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Mulberry Island

James River (Virginia)Landforms of Newport News, VirginiaRiver islands of Virginia

Mulberry Island is located along the James River in the city of Newport News, Virginia, in southeastern Virginia at the confluence of the Warwick River on the Virginia Peninsula.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Mulberry Island (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors).

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Latitude Longitude
N 37.115277777778 ° E -76.590277777778 °
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23604
Virginia, United States
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Warwick River (Virginia)
Warwick River (Virginia)

The Warwick River is a 14.4-mile-long (23.2 km) tidal estuary which empties into the James River a few miles from Hampton Roads at the southern end of Chesapeake Bay in southeast Virginia in the United States. Originating in York County near the northern side a few miles west of Yorktown, it flows south across the Virginia Peninsula and is almost entirely located in the independent city of Newport News. The Warwick River took its name from Robert Rich, second Earl of Warwick and a prominent member of the Virginia Company of London who was proprietor of Richneck Plantation in Warwick River Shire, one of the eight original shires of Virginia created in 1634. The shire became Warwick County in 1643, and became part of the independent city of Newport News in 1958 through a municipal consolidation. In 1862, during the Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War, the Warwick Line, a defensive works across the peninsula, was maintained along the river by Confederate General John B. Magruder against much larger Union forces under General George B. McClellan. Through the use of elaborate ruse tactics, "Prince John" Magruder, who was also an actor, provided valuable time for the ultimately successful defense of Richmond led by General Robert E. Lee which culminated in the Seven Days Battles. The Warwick River adjoins Fort Eustis, a U.S. Army base, on its western shore, which also occupies historic Mulberry Island. During the 20th century, upper reaches of the river were dammed to create fresh water reservoirs for Newport News Waterworks which serves several local communities.

Fort Crafford
Fort Crafford

Fort Crafford is a historic archaeological site located at Fort Eustis, Newport News, Virginia. It is a pentagonal-shaped earthwork located on Mulberry Island and built by Confederate forces in 1862. The earthworks on Mulberry Island are considered part of the Warwick Line. The purpose of these works was to prevent the Union from flanking the line on the James River. The fort formed the James River terminus of the second trans-peninsula defensive line, which included fortifications at Lee's Mill, as well as Dam No.1 and Wynne's Mill in Newport News Park. Mulberry Point Battery, a water battery, guarded the Swash Channel along the James River. This battery was a complement to Fort Huger on the south side of the river. In February 1862 a pentagonal earthwork enclosing approximately eight acres was constructed inland from the Mulberry Point Battery to protect the battery from overland attack and to be a refuge for soldiers if the Minor Farm Line (a short rifle line constructed to defend the rear of the battery) was overrun. The fort was called the "covering work at Mulberry Island," or Mulberry Island Fort; later it became known as Fort Crafford after the owners of the land where it was built. This fort was not intended to be part of the main Warwick Line, but was separated from it by about half a mile so that troops could withdraw from the line into the fort if necessary. Confederate forces withdrew from Mulberry Island in May 1862 to move closer to Richmond, so Fort Crafford never saw combat.The foundation of the Crafford house located within the earthwork was excavated in the 1970s by amateur archaeologists of the Fort Eustis Historical and Archaeological Association. The brick and oyster-shell mortar foundation of the house remains, surrounded by a protective fence.In 1998 archaeologists from the Colonial Williamsburg Department of Archaeological Research conducted investigations into a seventeenth-century occupation of the area within the Civil War fortification. Three areas of seventeenth-century domestic activity were identified.Fort Crafford was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

Denbigh High School (Newport News, Virginia)

Denbigh High School is a high school in Newport News, Virginia. It is a part of Newport News Public Schools. Denbigh carries grades nine through twelve and has an enrollment of approximately 1,500 students. This school was rated "Fully Accredited" by the Virginia Department of Education for the 2005–2006 school year. Denbigh is the only host of the Aviation program in Newport News Public Schools. Denbigh High School is represented by its mascot, the Patriot. Recently the known mascot picture of the Patriot was changed to a star with 'Patriots' across it. Rumors of possibly changing from the 'Patriots' and adopting a different mascot have been circulating, but nothing has been confirmed. Their colors are red, white, and blue. It also has the lowest-rated sports teams throughout the region. This school was opened in the fall of 1965 with grades 8-11, and the Junior class of that year became the first Senior class the following year. The class of 1970 was the first to go through all five years at Denbigh. For a time, Newport News had 5-year high schools, and Denbigh (the northernmost of the city's high schools) had 8-12th grades. The class of 1968 presented, as a memorial, a step from the first Denbigh school. The Denbigh area of Newport News is named for the market town and community in Denbighshire, Wales. Denbigh is also one of two sites in Newport News that hosts SAT testing and ACT testing. Newport News Public Schools has a Telecommunications Program, which allows students at Denbigh High Schools and other schools within the division to participate in live television production. These students can gain experience reporting, producing, recording, and editing for live productions such as local sporting events. Additionally, Denbigh's choral and band programs are award-winning in local, regional, state, and national competitions.

Warwick County, Virginia
Warwick County, Virginia

Warwick County was a county in Southeast Virginia that was created from Warwick River Shire, one of eight created in the Virginia Colony in 1634. It became the City of Newport News on July 16, 1952. Located on the Virginia Peninsula on the northern bank of the James River between Hampton Roads and Jamestown, the area consisted primarily of farms and small unincorporated villages until the arrival of the Peninsula Extension of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway in 1881 and development led by industrialist Collis P. Huntington. With the railroad came the coal piers, several local stations in Warwick County for passenger service and shipping produce and seafood to markets, and a branch link to the resorts and military facilities in neighboring Elizabeth City County at Old Point Comfort. The community at the southeastern edge on the harbor of Hampton Roads became Newport News in 1896, hosting the world's largest shipyard. At the outset of World War I, the U.S. Army facility which became Fort Eustis was established in the county. After the war, Camp Patrick Henry, a former military facility, became the site of Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport. After sparring over annexations and exploring various plans to refine and/or combine local governments, by mutual agreement, after existing for over 325 years, the City of Warwick was politically consolidated with the younger city of Newport News on July 1, 1958. The better known name of "Newport News" was assumed for the combined entity, forming one of the contemporary cities of Hampton Roads.