Cape Henry Memorial

Located on the south side of the Chesapeake Bay, Cape Henry Memorial sits within Fort Story Military Reservation, 10 miles east of Norfolk and 3 miles north of Virginia Beach. Cape Henry Memorial is the site where the First English Colonists landed in Virginia in 1607. These Settlers established the first permanent English settlement in Jamestown, Virginia.

These English colonists erected a Wooden Cross to mark their safe arrival and named the place Cape Henry. In 1935, a granite Cross was erected by the National Society Daughters of the American Colonists, in memory of the wooden cross erected by the English colonists in 1607. This cross is named Cape Henry Memorial Cross.

There is a statue of Admiral Comte deGrasse here at Cape Henry coast. The admiral led the French Fleet in the Battle of the Capes which resulted in America’s victory at Yorktown and the end of the American Revolutionary War.

Cape Henry Memorial is a part of the National Park System. There are two light houses which can be seen from this location – the old and new Cape Henry Lighthouses. There is a walkway which leads to the top of the dunes and you enjoy stunning views of the Atlantic Ocean and Chesapeake Bay. There is another walkway just to the south of the Cape Henry Memorial and you can walk down to the beach and enjoy the waves breaking upon the shore. The memorial is open all year without an admission fee. You need to pass through the security gates of Fort Story, and you need to have Photos Ids to visit the Memorial.