Caroline County | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 38°02′N77°21′W / 38.03°N 77.35°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Virginia |
Founded | 1727 |
Named for | Caroline of Ansbach |
Seat | Bowling Green |
Largest town | Bowling Green |
Area | |
• Total | 537 sq mi (1,390 km2) |
• Land | 528 sq mi (1,370 km2) |
• Water | 9 sq mi (20 km2) 1.7% |
Population (2020) | |
• Total | 30,887 |
• Density | 58/sq mi (22/km2) |
Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
Congressional district | 7th |
Website | www |
Caroline County is a United States county located in the eastern part of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The northern boundary of the county borders on the Rappahannock River, notably at the historic town of Port Royal. The Caroline county seat is Bowling Green. [1]
Caroline County was established in 1728 and was named in honor of the British queen Caroline of Ansbach. Developed in the colonial and antebellum years for tobacco and later mixed crops, worked by generations of enslaved African Americans, such agriculture gradually became less important. In the 20th century it was known for thoroughbred horse farms. It is the birthplace of the renowned racehorse Secretariat, winner of the 1973 Triple Crown: the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes.
As of the 2020 census, the county population was 30,887. [2] It has doubled in the last fifty years. [3] Caroline is now considered part of the Greater Richmond Region and benefited by suburban and related development.
Caroline County was established in the British Colony of Virginia in 1727 from parts of Essex, King and Queen, and King William counties. It was named for the new queen of Great Britain, Caroline of Ansbach. [4]
During the Colonial Period, Caroline County was the birthplace of thoroughbred horse racing in North America. Arabian horses were imported from England to provide the basis for American breeding stock. The economy was based on tobacco cultivation as a commodity crop, and later mixed crops, much of which was worked by enslaved Africans and African Americans into the antebellum period.
The planter elite of Virginia became active in seeking independence from Great Britain. Patriot Edmund Pendleton played a large role in the Virginia Resolution for Independence (1775). Caroline native John Penn, who later lived in and represented North Carolina as a delegate, was a signer of the Declaration of Independence, [5] albeit as a delegate from North Carolina.
Explorers William Clark and his slave York were members of the Lewis and Clark Expedition (1803–1805), commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson to explore the newly acquired Louisiana Purchase area west of the Mississippi River. William's older brother, General George Rogers Clark, was considered a conqueror of the old Northwest Territory and a Revolutionary War hero. Both were born near what is now Ladysmith.
In 1847, after being a member of the first graduating class of Virginia Military Institute (VMI), William "Little Billy" Mahone (1826–1895) of Southampton County began teaching at Rappahannock Academy in Caroline County. He was to become prominent as a railroad builder and developer, Confederate general, leader of Virginia's short-lived Readjuster Party, and a United States Senator.
On May 10, 1863, Confederate Lieutenant General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson died of complications from pneumonia at the Chandler plantation in Guinea Station (also known as Guiney's Station), in the unincorporated Caroline County community of Woodford. The Chandler residence has been preserved and is now known as the "Jackson Shrine." [6]
During the American Civil War, Union General Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign, Confederate troops under General George E. Pickett fought Union troops near Milford. Just as the Civil War was concluding in April 1865, President Lincoln was assassinated in Washington, D.C., as part of a conspiracy to kill the leaders of the United States. As the conspirators fled, a manhunt was launched. After 10 days, in the wee hours of April 26, federal troops tracked down John Wilkes Booth, Lincoln's assassin, and fellow conspirator David E. Herold at Garrett's farm about 3 miles west of Port Royal. Booth was fatally shot during their capture by federal troops. Herold was returned to Washington, where he was executed by hanging with 3 co-conspirators on July 7, 1865.
While racial segregation was the law under Jim Crow, in many small communities, residents made friendships across racial lines. In 1958, Richard Loving and Mildred Jeter decided to marry. They went to Washington, D.C., but returned to their home in Central Point in this county. Living as a married interracial couple, they challenged state miscegenation laws. They were soon arrested and charged under the state's anti-miscegenation statute, the Racial Integrity Act of 1924. Forced to leave the state to avoid jail, they lived in Washington, D.C., for years but wanted to return home; they filed suit against the state's law. Their case reached the Supreme Court of the United States on appeal, which in 1967 found anti-miscegenation statutes to be unconstitutional in Loving v. Virginia , based on violating due process and equal rights under the law.
