Heritage Books Inc. Chesapeake Bay Bookstore Category:  History Publisher: Heritage Books Inc. ISBN-10:  1556138792 Type: Non-Fiction Pages: 252 Copyright: Oct 1 1993 They came from the sea and settled Hampton in 1610 on the site of an ancient Indian village that one day would become the NASA proving grounds for America's first leap into space. Hampton's story is America's story. This history of Hampton, Virginia, covers a period of more than 500 years, beginning with the exploratory voyages and expeditions that led to the colonization of Virginia at nearby Jamestown in 1607. Hampton survives today as the oldest English speaking settlement in continuous existence outside the British Isles. The name Hampton comes from the third Earl of Southampton who, in addition to being principal officer of the Virginia Company until it was dissolved and Virginia became the first royal colony, was the young nobleman to whom Shakespeare dedicated his narrative poems. Destroyed and rebuilt over and over again, Hampton was settled on the ashes of the Kecoughtan Indian village. It was the first American town bombarded and invaded by the British in the American Revolution, and was burned to the ground in the War of 1812. Burned again by its own citizens in an effort to keep the town from use by Union forces stationed at Fort Monroe, it was the crossroads of McClellan's march up the peninsula in the Civil War, was the site of that war's first land battle, and its harbor was the site of the clash of the first ironclad vessels, the Merrimack and the Monitor. Excerpt It was a wretched winter for the colonists. After emptying the storehouse they ate the horses and other animals, even the "dogges, catts, ratts, and myce." While some tried to survive on "wylde and unknown rootes," others ate clothing and shoe leather. The body of an Indian was taken from his grave and eaten. One settler was so crazed by hunger he murdered his wife, salted her down and ate her; he was hanged by his thumbs and burned to death. One threw his Bible into the fire and cried, "There is no God in heaven!"

Of the Sea and Skies
"Of the Sea and Skies: Historic Hampton and its Times" by Gene Williamson is a history of Hampton, Virginia, and covers more than 500 years. It tells of the exploratory voyages and expeditions that led to the colonization of Virginia and Jamestown in 1607. It is one of the better histories of the way it all began. --Betty Kirkland, Family & Friends Column, Quitman MS