, who headed up Rockefeller’s Williamsburg restoration, laid out a plan for a national historical Park Partners in site linking the three points of the Historic Triangle. Preservation and Already working closely with the National Park Service (NPS) in an effort Interpretation that would lead to the establishment of Shenandoah National Park, Carson and the CDC stepped in to shepherd along the process. In 1930, President APVA Preservation Virginia Herbert Hoover signed the bill recognizing Colonial National Monument, Owns 22.5 acres within the which would later become Colonial National Historical Park (NHP). Between park at Jamestown, and has 1931 and 1957, Colonial Parkway—the treelined drive that connects the jointly managed Historic Historic Triangle’s three points—was designed and built.1 Jamestowne with the National Park Service since 1934.