At the southern edge of the county, The Meadow, a plantation originally established in 1810, became a premier facility in the 20th century for breeding, raising and training Thoroughbred racehorses. In 1972, Riva Ridge, raised and trained at The Meadow, won the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes, two of the three events of the Triple Crown. In 1973 Secretariat, born at The Meadow, won the Triple Crown for the Chenery family's Meadow Stable.
In 2003, The State Fair of Virginia purchased Meadow Farm for development as a new site for the annual Virginia State Fair. Long held at locations in the capital of Richmond and Henrico County, the fair was increasingly squeezed out by expanding development around it and the growth of the event. Before development of Meadow Farm, it was held at Strawberry Hill in central Henrico County, at the facility which later became the Richmond International Raceway.
Beginning in September 2009, the annual Virginia State Fair has been held at the new Meadow Event Park in Caroline County. [7] The annual Meadow Celtic Games and Festival (formerly Richmond Celtic Games and Festival) will also be held at the new facility. [8]
In 2009 the National Civic League presented Caroline County with one of ten annual All-America City Awards. [9]
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 537 square miles (1,390 km2), of which 528 square miles (1,370 km2) is land and 9 square miles (23 km2) (1.7%) is water. [10] Caroline County is 30 miles (48 km) north of the capital in Richmond and 32 miles (51 km) south of Fredericksburg.
Caroline County is bounded on the north by Spotsylvania and King George counties; on the south by Hanover County; on the east by King William, King and Queen, and Essex counties; and on the west by Spotsylvania County.
The county is home to a quarry that has proved a rich source of pre-historic whale and shark skeletons. The whole county is located in what was in ancient times land under an ocean. It is known to paleontologists as the middle Miocene Calvert Formation of Virginia. A whale skeleton discovered there in 1990 was proved to be a new whale species (see Eobalaenoptera harrisoni ).
Caroline County is served by Interstate 95, US 1 and US 301. These three routes are important for inter-regional travel.
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1790 | 17,489 | — | |
1800 | 17,438 | −0.3% | |
1810 | 17,544 | 0.6% | |
1820 | 18,008 | 2.6% | |
1830 | 17,760 | −1.4% | |
1840 | 17,813 | 0.3% | |
1850 | 18,456 | 3.6% | |
1860 | 18,464 | 0.0% | |
1870 | 15,128 | −18.1% | |
1880 | 17,243 | 14.0% | |
1890 | 16,681 | −3.3% | |
1900 | 16,709 | 0.2% | |
1910 | 16,596 | −0.7% | |
1920 | 15,954 | −3.9% | |
1930 | 15,263 | −4.3% | |
1940 | 13,945 | −8.6% | |
1950 | 12,471 | −10.6% | |
1960 | 12,725 | 2.0% | |
1970 | 13,925 | 9.4% | |
1980 | 17,904 | 28.6% | |
1990 | 19,217 | 7.3% | |
2000 | 22,121 | 15.1% | |
2010 | 28,545 | 29.0% | |
2020 | 30,887 | 8.2% | |
2021 (est.) | 31,332 | [11] | 1.4% |
U.S. Decennial Census [12] 1790–1960 [13] 1900–1990 [14] 1990–2000 [15] 2010 [16] 2020 [17] |
Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 2010 [16] | Pop 2020 [17] | % 2010 | % 2020 |
---|---|---|---|---|
White alone (NH) | 18,145 | 18,841 | 63.57% | 61.00% |
Black or African American alone (NH) | 8,297 | 7,627 | 29.07% | 24.69% |
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 189 | 160 | 0.66% | 0.52% |
Asian alone (NH) | 170 | 296 | 0.60% | 0.96% |
Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 18 | 15 | 0.06% | 0.05% |
Some Other Race alone (NH) | 49 | 163 | 0.17% | 0.53% |
Mixed Race or Multi-Racial (NH) | 718 | 1,817 | 2.52% | 5.88% |
Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 959 | 1,968 | 3.36% | 6.37% |
Total | 28,545 | 30,887 | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of the census [18] of 2000, there were 22,121 people, 8,021 households, and 6,007 families residing in the county. The population density was 42 people per square mile (16 people/km2). There were 8,889 housing units at an average density of 17 units per square mile (6.6 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 62.57% White, 34.37% Black or African American, 0.78% Native American, 0.36% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.52% from other races, and 1.37% from two or more races. 1.33% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 8,021 households, out of which 31.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.30% were married couples living together, 13.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.10% were non-families. 20.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.08.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.80% under the age of 18, 7.40% from 18 to 24, 29.90% from 25 to 44, 25.00% from 45 to 64, and 12.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 99.10 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 97.50 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $39,845, and the median income for a family was $43,533. Males had a median income of $31,701 versus $22,455 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,342. About 7.20% of families and 9.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.00% of those under age 18 and 11.70% of those age 65 or over.
