Norfolk, Virginia

Downtown Norfolk serves as the traditional center of commerce, government, and culture in the Hampton Roads region. Norfolk, Virginia's downtown waterfront shipping and port activities historically played host to numerous and often noxious port and shipping-related uses. With the advent of containerized shipping in the mid-19th century, the shipping uses located on Norfolk's downtown waterfront became obsolete as larger and more modern port facilities opened elsewhere in the region. The vacant piers and cargo warehouses eventually became a blight on downtown and Norfolk's fortunes as a whole. But in the second half of the century, Norfolk had a vibrant retail community in its suburbs; companies like Smith & Welton, High's, Colonial Stores, Goldman's Shoes, Lerner Shops, Hofheimer's, Giant Open Air, Dollar Tree and K & K Toys were regional leaders in their respective fields. Norfolk was also the birthplace of Econo-Travel, now Econo Lodge, one of the nation's first discount motel chains. Similarly, the advent of newer suburban shopping destinations spelled demise for the fortunes of downtown's Granby Street commercial corridor, located just a few blocks inland from the waterfront. Granby Street traditionally played the role as the premiere shopping and gathering spot in the Hampton Roads region. Retailers ranged from low-priced variety stores such as Woolworth's and Grants to more upscale department stores such as Smith & Welton (1898–1988), Rices Nachmans (1918–1985) and Ames and Brownley (1898–1973), and fine hotels and theaters lined its sidewalks. However, new suburban shopping developments promised more convenience and comfort. The opening of Pembroke Mall in Virginia Beach, the region's first climate controlled shopping mall, and JANAF Shopping Center in Norfolk's Military Circle area, helped foment Granby Street's spiral into commercial obsolescence. With amenities such as ample free parking at the door of one's favorite store, and in the case of Pembroke Mall, climate control, the businesses of downtown's Granby Street found it harder and harder to compete. Beginning in the 1920s, Norfolk's city leaders began what would be a long push to revive the fortunes of its urban core.

The Burning of Norfolk was an incident that occurred on January 1, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War. British Royal Navy ships in the harbor of Norfolk, Virginia, began shelling the town, and landing parties came ashore to burn specific properties. The town, whose significantly Loyalist population had fled, was occupied by Patriot forces from Virginia and North Carolina. Although the Patriots worked to drive off the British landing parties, they did nothing to impede the progress of the flames, and began burning and looting Loyalist-owned property instead. After three days, most of the town had been destroyed, mostly due to the action of Patriot forces. The destruction was completed by the Patriots in early February to deny use of even the remnants of the town to the British. Norfolk was the last significant foothold of British authority in Virginia; after raiding Virginia's coastal areas for a time, its last royal governor, Lord Dunmore, left for good in August 1776.

Saint Paul's Episcopal Church (also known as Borough Church) is a historic church in Norfolk, Virginia, United States. The Nave of the current church was built in 1739 and is the sole colonial-era building which survived the various wars that Norfolk has witnessed. The church has played host to several different denominations throughout its history. Originally a Church of England parish, the building was home to a Baptist parish in the early-19th century and was finally converted back into an Episcopal church.

Civic Plaza is a Tide Light Rail station in Norfolk, Virginia. It opened in 2011 and is located in the plaza in front of Norfolk City Hall, just east of St. Pauls Boulevard.The station is adjacent to several government buildings and is just north of Dominion Tower and the Elizabeth River waterfront.

The Willoughby–Baylor House is a historic home located at Norfolk, Virginia. It was built about 1794, and is a two-story, three-bay, brick detached townhouse with a gable roof. It features a Greek Revival style doorway and porch supported on two pairs of Greek Doric order columns. These features were added in the mid-1820s. It was built by William Willoughby (1758-1800), a local merchant and building contractor. The building is open as a historic house museum operated by the Chrysler Museum of Art.It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971.

The Minor Basilica of Saint Mary of the Immaculate Conception (also known as the Black Basilica) is a Black Catholic parish in downtown Norfolk, Virginia. It is the oldest parish in the Diocese of Richmond and is known locally as "The Mother Church of Tidewater Virginia". The church was built in 1857–1858, and is a rectangular stuccoed brick church. It features a centrally located, three-stage tower with spire. Also on the property is the contributing rectory. It is a three-story, rectangular brick building in the Late Gothic Revival style.It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979 and named a minor basilica in 1991. The associated Saint Mary's Catholic Cemetery was added in 2001.

The TowneBank Building (formerly the Norfolk Southern Tower) is one of the major distinctive and recognizable features of Downtown Norfolk, Virginia, United States. The building was notable as being the corporate headquarters of one of the United States' five Class I railroads, Norfolk Southern, until the relocation of their headquarters to Atlanta, GA in 2021. The tower was completed in 1989 at the corner of Main Street and Commercial Place in the business district of Downtown Norfolk. The current tenancy of the building is split between the financial services wing of TowneBank and information offices of CHKD.

MacArthur Center is a shopping mall in Norfolk, Virginia, in the center of the Hampton Roads metropolitan area.Built by the Taubman Company, the mall is owned by S.L. Nusbaum Realty since August 2023. The 1,100,000 sq ft (100,000 m2) mall is adjacent to the General Douglas MacArthur Memorial. There are 400,000 sq ft (37,000 m2) of mall tenant shops and 100,000 sq ft (9,300 m2) of food and entertainment offerings, including the Regal MacArthur 18 movie theater.

The Norfolk Confederate Monument was a Confederate memorial in front of the Norfolk Southern Museum in Norfolk, Virginia, United States. The monument was removed in June 2020.

Freemason Street Baptist Church is a historic Baptist church located at Norfolk, Virginia. It was designed by architect Thomas Ustick Walter and dedicated in 1850. It is a one-story, Perpendicular Gothic style stuccoed brick church. The front facade features a projecting belfry and two stage tower topped by an octagonal spire.It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971.

Norfolk City Hall, also known as the MacArthur Memorial, is a historic city hall located at Norfolk, Virginia. It was built in 1847, and is a two-story, stuccoed and granite faced, temple-form building measuring 80 feet by 60 feet. It features a front portico supported by six massive Tuscan order columns, and a gable roof topped by a cupola. The building housed city offices until 1918, and courtrooms until 1960. In 1961, the entire building interior was gutted to house the museum and tomb of General Douglas MacArthur and his wife. The MacArthur Memorial also includes a visitor center building and a research center. Norfolk City Hall was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.

MacArthur Square is a Tide Light Rail station in Norfolk, Virginia. Opened in August 2011, it is situated in downtown Norfolk in a small block bounded by Plume Street, City Hall Avenue, Bank Street and Atlantic Street.The station is adjacent to the MacArthur Center, MacArthur Memorial (former Norfolk City Hall), the Norfolk Library Downtown Branch, the business district along Main Street, Waterside Festival Marketplace, Nauticus, and many of downtown's larger hotels. This station is also the closest to HRT's Elizabeth River Ferry service to Downtown Portsmouth.