Hampton Roads

Hampton Roads is the name of both a body of water and the land areas which surround it in southeastern Virginia in the United States.

Harbor: commerce, shipping, military

Hampton Roads has become known as the "world's greatest natural harbor". The port is located only 18 miles from open ocean on one of the world's deepest, natural ice-free harbors. Since 1989, Hampton Roads has been the mid-Atlantic leader in U.S. waterborne foreign commerce and is ranked second nationally behind the Port of South Louisiana based on export tonnage. When import and export tonnage are combined, the Port of Hampton Roads ranks as the third largest port in the country (following the ports of New Orleans/South Louisiana and Houston. In 1996, Hampton Roads was ranked ninth among major U.S. ports in vessel port calls with approximately 2,700. In addition, this port is the U.S. leader in coal exports. The coal loading facilities in the Port of Hampton Roads are able to load in excess of 65 million tons annually, giving the port the largest, most efficient and modern coal loading facilities in the world.

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It is little surprise therefore that the Hampton Roads region's economic base is largely port-related, including shipbuilding, ship repair, naval installations, cargo transfer and storage, and manufacturing related to the processing of imports and exports. Associated with the ports' military role are almost 50,000 federal civilian employees.

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The harbor of Hampton Roads is an important highway of commerce, especially for the cities of Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Newport News.

Related Topics:
Norfolk - Portsmouth - Newport News

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In Portsmouth, a few miles up the Elizabeth River, Norfolk Naval Shipyard is located. Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company (NNS) is located a short distance up the James River. There are also several smaller shipyards, numerous docks and terminals.

Related Topics:
Norfolk Naval Shipyard - Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company (NNS) - James River

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Massive coal loading piers and facilities were established in the late 19th and early 20th century by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O), Norfolk and Western Railway (N&W), and Virginian Railway (VGN). The latter two were predecessors of the Norfolk Southern Railway, a Class I railroad which has its headquarters in Norfolk, and continues to export coal from a large facility at Lambert's Point on the Elizabeth River. CSX Transportation now serves the former C&O facility at Newport News.

Related Topics:
Coal - Chesapeake and Ohio Railway - Norfolk and Western Railway - Virginian Railway - Norfolk Southern Railway - Class I railroad - Lambert's Point - CSX Transportation

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Hampton Roads is also a chief rendezvous of the United States Navy. The Hampton Roads area has the largest concentration of military bases and facilities of any metropolitan area in the world. The area is home to the Allied Command Transformation, which is the only major military command of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The Norfolk Navy Base is located at Sewell's Point near the mouth, on the site used for the tercentennial Jamestown Exposition in 1907. For a width of 500 feet the Federal government during 1902 through 1905 increased its minimum depth at low water from 25.5 feet to 30 feet, and the channel has now been dredged to a depth of 55 feet in some places. NASA Langley Research Center is located on the Peninsula adjacent to Langley Air Force Base, in Hampton, which is home to scientific and aerospace technology research.

Related Topics:
United States Navy - Allied Command Transformation - North Atlantic Treaty Organization - NATO - Norfolk Navy Base - Sewell's Point - Jamestown Exposition - 1907 - 1902 - 1905 - NASA - Langley Air Force Base

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Other area military facilities include:

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• Camp Peary in York County
• Fort Eustis in Newport News
• Fort Monroe in Hampton
• Fort Story in Virginia Beach
• Langley Air Force Base in Hampton
• United States Naval Amphibious Base at Little Creek) in Virginia Beach
• Oceana Naval Air Station in Virginia Beach
• Naval Weapons Station Yorktown in York County
• Saint Julian Creek Naval Depot Annex in Chesapeake