Norge, Virginia
Encyclopedia
Norge is an unincorporated community
in James City County
, Virginia
, United States
.
in modern times. Interstate 64
was built through the area in the 1970s
, and passes nearby. Exit 231 is labeled "Croaker-Norge" for the two small communities nearby.
The new community of Norge was formally established beginning in 1904 in western James City County by Norwegian-Americans and other Scandinavia
ns, with persons resettling from other places in North America joined by new immigrants. The word "Norge" is the Norwegian (Bokmål) spelling of "Norway
". Land at Norge was reasonably priced and offered rich farm land in a gentler climate than that of the northern and Midwestern states, where some of the immigrants had originally settled upon coming to America.
For some years, prospective new residents were introduced to the area through promotional material sent out by Carl Martin Bergh
, a fellow Norwegian-American with farming experience who had become a land agent for the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway
(C&O). The Peninsula Extension
of the railroad had been built through the area in 1881 to reach from the mountains of West Virginia to the coal
piers on Hampton Roads
at the new city of Newport News
in adjacent Warwick County
. Originally known as "Vaiden's Siding", the C&O built a railroad station at Norge in 1908. The Norge Depot offered a convenient point for shipping farm produce to places such as Richmond.
Although the railroad station was closed in 1969, and C&O passenger service ended in 1971, Amtrak
continues to serve the area with a stop at the Williamsburg, Virginia
station.
By 1909, Norge contained 25 buildings, including homes, churches, stores and other businesses. Some of the original buildings still stand today.
The Norge Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places
in 1992. The landmarks include the following:
Viking Hall: In 1908, a group of young men, who called themselves the "Vikings", purchased two lots on the corner of Richmond Rd. and Penninulsa St. for $5.00 in order to construct a Town Hall. They wanted a centrally located place to be used for dances, meetings and parties as their parents had known in Norway. Viking Hall provided a space for a variety of venues until the 1920s, when it went into disrepair. The Norge Home Demonstration Club purchased the building, renovated it, and renamed it the Norge Community Hall. To this day, the community and many local organizations continue to make extensive use of this hall.
Bergh Hotel: This hotel was built at the turn of the 20th century. It was owned and operated by Alfred Bergh to accommodate the new arrivals at the new community. The building today is thriving as a furniture store: since the 1980s it has been the "Williamsburg Wicker and Rattan".
Kinde and Nesseth Store: Hans Kinde and John Nesseth opened Norge's first store in 1903. It was a general store that sold everything from clothing to fertilizer to groceries. In 1904, the first Norge post office
operated from this facility. The building was rebuilt in 1908 after a fire, and still operates today as an antique store under the name "The Old Store in the Village".
Other landmarks in Norge include the former Doll Factory, the former Williamsburg Soap and Candle Factory
, Our Savior's Evangelical Lutheran Church and the Norge Depot.
In May 2009, the Norge Depot was added to the National Register of Historic Places. The train station is the last surviving example of a wood frame “informal standard” depot in the six states that were served by C&O. Originals were built according to an informal plan and no standard drawings were prepared or entered in the railway’s set of design standards.
In February 2006, the station, which dates to approximately 1908, was relocated about 1 mile to a site adjacent to the James City County Branch of the Williamsburg Regional Library (opened in 1996) on Croaker Road. It is being renovated as a museum and a community center. Renovations are expected to be complete in late 2011.
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
in James City County
James City County, Virginia
James City County is a county located on the Virginia Peninsula in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of the Commonwealth of Virginia, a state of the United States. Its population was 67,009 , and it is often associated with Williamsburg, an independent city, and Jamestown which is within the...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Location
Norge was located on the old Richmond-Williamsburg Stage Road, which is U.S. Route 60U.S. Route 60 in Virginia
U.S. Route 60 in Virginia runs west to east through the central part of the state, generally close to and paralleling the Interstate 64 corridor, except for the crossing of the Blue Ridge Mountains, and in the South Hampton Roads area....
in modern times. Interstate 64
Interstate 64 in Virginia
In the U.S. state of Virginia, Interstate 64 runs east–west through the middle of the state from West Virginia to the Hampton Roads region, a total of . It is notable for crossing the mouth of the harbor of Hampton Roads on the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel, the first bridge-tunnel to...
was built through the area in the 1970s
1970s
File:1970s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: US President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office after the Watergate scandal in 1974; Refugees aboard a US naval boat after the Fall of Saigon, leading to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975; The 1973 oil...
, and passes nearby. Exit 231 is labeled "Croaker-Norge" for the two small communities nearby.
