The old and the new
Cross where the first colonists landed at Cape Henry before moving to Jamestown. Original cross was wood.
Map of the battle5/22 Tuesday After one of the best nights sleep in awhile; we were wakened by the thunder of jets taking off at 8:30. From then on there are jets in the air almost all the time. The Eisenhower has returned from the Persian Gulf, so they were sending the planes back to Oceana Naval Air Station until they go back out to sea in July. They had been on tour for 7-1/2 months, so everyone aboard ship is happy to be home. They retuned the fighters in formations ranging from 10 to 16 planes. They were launched from the Eisenhower about 40 miles off shore for the estimated 6-minute flight. These pilots must have found it so relaxing to land on something that was wide, long and not moving! Along with the Eisenhower, four other ships returned with her as part of that fleet.
Upon leaving there, we headed up to Fort Story to see the lighthouses. That was our first experienced going onto a military base, in this case a Coast Guard base, and they went through and around the car just like you see on TV in Iraq. There were six men that checked the car including four who checked under the car with mirrors. We had to open the glove box, get out and open the hood, and stand there while they went around and through the car. Both of us had to show our driver’s license. On the way out, a FedEx truck was waiting to come in. I imagine that driver hates making deliveries on base because it is likely they take so long to clear him he would otherwise have made 10 or more deliveries outside the base in the same time. Unfortunately, with the recent attempted attack on Fort Dix, the military cannot be too careful and good citizens must accept what the bad guys have shown they can do.
There two lighthouses on the grounds. The Cape Henry Lighthouse dates back to 1792. It has now been replaced by a newer facility that is higher and automated. This newer facility is not open to the public. We walked up in the old lighthouse and had a very good view of Chesapeake Bay. The day was quite clear allowing us to see part of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel system.
The Cape Hope lighthouse was authorized by the First Congress and was the first pubic works project of the government. The bid set the stage for all federal projects that followed. General George Washington even reviewed the bid before it was awarded. This lighthouse was very important to the shipping traffic safety in the Virginia Capes.
We visited the Holy Cross location originally erected by the British settlers when they first landed in April 1607, before they moved up the Chesapeake to Jamestown and established the first permanent settlement in May 1607. They named this area Cape Henry after Henry, Prince of Wales. Currently this area is sponsoring events over 15 months to celebrate the 400th anniversary of this original Jamestown settlement.
This area has added history when the Americans war for independence from Britain was not going well because the British were so disciplined and trained and the Colonists lacked both. George Washington recognized the war efforts needed a substantial victory, so he contacted French Captain Francois deGrasse in 1781 to sail his fleet of 19 ships and meet at Cape Henry where the French would block British ships bringing men and supplies bound for Yorktown, the area the British were fortifying to fight the Colonists. Washington’s whole plan depended on deGrasses’ fleet arriving on time and defeating the British. The battle went on for four days, but in the end the French had severely damaged or destroyed multiple British ships causing them to retreat. This broke the British defense and gave the Colonists the success they needed to revitalize their fighting efforts against the British.