As noted, Caroline County gained the State Fair of Virginia (previously in Richmond since 1854 when the first State Fair opened in Monroe Park), which facility will be a venue for other events. New businesses and developments include Remuda Programs for Eating Disorders, The Virginia Sports Complex, the multi-national electrical contracting firm, M.C. Dean, and the Fortune 14 Company McKesson Corporation. The latter developed a 340,000 square foot distribution center, the largest private square footage investment in Virginia in 2010.
Caroline County is represented by Republican Ryan T. McDougle in the Virginia Senate, Republicans Robert D. "Bobby" Orrock, Hyland F. "Buddy" Fowler, and Margaret Bevans Ransone in the Virginia House of Delegates and Democrat Abigail Spanberger in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
2020 | 8,336 | 51.18% | 7,657 | 47.01% | 295 | 1.81% |
2016 | 7,147 | 50.16% | 6,432 | 45.14% | 669 | 4.70% |
2012 | 6,151 | 45.06% | 7,276 | 53.30% | 225 | 1.65% |
2008 | 5,617 | 43.48% | 7,163 | 55.45% | 139 | 1.08% |
2004 | 4,999 | 50.22% | 4,878 | 49.01% | 77 | 0.77% |
2000 | 3,873 | 46.38% | 4,314 | 51.66% | 164 | 1.96% |
1996 | 2,816 | 38.65% | 3,897 | 53.49% | 572 | 7.85% |
1992 | 2,947 | 38.01% | 3,770 | 48.63% | 1,036 | 13.36% |
1988 | 3,065 | 48.71% | 3,186 | 50.64% | 41 | 0.65% |
1984 | 2,949 | 48.04% | 3,111 | 50.68% | 78 | 1.27% |
1980 | 2,071 | 40.18% | 2,924 | 56.73% | 159 | 3.08% |
1976 | 1,648 | 34.36% | 3,064 | 63.89% | 84 | 1.75% |
1972 | 2,086 | 52.80% | 1,814 | 45.91% | 51 | 1.29% |
1968 | 1,162 | 26.25% | 2,165 | 48.92% | 1,099 | 24.83% |
1964 | 1,166 | 35.95% | 2,064 | 63.64% | 13 | 0.40% |
1960 | 864 | 36.50% | 1,483 | 62.65% | 20 | 0.84% |
1956 | 907 | 46.06% | 853 | 43.32% | 209 | 10.61% |
1952 | 858 | 47.01% | 954 | 52.27% | 13 | 0.71% |
1948 | 397 | 30.26% | 731 | 55.72% | 184 | 14.02% |
1944 | 383 | 27.53% | 1,004 | 72.18% | 4 | 0.29% |
1940 | 305 | 21.08% | 1,136 | 78.51% | 6 | 0.41% |
1936 | 258 | 18.87% | 1,104 | 80.76% | 5 | 0.37% |
1932 | 270 | 19.79% | 1,076 | 78.89% | 18 | 1.32% |
1928 | 638 | 49.96% | 639 | 50.04% | 0 | 0.00% |
1924 | 223 | 20.59% | 840 | 77.56% | 20 | 1.85% |
1920 | 308 | 31.30% | 665 | 67.58% | 11 | 1.12% |
1916 | 198 | 23.57% | 637 | 75.83% | 5 | 0.60% |
1912 | 144 | 16.63% | 590 | 68.13% | 132 | 15.24% |
There are two incorporated towns in Caroline County. They are:
The town of Bowling Green was earlier known as New Hope Village. One of the earliest stage roads in the colony ran through the area from Richmond to the Potomac River, where a ferry crossing was operated to Charles County, Maryland. One of the first stage lines in America to maintain a regular schedule operated along this road. New Hope Tavern was built along the road prior to 1700, and the area around it became known as New Hope Village. [20]
The town was renamed for "Bowling Green", the plantation of town founder, Colonel John Hoomes. He donated considerable land when the community became the county seat in 1803. The Bowling Green estate took its name from the Hoomes family's ancestral seat in England, "Bolling Green". Such naming was a tradition in the Colony of Virginia. The Bowling Green estate was the site of one of the first tracks for horse racing in North America. [21]
