Place Information
|
Hopewell is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 22,354 at the 2000 census. It is in Tri-Cities area of the Richmond-Petersburg region and is a portion of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Hopewell with Prince George county for statistical purposes.
History
City PointThe city owes its existence to its site overlooking the James and Appomattox Rivers. City Point, the oldest part of Hopewell, was established in 1613 by Sir Thomas Dale. It was first known as "Bermuda City" (one of many appearances of the name of the Atlantic archipelago, itself once part of Virginia, on the map of Virginia) which was changed to Charles City, lengthened to Charles City Point, and later abbreviated to City Point. "Charles City Point" was in Charles City Shire when the first eight shires were established in the Colony of Virginia in 1634. Charles City Shire soon became known as Charles City County in 1637. An area of the county south of the river including City Point became Prince George County in 1703. During the American Civil War, City Point was the headquarters of General Ulysses S. Grant during the Siege of Petersburg in 1864 and 1865. The City Point Railroad, built in 1838 between City Point and Petersburg played an important role in the campaign, and later became the oldest portion of the Norfolk and Western Railway, itself now a part of Norfolk Southern. City Point was an unincorporated town in Prince George County until the City of Hopewell annexed the Town of City Point in 1923. Hopewell FarmHopewell was developed by DuPont Company in 1914 as Hopewell Farm, an incorporated area in Prince George County. DuPont first built a dynamite factory there, then switched to the manufacture of guncotton during World War I. Nearly burned to the ground in the infamous Hopewell Fire of 1915, Hopewell prospered afterwards and became known as the "Wonder City". Unlike most cities in Virginia, Hopewell was never incorporated as a town but was incorporated as an independent city in 1916. It was abandoned by DuPont after World War I and briefly became a ghost town, until Tubize Corporation established a plant at the old DuPont site in 1923. The same year, the city of Hopewell annexed the neighboring town of City Point. 1935 bus tragedyHopewell made national news when, on December 22, 1935, a bus plunged through the open draw of the Appomattox River Drawbridge on State Route 10 just outside Hopewell's city limits. Of the 15 occupants of the bus, only one survived. Today, the modern twin spans of the Charles Hardaway Marks Bridges cross nearby. Recent history
Hopewell is the host city of large chemical plants owned by the Honeywell Corporation, Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation, and Hercules Chemical. It has dealt with many environmental issues over the years, most notably the infamous kepone debacle of the 1970's. In 1977, Hopewell again made the national news when a tanker hit the Benjamin Harrison Memorial Bridge. Although still an important industrial city, like many cities, it has faced issues of urban decay. Its middle class has largely disappeared into Prince George County, and its housing stock is dominated by rental properties and low-income housing projects. However, Hopewell has seen a resurgence with renewed development of its large waterfront areas, the downtown areas, and the City Point Historical District. The city has a collection of Sears Catalog Homes, with several available for exterior viewing on a self-guided tour. Hopewell is also home to an impressive collection of Aladdin Kit Homes, and at one time, may have had one of the largest collections in the country. Many of these Aladdin Kit Homes have been razed. Since 1994 Hopewell became twinned with Ashford, Kent, U.K. Research Tips
|
