Sewell's Point

:For other people and things named "Sewell", see Sewell (disambiguation)

Sewell's Point in the 20th century

Early in the 20th century, two developments at Sewell’s Point would have a long-lasting effect on its role in US history. Each laid the groundwork for founding of what was to become the world’s largest naval base.

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The first could be described as a civilian battle, one of competition, between the growing railroad and industrial powers. The other had its beginning as a civilian celebration. These were the building of the Virginian Railway and the Jamestown Exposition.

Related Topics:
Virginian Railway - Jamestown Exposition

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Building the Virginian Railway

In the mid-1890s, William N. Page, a civil engineer who had previously worked building the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O) had a dream. He knew of rich untapped bituminous coal fields lying between the New River Valley and the lower Guyandotte River in southern West Virginia in an area not yet reached by the C&O and its major competitor, the Norfolk and Western Railway (N&W).

Related Topics:
William N. Page - Civil engineer - Chesapeake and Ohio Railway - Bituminous coal - New River Valley - Guyandotte River - West Virginia - Norfolk and Western Railway

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While the bigger railroads which were busy developing nearby areas and shipping coal via rail to Hampton Roads, he formed a plan. To take advantage of the undeveloped coal lands, Page enlisted several friends as investors to help purchase the land. In 1898, he acquired a small logging railroad, and converted and expanded it to become the intrastate (within West Virginia only) Deepwater Railway. The new short-line railroad planned to connect with the existing lines of the C&O along the Kanawha River at Deepwater and the N&W at Matoaka.

Related Topics:
Coal - Kanawha River

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As Page developed his Deepwater Railway, he ran into a wall in negotiating to make connections and share favorable rates with either of the larger railroads. It was later revealed that the leaders of both the C&O and the N&W considered the territory to be potentially theirs for future growth. They secretly agreed to refuse to negotiate with Page and his upstart Deepwater Railway.

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Page didn't give up as apparently was anticipated. Instead, he stubbornly continued building his Deepwater Railroad, to the increasing puzzlement of the two big railroads. They were unaware that one of Page's investors, who were silent partners in the venture, was financier and industrialist Henry Huttleston Rogers, a millionaire who had made his initial fortune as one of the key men with the Standard Oil Trust. Rogers wasn't about to have the investment foiled by the big railroads. Instead, he and Page set about secretly planning and securing their own route out of the mountains, all the way east across Virginia to Hampton Roads!

Related Topics:
Henry Huttleston Rogers - Standard Oil

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A separate company, the Tidewater Railway, was formed in Virginia for the portion to be in that state. Both planning and land acquisition were done largely in secret. One group of 35 surveyors posing as fishermen (on a Sunday in February!) mapped out a crossing of the New River at Glen Lyn, Virginia, as well as the adjacent portion of the line from West Virginia through Narrows, Virginia. The new line essentially followed the valley of the Roanoke River through the Blue Ridge Mountains, and then was to run almost due east to the Hampton Roads area.

Related Topics:
Tidewater Railway - New River - Glen Lyn, Virginia - Narrows, Virginia - Roanoke River - Blue Ridge Mountains

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Deals were quietly struck with the various communities all along the way. Perhaps most notable of all of these communities, was Norfolk, which was home-turf for the established Norfolk & Western Railway and its coal pier at Lambert's Point. Access to Hampton Roads frontage with enough adjoining land to build a new coal pier was crucial to the whole scheme. Undeveloped land was located at Sewell's Point where the Page-Rogers interests purchased 1000 feet of frontage on Hampton Roads, and adjoining land. To facilitate building of the new railroad, Norfolk provided a right-of-way extending virtually completely around the city to reach Sewell's Point.

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With their land and route secured, in 1905, Page (with Rogers' identity still not revealed) began building the rest of the new railroad. By the time the larger railroads finally realized what was happening, their new competitor could not be successfully blocked. Rogers' identity and backing were finally disclosed more than a year later. Early in 1907, the Deepwater and Tidewater Railways, still under construction, were combined to become the Virginian Railway (VGN).

Related Topics:
1905 - 1907 - Virginian Railway

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About the same time, the Norfolk portion of the new Virginian Railway tracks had been completed. This proved just in time to serve the Jamestown Exposition, which was held on land just north of the VGN coal pier site at Sewell's Point, which opened in the spring of 1907.

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By using construction techniques not available when the larger railroads had been built about 25 years earlier, and paying for work with Rogers' own personal fortune, the new Virginian Railway was built to the highest standards. An engineering marvel of the day, the final spike in the VGN was driven on January 29, 1909.

Related Topics:
January 29 - 1909

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In April, 1909, Rogers was feted at Norfolk in celebration of the completion his new "Mountains to the Sea" railroad. He toured the railway’s new $2.5 million coal pier at Sewell's Point and Mark Twain spoke at a grand Norfolk banquet.

Related Topics:
April - 1909 - Mark Twain

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The Virginian Railway and its terminal location at Sewell’s Point played an important role in 20th century US naval history. Located immediately adjacent to the former Exposition grounds (which became an important Navy facility beginning in 1917) the VGN transported the high quality smokeless bituminous coal favored by the US Navy for its ships.

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When the VGN was merged with the Norfolk & Western in 1959, civilian coal loading was shifted to Lambert’s Point, and the Navy purchased the site a few years later. The former VGN Sewell’s Point site is now part of the United States' Naval Station Norfolk.