The manor home of the Hoomes family, built on plantation land patented by Major Thomas Hoomes in 1667, was constructed in 1741. A prominent town landmark, it is one of the oldest residences in original condition in Virginia. [20] Bowling Green Farm is now on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places. [21]
The present Caroline County Court House was built in 1835, and Bowling Green was incorporated as a town in 1837. The town is best known as the "cradle of American horse racing".
The Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad (chartered in 1834) was built through nearby Milford (just west of town) and reached Fredericksburg by 1837. This important rail link between several major northern railroads at Washington, D.C., and other major southern railroads at Richmond was partially owned by the Commonwealth of Virginia for years. It was purchased by CSX Transportation in the 1990s. A major freight railroad line for north–south traffic, the corridor also carries many Amtrak trains. Although the closest Virginia Railway Express (VRE) commuter passenger rail service to Northern Virginia is accessed at Spotsylvania, [22] future VRE extensions southward may include service at Milford. This would increase convenience for Bowling Green and the surrounding area.
Bowling Green is located along Virginia State Route 2, one of the two earlier highways between Richmond and Fredericksburg. In later years, U.S. Route 301 was built through the area, connecting Richmond with Baltimore, Maryland, by what was effectively an eastern bypass of the Washington, D.C., area. A new road, Virginia State Route 207, was established from Bowling Green west to Carmel Church. It intersects Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 1, major north–south highways.
In 1941, the United States government acquired 77,000 acres (310 km2) of Caroline County to the north and east of Bowling Green. It established the A.P. Hill Military Reservation. Known in modern times as Fort A.P. Hill, the facility was named for Virginia military hero of the United States Army and later Confederate General Ambrose Powell Hill. Thousands of regular military and reserve troops undergo training at the complex each year. It was also the site of national Jamboree gatherings of the Boy Scouts of America for 29 years between 1981 and 2010. [23]
Port Royal is one of the area's more historic towns. It was first established in 1652 as a port on a navigable portion of the Rappahannock River during an era when waterways were the major method of transportation of people and property in the British Colony of Virginia. It was an important point for export of tobacco, Virginia's cash crop.
Local tradition holds that Port Royal was named after the Roy family. Dorothy Roy and her husband John owned a warehouse chartered by the crown, a ferry service across the Rappahannock River to King George County and a tavern. In the 21st century, the chimneys of the Roy house are preserved landmarks in the town. [24]
Port Royal was incorporated as a town in 1744. The "town green", upon which stands today the Town Hall and the firehouse, was forever reserved "for public and civic use". [25]
Shipping of property from the port began to decline after completion of railroads which began in Virginia in the 1830s. The last scheduled passenger ship service ended in 1932, supplanted by highways. However, Port Royal was served by the new highways which became U.S. Route 17 and U.S. Route 301, with their crossroads at Port Royal.
