THE OLD DOMINION Virginia is a state with one foot in the past and the other planted firmly in the future It is a Southern state with forested mountains rolling plains and steep valleys It also contains some of the fastest-growing cities in America Sleepy small towns are just a short drive from bustling urban areas that surround the nation’s capital of Washington DC just across the Potomac River to the northeast Virginia was one of the original 13 American colonies Important battles were fought in the state during the Revolutionary War and the Civil War Many battlefields have been preserved to remind people of the past The homes of Presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson are also in Virginia Virginia was one of the oldest overseas dominions or territories of England In the mid-1600s Virginia remained loyal to England’s King Charles II That is why Virginia’s nickname is The Old Dominion Monticello Thomas Jefferson’s home VIRGINIA
QUICK FACTS Name Virginia is named in honor of England’s Queen Elizabeth I 1533-1603 She was often called the Virgin Queen because she never married State Capital Richmond population 220,289 Date of Statehood June 25 1788 10th state Population 8,382,993 12th-most populous state Area Total Land and Water 42,775 square miles 110,787 sq km 35th-largest state Largest City Virginia Beach population 452,745 Nickname The Old Dominion Motto Sic Semper Tyrannis Thus Always to Tyrants State Bird Northern Cardinal State Flower White Flowering Dogwood State Tree White Flowering Dogwood State Fossil Chesapecten jeffersonius scallop fossil VIRGINIA
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Mount Rogers Atlantic Ocean George Washington Thomas Jefferson James Madison James Monroe William Henry Harrison John Tyler Zachary Taylor Woodrow Wilson State Song Carry Me Back to Old Virginia Sweet Virginia Breeze Our Great Virginia Highest Point Mount Rogers 5,729 feet 1,746 m Lowest Point Atlantic Ocean 0 feet 0 m Average July High Temperature 86 F 30 C Record High Temperature 110 F 43 C in Balcony Falls on July 15 1954 Average January Low Temperature 25 F 4 C Record Low Temperature 30 F 34 C in Mountain Lake on January 21 1985 Average Annual Precipitation 44 inches 112 cm Number of U S Senators 2 Number of U S Representatives 11 U S Presidents Born in Virginia George Washington 1732-1799 Thomas Jefferson 1743-1826 James Madison 1751-1836 James Monroe 1758-1831 William Henry Harrison 1773-1841 John Tyler 1790-1862 Zachary Taylor 1784-1850 Woodrow Wilson 1856-1924 U S Postal Service Abbreviation VA QUICK FACTS
