Created as navigational tools, lighthouses are of interest to more than mariners; the ruggedly romantic nature of the beacons delights and enthralls thousand of admirers. Lights along the Virginia coast are no exception, from the richly historic Old Cape Henry Light, authorized by President George Washington in 1789, to the candy-striped Assateague Light on the state's Eastern Shore. Of equal interest are the tales of the men of the United States Life-Saving Service, the forerunner of today's Coast Guard. Spaced along the shore, they aided navigation by responding selflessly to ships in...

The history of Isle of Wight County and Smithfield are nearly as old as the settlement of the nation itself. In 1608, explorer Capt. John Smith visited the area south of his Jamestown Colony in search of food and trade with the Warascoyak Indians. The region's first inhabitants took root in 1619, and the town of Smithfield was established in 1752. A culinary specialty of the area learned from the Native Americans was introduced to the rest of the world in the late 1700s--a salt-cured cut of pork later known as Smithfield Ham. The popularity of the ham grew, and everyone from royalty (Queen...

Flight has forever thrilled, even when it was believed that humans would never be able to slip the bonds of earth's gravity. However, with the success of balloons as a mode of transportation, man took one step closer to powered, heavier-than-air flight. On December 17, 1903, the first flight by Orville and Wilbur Wright took place in the backyard of Hampton Roads, and the course of history was forever changed. Indeed, aviation has deep roots in the region. Hot-air balloons provided reconnaissance flights here during the Civil War, and manned space flights to the moon were
developed at...