There are two unincorporated census-designated places in Caroline County:
Caroline County Public Schools provides public education in the county. For the 2020–2021 school year, Caroline County Public Schools had 490 total employees with 209 of them being teachers. [26]
Spotsylvania County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is a suburb approximately 60 miles (90km) south of D.C. It is a part of the Northern Virginia region and the D.C. area. As of 2024, Spotsylvania County is the 14th most populated county in Virginia with 149,588 residences. Its county seat is Spotsylvania.
Fredericksburg is an independent city in Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 27,982. It is 48 miles (77 km) south of Washington, D.C., and 53 miles (85 km) north of Richmond. The Bureau of Economic Analysis of the United States Department of Commerce combines the city of Fredericksburg with neighboring Spotsylvania County for statistical purposes.
Bowling Green is an incorporated town in Caroline County, Virginia, United States. The population was 1,111 at the 2010 census.
Port Royal is an incorporated town in Caroline County, Virginia, United States. The population was 126 at the 2010 census.
Tappahannock is the oldest town in Essex County, Virginia, United States. The population was 2,375 at the 2010 census, up from 2,068 at the 2000 census. Located on the Rappahannock River, Tappahannock is the county seat of Essex County. Its name comes from an Algonquian language word lappihanne, meaning "Town on the rise and fall of water" or "where the tide ebbs and flows." The Rappahannock is a tidal estuary from above this point and downriver to its mouth on Chesapeake Bay.
Falmouth is a census-designated place (CDP) in Stafford County, Virginia, United States. Situated on the north bank of the Rappahannock River at the falls, the community is north of and opposite the city of Fredericksburg. Recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census-designated place (CDP), Falmouth's population was 4,956 as of the 2020 census.
The Middle Peninsula is the second of three large peninsulas on the western shore of Chesapeake Bay in Virginia. To the north the Rappahannock River separates it from the Northern Neck peninsula. To the south the York River separates it from the Virginia Peninsula. It encompasses six Virginia counties: Essex, Gloucester, King and Queen, King William, Mathews, and Middlesex. Developed for tobacco plantations in the colonial era, in the 21st century the Middle Peninsula is known for its quiet rural life, vegetable truck-farming, and fishing industry. As of the 2020 census, the Middle Peninsula was home to 92,886 people.
State Route 2, formerly State Route 50, is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. The state highway runs 53.08 miles (85.42 km) from U.S. Route 1 and US 301 in Richmond north to US 1 Business, US 17 Business, and SR 3 Business in Fredericksburg. SR 2 connects Richmond and Fredericksburg via Bowling Green. The state highway runs concurrently with US 301 from Richmond to Bowling Green and with US 17 Business in the Fredericksburg area.
Virginia State Route 3 is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia that extends from the town of Culpeper south and eastwardly to Gloucester in Virginia's Middle Peninsula region. For many years, a portion was named "Historyland Highway".
Transportation in the Commonwealth of Virginia is by land, sea and air. Virginia's extensive network of highways and railroads were developed and built over a period almost 400 years, beginning almost immediately after the founding of Jamestown in 1607, and often incorporating old established trails of the Native Americans.
Interstate 95 (I-95) runs 179 miles (288 km) within the commonwealth of Virginia between its borders with North Carolina and Maryland. I-95 meets the northern terminus of I-85 in Petersburg and is concurrent with I-64 for three miles (4.8 km) in Richmond. Although I-95 was originally planned as a highway through Washington, D.C., it was rerouted along the eastern portion of the Capital Beltway concurrent with I-495. From Petersburg to Richmond, I-95 utilized most of the Richmond–Petersburg Turnpike, a former toll road. In addition to Richmond, the route also runs through the medium-sized cities of Emporia, Petersburg, Colonial Heights, Fredericksburg, and Alexandria.