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Jamestown Exposition of 1907

The Jamestown Exposition was one of the many world's fairs and expositions that were popular in the United States early part of the 20th century. It was held from April 26 to December 1, 1907, at Sewell's Point to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the founding of the Jamestown Settlement.

Related Topics:
Jamestown Exposition - World's fair - Exposition - April 26 - December 1 - 1907

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Early in the 20th century, as the tercentennial neared, leaders in Norfolk began a campaign to have a celebration held there. The Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities had gotten the ball rolling in 1900 by calling for a celebration honoring the establishment of the first permanent English colony in the New World at Jamestown, to be held on the 300th anniversary.

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No one thought that the actual isolated and long-abandoned original site of the Jamestown Settlement would be suitable. But there was n assumption in many parts of the state that Richmond, the state capital, would be chosen as the site of the celebration, because Jamestown had no facilities for large crowds, and the fort housing the Jamestown Settlement was believed to have been long-ago swallowed by the James River.

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Hampton Roads' interest was awakened by an editorial in James M. Thomson's Norfolk Dispatch, on February 4, 1901, proclaiming: "Norfolk is undoubtedly the proper place for the holding of this celebration. Norfolk is today the center of the most populous portion of Virginia, and every historical, business and sentimental reason can be adduced in favor of the celebration taking place here rather than in Richmond."

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The Dispatch was an unrelenting champion of Norfolk as the site for the exposition, noting in subsequent editorials that "Richmond has absolutely no claim to the celebration except her location on the James River."

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By September, 1901, the Norfolk City Council had given support to the project. And in December, 100 prominent residents of Hampton Roads journeyed to Richmond to urge Norfolk as the site. In 1902, the Jamestown Exposition Co. was incorporated. Former Virginia Governor Fitzhugh Lee, son of General Robert E. Lee, was named its president.

Related Topics:
1901 - Robert E. Lee

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The decision was made to locate the international exposition on a mile-long frontage at Sewell’s Point. The location was politically correct, as it was almost an equal distance from the cities of Norfolk, Portsmouth, Newport News and Hampton. The rural Sewell's Point was also not conveniently located near any one of them. Hard to reach by land, it was more favorably accessible by water, which ultimately proved an asset.

Related Topics:
Portsmouth - Newport News - Hampton

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The Jamestown Exposition proved to be a logistical nightmare. Roads had to be built to the site. Piers had to be constructed for moving supplies to exposition buildings. Hotels had to be raised to handle the exposition visitors, almost 3 million by the November closing. Bad weather slowed everything.

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Another major setback was the death of Fitzhugh Lee. He died while in New England drumming up trade for the celebration. Henry St. George Tucker, another former Virginia governor, succeeded him. Norfolk businessman David Lowenberg ran most of the operation as director general.

Related Topics:
New England - Henry St. George Tucker - David Lowenberg

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Opening day had its share of headaches. Only a fifth of the electric lights could be turned on, and the Warpath recreation area was far from ready. Construction of the government pier left much of the ground in the center of the exposition muddy soup.

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But in time, things improved and the event became spectacular. Planners asked each state of the union to contribute a house to celebrate its history and industry. Lack of interest or funds prevented participation by all, but 21 states funded houses, which bore their names: Pennsylvania House, Virginia House, New Hampshire House, North Carolina House, etc. During the exposition, days were set aside to honor the states individually. The governor of the state usually appeared to greet visitors to the state's house. Thirteen of the state houses can still be seen on Dillingham Boulevard at the Naval Station Norfolk, on what has been called "Admiral's Row." Many of them are now residences of high-ranking Navy officers.

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US President Theodore Roosevelt was an honored guest. Mark Twain and Henry H. Rogers also paid a visit, in the latter's yacht "Kanawha". Twain's humorous talk was partly an introduction of Rear Admiral Purnell F. Harrington, former Commandant of the Norfolk Navy Yard. Said Twain, "In my remarks of welcome of Admiral Harrington, I am not going to give him compliments. Compliments always embarrass a man. You do not know what to say. It does not inspire you with words. There is nothing you can say in answer to a compliment. I have been complimented myself a great many times, and they always embarrass me. I always feel they have not said enough."

Related Topics:
Theodore Roosevelt - Purnell F. Harrington

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Although the exposition was a financial failure, it served an American purpose and one for Norfolk and Hampton Roads.

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Perhaps the exposition's most impressive display was on water rather than land. Ships of two squadrons commanded by Admiral Robley Evans formed a continuing presence off Sewell’s Point. The assembly included sixteen battleships, five cruisers, and six destroyers. The fleet remained in Hampton Roads after the exposition closed and became President Roosevelt's Great White Fleet, which toured the globe as evidence of the nation's military might.

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Nearly every Congressman and Senator of prominence attended the exposition, and Admirals in Norfolk urged the creation of a Naval Base at the exposition site. But nearly 10 years would elapse before the idea, given impetus by World War I, would become a reality.

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On June 28, 19l7, President Woodrow Wilson set aside $2.8 million for land purchase and the erection of storehouses and piers for the base. Of the 474 acres (1.9 km²) originally acquired, 367 had been the old Jamestown Exposition grounds. The military property was later expanded considerably. The former Virginian Railway coal piers, land, and an adjacent coal storage facility owned by Norfolk & Western Railway were added in the 1960s and 1970s.

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