Place Information
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Prince George County is a county located in the U.S. state — officially, "Commonwealth" — of Virginia. As of the 2000 census, the population was 33,047. Its county seat is Prince George6. It is in Tri-Cities area of the Richmond-Petersburg region and is a portion of the Richmond, VA MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area).
History
Prince George County was formed in 1703 in the Virginia Colony from a portion of Charles City County. It was named in honor of Prince George of Denmark, husband of England's reigning monarch, Queen Anne. In 1619, "Charles Cittie" [sic] was one of four "boroughs" or "incorporations" created by the Virginia Company. The first Charles City County courthouses were located along the James River at Westover and City Point. The Virginia Company lost its charter in 1624, and Virginia became a royal colony. Charles City Shire was formed in 1634 in the Virginia Colony by order of Charles I, King of England. It became Charles City County in 1643, and is considered one the five shires in Virginia still extant in essentially the same political entity (county) as they were originally formed in 1634. Charles Cittie, Charles City Shire, and Charles City County all extended to both sides of the James River, which was the major transportation throughfare if the Virginia Colony throughout the 17th century. The original central city of Charles City County was Charles City Point, which was in an area south of the James River at the confluence of the Appomattox River. The name was later shortened to City Point. In 1703, all of the original area of Charles City County south of the James River was severed to form Prince George County and eventually, several other counties. City Point later became an incorporated town in Prince George County, but was annexed by the independent city of Hopewell in 1923, and is no longer in the county. Timeline
Population History
Note: Hopewell city, formed from Prince George County (1916).. Petersburg city, formed mainly from Dinwiddie County (1880 population 19,151); also included territory from Chesterfield County (1,312) and Prince George County (1,193). Annexations after 1970 from Prince George (1970 population 4,721) and Dinwiddie (3,378). Research Tips
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