U.S. Route 301 is a part of the U.S. Highway System that runs from Sarasota, Florida, to Biddles Corner, Delaware. In Virginia, the U.S. Highway runs 142.70 miles (229.65 km) from the North Carolina state line near Skippers north to the Maryland state line at the Potomac River near Dahlgren. US 301 forms the local complement to Interstate 95 (I-95) from Emporia to Petersburg. The U.S. Highway runs concurrently with US 1 between Petersburg and the state capital of Richmond, where the highways form one of the main north–south avenues. US 301 continues north concurrent with Virginia State Route 2 to Bowling Green, forming an eastern alternative to I-95 and US 1 north of Richmond. At Bowling Green, which is connected to I-95 by SR 207, US 301 becomes the primary highway connecting Richmond and the Northern Neck with Southern Maryland. US 301 was constructed in four main segments: as the original SR 24 and then US 17-1 south of Petersburg, as US 1 from Petersburg to Richmond, as SR 2 from Richmond to Bowling Green, and as part of SR 207 toward Dahlgren. US 301 replaced US 17–1 in the early 1930s and was extended from Petersburg north along its current course into Maryland when the Potomac River Bridge was completed in 1940.
U.S. Route 1 (US 1) is a major north–south U.S. Route that serves the East Coast of the United States. In the U.S. state of Virginia, US 1 runs north–south through South Hill, Petersburg, Richmond, Fredericksburg, and Alexandria on its way from North Carolina to the 14th Street bridges into the District of Columbia. It is completely paralleled by Interstate Highways in Virginia—Interstate 85 (I-85) south of Petersburg, I-95 north to Alexandria, and I-395 into the District of Columbia—and now serves mainly local traffic. At its north end, on the approach to the 14th Street bridges, US 1 is concurrent with I-395; the rest of US 1 is on surface roads.
State Route 207 is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. Known for most of its length as Rogers Clark Boulevard, the state highway runs 11.93 miles (19.20 km) from U.S. Route 1 in Ruther Glen east to US 301 and SR 2 in Bowling Green. SR 207 is a divided highway connection between Interstate 95 (I-95) north of Richmond and US 301, which heads toward Fort A.P. Hill, the Northern Neck, and the Potomac River Bridge to Southern Maryland.
U.S. Route 17 (US 17) is a part of the United States Numbered Highway System that runs from Punta Gorda, Florida, to Winchester, Virginia. In Virginia, the U.S. Highway runs 255.83 miles (411.72 km) from the North Carolina state line in Chesapeake north to its northern terminus at US 11, US 50, and US 522 in Winchester. US 17 is a major highway in the eastern half of Virginia. The U.S. Highway connects the Albemarle Region of North Carolina with the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. Within the urban area, US 17 passes through the South Hampton Roads cities of Chesapeake, Portsmouth, and Suffolk and the Virginia Peninsula city of Newport News. Between Yorktown and Fredericksburg, the U.S. Highway serves as the primary highway of the Middle Peninsula. At Fredericksburg, US 17 leaves the Atlantic Plain; the highway passes through the Piedmont town of Warrenton and crosses the Blue Ridge Mountains on its way to Winchester in the Shenandoah Valley. The route from Tappahannock to Winchester roughly follows the Confederate march during the Civil War to Gettysburg.
State Route 20 is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. The state highway runs 89.79 miles (144.50 km) from U.S. Route 15 in Dillwyn north to SR 3 in Wilderness. SR 20 is a C-shaped route that connects Charlottesville with Farmville in Southside Virginia. The state highway also links Charlottesville to Fredericksburg by way of Orange County, within which SR 20 is the main east–west highway and intersects US 15 again in the county seat of Orange.
Hanover is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Hanover County, Virginia, United States. It is the county seat and is located at the junction of U.S. Route 301 and State Route 54 south of the Pamunkey River. While historically known as Hanover Courthouse, the U.S. Geological Survey, Census Bureau, Postal Service and residents refer to it as "Hanover". The population as of the 2010 census was 252.
State Route 208 is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. The state highway runs 47.35 miles (76.20 km) from U.S. Route 250 at Ferncliff east to US 1 and US 1 Business at Four Mile Fork. SR 208 is a major southwest–northeast highway through Louisa and Spotsylvania counties. The state highway connects the counties' respective seats of Louisa and Spotsylvania Courthouse, where the old route of the highway is SR 208 Business, with each other and with Fredericksburg near the highway's eastern terminus. SR 208 also has a direct connection with Interstate 64 (I-64) at Ferncliff and an indirect connection to I-95 near Fredericksburg.
John Tayloe Lomax was an Virginia lawyer and jurist.