History
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
ns, with persons resettling from other places in North America joined by new immigrants. The word "Norge" is the Norwegian (Bokmål) spelling of "Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
". Land at Norge was reasonably priced and offered rich farm land in a gentler climate than that of the northern and Midwestern states, where some of the immigrants had originally settled upon coming to America.
For some years, prospective new residents were introduced to the area through promotional material sent out by Carl Martin Bergh
Carl Martin Bergh
Carl Martin Bergh was a Norwegian-American immigrant who is most associated with the resettlement of fellow Scandinavian families to the area of James City County and York County surrounding the community of Norge ,Virginia.-Background:...
, a fellow Norwegian-American with farming experience who had become a land agent for the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway
Chesapeake and Ohio Railway
The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway was a Class I railroad formed in 1869 in Virginia from several smaller Virginia railroads begun in the 19th century. Led by industrialist Collis P...
(C&O). The Peninsula Extension
Peninsula Extension
The Peninsula Extension which created the Peninsula Subdivision of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway was the new railroad line on the Virginia Peninsula from Richmond to southeastern Warwick County...
of the railroad had been built through the area in 1881 to reach from the mountains of West Virginia to the coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
piers on Hampton Roads
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 new city 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...
in adjacent 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...
. Originally known as "Vaiden's Siding", the C&O built a railroad station at Norge in 1908. The Norge Depot offered a convenient point for shipping farm produce to places such as Richmond.
Although the railroad station was closed in 1969, and C&O passenger service ended in 1971, Amtrak
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
continues to serve the area with a stop at the Williamsburg, Virginia
Williamsburg, Virginia
Williamsburg is an independent city located on the Virginia Peninsula in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of Virginia, USA. As of the 2010 Census, the city had an estimated population of 14,068. It is bordered by James City County and York County, and is an independent city...
station.
By 1909, Norge contained 25 buildings, including homes, churches, stores and other businesses. Some of the original buildings still stand today.
Historical Landmarks
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1992. The landmarks include the following:
Viking Hall: In 1908, a group of young men, who called themselves the "Vikings", purchased two lots on the corner of Richmond Rd. and Penninulsa St. for $5.00 in order to construct a Town Hall. They wanted a centrally located place to be used for dances, meetings and parties as their parents had known in Norway. Viking Hall provided a space for a variety of venues until the 1920s, when it went into disrepair. The Norge Home Demonstration Club purchased the building, renovated it, and renamed it the Norge Community Hall. To this day, the community and many local organizations continue to make extensive use of this hall.
Bergh Hotel: This hotel was built at the turn of the 20th century. It was owned and operated by Alfred Bergh to accommodate the new arrivals at the new community. The building today is thriving as a furniture store: since the 1980s it has been the "Williamsburg Wicker and Rattan".
Kinde and Nesseth Store: Hans Kinde and John Nesseth opened Norge's first store in 1903. It was a general store that sold everything from clothing to fertilizer to groceries. In 1904, the first Norge post office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
operated from this facility. The building was rebuilt in 1908 after a fire, and still operates today as an antique store under the name "The Old Store in the Village".
Other landmarks in Norge include the former Doll Factory, the former Williamsburg Soap and Candle Factory
Williamsburg Soap and Candle Factory
The Williamsburg Soap and Candle Company, known to millions as just the "candle factory", was located in the Norge section of James City County, Virginia and first opened in 1965. It was located near the Williamsburg Pottery Factory and was a local icon and popular tourist attraction on the road to...
, Our Savior's Evangelical Lutheran Church and the Norge Depot.
In May 2009, the Norge Depot was added to the National Register of Historic Places. The train station is the last surviving example of a wood frame “informal standard” depot in the six states that were served by C&O. Originals were built according to an informal plan and no standard drawings were prepared or entered in the railway’s set of design standards.
In February 2006, the station, which dates to approximately 1908, was relocated about 1 mile to a site adjacent to the James City County Branch of the Williamsburg Regional Library (opened in 1996) on Croaker Road. It is being renovated as a museum and a community center. Renovations are expected to be complete in late 2011.
Further reading
- Bradshaw, Nancy Smith and Frances Huckstep Hamilton. (1989) Velkommen til Norge: A Pictorial History of Norge, Virginia
- McCartney, Martha W. (1977) James City County: Keystone of the Commonwealth; James City County, Virginia; Donning and Company; ISBN 0-89865-999-X
- Traser, Donald R. (1998) Virginia Railway Depots. Old Dominion Chapter, National Railway Historical Society. ISBN 0-9669906-0-9
External links
- Geographical coordinates: 37°22′06"N 76°46′16"W (click for maps and satellite photos of Norge, Virginia)
- James City County (official website)
- Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools
- Williamsburg Regional Library system