For America’s 250th birthday, the Washington Examiner is taking you to Virginia’s Historic Triangle, where the story of our nation began. From the Jamestown settlement, the first permanent English colony in America; to the Yorktown Battlefield, where the fight for independence was won; to Williamsburg, where America’s founding principles were debated and shaped. Step back in time to explore the places and events that forged our nation.
YORKTOWN, Va. – As America celebrates its 250th birthday, Yorktown stands at the very heart of that story. The United States may have declared its independence in 1776, but it wasn’t until five years later that independence was truly achieved.
Linda Williams, an interpretive park ranger with the National Park Service, leads tours at Yorktown Battlefield, and she explained how the national park is a crucial part to celebrating America’s birthday.
“This was the last major battle of the American Revolutionary War,” Williams said. “It’s one thing to declare it, there’s another thing to win it. This was where it was won.”
In the fall of 1781, General George Washington joined forces with French troops and the French Navy to surround British General Charles Cornwallis, setting the stage for the battle that would end the war.
“The battle of Yorktown is important because it was the battle that won in America’s independence,” Williams told Washington Examiner. “Cornwallis had moved into Yorktown with anywhere from a quarter to a third of all the British forces in North America, and General George Washington realized that this was probably his last chance, so he marched the American Continental Army and the French Army that was with him all the way down here from New York, surrounded Cornwallis, and bombarded him for eight days until he surrendered.”
Today in Yorktown, visitors can walk the earthworks where soldiers took cover, drive a 16-mile battlefield tour, see General Washington’s field headquarters, and join ranger-led programs that bring the siege to life.
“It was going to be an intense bombardment, nonstop, 24/7, averaging 1,700 cannonballs and mortar shell bombs a day. And we’re out here right now, isn’t this peaceful?” Williams asked, to giggles from the crowd. “But back then they said the intensity, the bombardment was so much, it felt to them as if the whole peninsula was shaking.”
Several people who spoke with the Washington Examiner planned to continue their trip through the Historical Triangle — Yorktown, Jamestown, and Williamsburg — before heading to Washington, D.C., for Independence Day celebrations. For many visitors, America’s 250th anniversary is more than a celebration. It’s an opportunity to stand where history unfolded and reflect on the sacrifices that helped create the nation.
“It defines who we are as Americans. It’s where it all started,” Tim, who is visiting from Ohio with his wife, said. “As far as the War of Independence… This was a nice place to go to remember, to see it, to experience it, and remind ourselves of what they went through and what they fought for.”
Williams said many historic homes retain original cannonball damage, and owners have embraced that history.
“We’re very proud to be Americans and patriotic, and it’s a big birthday, and we’re gonna take it all in and just have a blast.” Anna, visiting with her husband from Wisconsin, said. “You’re able to be free, practice as you wish… people’s dreams come true here, and it’s just a great country, and we’re very proud and very blessed.”
BEFORE 1776: REDISCOVERING AMERICA’S FIRST CHAPTER AT JAMESTOWN
“80% of Yorktown was severely damaged after the siege, and some of the older houses still have cannonball damage in the brickwork,” Williams said. “But the Nelson house, you can actually see two cannonballs stuck into the side. People believe that those were actually from the siege. The cannonball damage is original, but a later owner of the Nelson house decided it would be neat to install those cannon balls to add to the effect.”
The great thing about Yorktown is that this experience isn’t just here for America’s 250th birthday. The battlefield, the museums, and the stories that shaped our nation are here waiting to be explored for generations to come.