Mulberry Island
Encyclopedia
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
.
, was established a few miles downriver in 1607. It was at Mulberry Island where the colonists who were preparing to leave Virginia during the Starving Time in 1610 were met by Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr
with fresh provisions from England. By 1614, thousands of acres were under cultivation with tobacco
, the export crop introduced by John Rolfe
which saved the Virginia Colony financially.
During the American Civil War
, Mulberry Island was the southern end of the Warwick Line
, a series of defensive works built across the Virginia Peninsula
to Yorktown
manned by troops of Confederate General John B. Magruder
during the Peninsula Campaign
of 1862.
From 1898 to 1918 Mulberry Island was home to David & Kimpton Brickyard. The brickyard sat on the west bank of the Warwick River.
Mulberry Island was always considered a strategic point on the river for military purposes. During the first World War, Camp Abraham Eustis was established on the historic island and adjacent land in Warwick County
, upstream from Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company. Named for Abraham Eustis
, a famous U.S. Army General from Petersburg
, the army camp became Fort Eustis and a permanent Army base in 1923.
Fort Eustis is currently home to the U.S. Army Transportation Corps. Since 1958, following a political consolidation of the former Warwick County with the independent city
of Newport News
, almost all of the base and all of Mulberry Island are located within the corporate limits of Newport News. An Army Aviation School is also located at Fort Eustis.
An array of ships part of the National Defense Reserve Fleet
are anchored adjacent to Mulberry Island in the middle of the James River. Considered an environmental hazard, the numbers of this reserve fleet are being reduced each year as ships are transported away as scrap. These ships are termed the "Ghost Fleet" in local parlance.
James River (Virginia)
The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia. It is long, extending to if one includes the Jackson River, the longer of its two source tributaries. The James River drains a catchment comprising . The watershed includes about 4% open water and an area with a population of 2.5 million...
in the city of Newport News, Virginia
Newport News, Virginia
Newport News is an independent city located in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of Virginia. It is at the southeastern end of the Virginia Peninsula, on the north shore of the James River extending southeast from Skiffe's Creek along many miles of waterfront to the river's mouth at Newport News...
, in southeastern Virginia
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
at the confluence of the Warwick River
Warwick River
Warwick River is the name of several rivers:In New Zealand*Warwick River In the United States*Warwick River *Warwick River *Warwick River Shire, a former division of Virginia...
on the Virginia Peninsula
Virginia Peninsula
The Virginia Peninsula is a peninsula in southeast Virginia, USA, bounded by the York River, James River, Hampton Roads and Chesapeake Bay.Hampton Roads is the common name for the metropolitan area that surrounds the body of water of the same name...
.
History
Mulberry Island, settled shortly after JamestownJamestown, Virginia
Jamestown was a settlement in the Colony of Virginia. Established by the Virginia Company of London as "James Fort" on May 14, 1607 , it was the first permanent English settlement in what is now the United States, following several earlier failed attempts, including the Lost Colony of Roanoke...
, was established a few miles downriver in 1607. It was at Mulberry Island where the colonists who were preparing to leave Virginia during the Starving Time in 1610 were met by Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr
Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr
Thomas West, 3rd and 12th Baron De La Warr was the Englishman after whom the bay, the river, and, consequently, an American Indian people and U.S. state, all later called "Delaware", were named....
with fresh provisions from England. By 1614, thousands of acres were under cultivation with tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
, the export crop introduced by John Rolfe
John Rolfe
John Rolfe was one of the early English settlers of North America. He is credited with the first successful cultivation of tobacco as an export crop in the Colony of Virginia and is known as the husband of Pocahontas, daughter of the chief of the Powhatan Confederacy.In 1961, the Jamestown...
which saved the Virginia Colony financially.
During the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, Mulberry Island was the southern end of the Warwick Line
Warwick Line
The Warwick Line was a defensive works across the Virginia Peninsula maintained along the Warwick River by Confederate General John B. Magruder against much larger Union forces under General George B...
, a series of defensive works built across the Virginia Peninsula
Virginia Peninsula
The Virginia Peninsula is a peninsula in southeast Virginia, USA, bounded by the York River, James River, Hampton Roads and Chesapeake Bay.Hampton Roads is the common name for the metropolitan area that surrounds the body of water of the same name...
to Yorktown
Yorktown, Virginia
Yorktown is a census-designated place in York County, Virginia, United States. The population was 220 in the 2000 census. It is the county seat of York County, one of the eight original shires formed in colonial Virginia in 1634....
manned by troops of Confederate General John B. Magruder
John B. Magruder
John Bankhead Magruder was a career military officer who served in the armies of three nations. He was a U.S. Army officer in the Mexican-American War, a Confederate general during the American Civil War, and a postbellum general in the Imperial Mexican Army...
during the Peninsula Campaign
Peninsula Campaign
The Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March through July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The operation, commanded by Maj. Gen. George B...
of 1862.
From 1898 to 1918 Mulberry Island was home to David & Kimpton Brickyard. The brickyard sat on the west bank of the Warwick River.
Mulberry Island was always considered a strategic point on the river for military purposes. During the first World War, Camp Abraham Eustis was established on the historic island and adjacent land in Warwick County
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 Warwick on July 16, 1952...
, upstream from Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company. Named for Abraham Eustis
Abraham Eustis
Abraham Eustis was a lawyer and notable U.S. Army officer, eventually rising to become a Brevet Brigadier General...
, a famous U.S. Army General from Petersburg
Petersburg, Virginia
Petersburg is an independent city in Virginia, United States located on the Appomattox River and south of the state capital city of Richmond. The city's population was 32,420 as of 2010, predominantly of African-American ethnicity...
, the army camp became Fort Eustis and a permanent Army base in 1923.
Modern times
Independent city
An independent city is a city that does not form part of another general-purpose local government entity. These type of cities should not be confused with city-states , which are fully sovereign cities that are not part of any other sovereign state.-Historical precursors:In the Holy Roman Empire,...
of Newport News
Newport News, Virginia
Newport News is an independent city located in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of Virginia. It is at the southeastern end of the Virginia Peninsula, on the north shore of the James River extending southeast from Skiffe's Creek along many miles of waterfront to the river's mouth at Newport News...
, almost all of the base and all of Mulberry Island are located within the corporate limits of Newport News. An Army Aviation School is also located at Fort Eustis.
An array of ships part of the National Defense Reserve Fleet
National Defense Reserve Fleet
The National Defense Reserve Fleet consists of "mothballed" ships, mostly merchant vessels, that can be activated within 20 to 120 days to provide shipping for the United States of America during national emergencies, either military or non-military, such as commercial shipping crises.The NDRF is...
are anchored adjacent to Mulberry Island in the middle of the James River. Considered an environmental hazard, the numbers of this reserve fleet are being reduced each year as ships are transported away as scrap. These ships are termed the "Ghost Fleet" in local parlance.
Sources
External links
- Fort Eustis official website
- Davis & Kimpton Brickyard - DoI National Historic Places Registration