1921 Map of Newport News

About this map

Hampton Roads serves as the central focal point for this survey, illustrating the intensive military and maritime development that defined the region following the Great War. The map details a landscape transition from the urban centers of Newport News, Norfolk, and Portsmouth to the industrial and naval installations that ring the harbor, including the Navy Base, Army Base, and the Navy Yard. The strategic geography of the era is evident in the layout of the Pig Point Ordnance Depot and Camp Stuart, while several Steamboat Routes crisscross the waters of the James River and Chesapeake Bay. Beyond the city grids and shipyards, the landscape softens into the rural fringes of the Dismal Swamp and scattered communities like Churchland, where the Jolliff School and local Cem markers provide vital touchstones for family historians researching the South Hampton Roads area during this period of rapid expansion.