Norfolk, VA

Place Unit Type
City or Town
Containing Unit
Norfolk County, VA
Date Type
Altercation on board U.S. Navy prize leads to four sailors arrested for mutiny Crime/Disasters
In Hampton Roads, the Virginia and the Monitor pound each other in the first ever battle between ironclads Battles/Soldiers
In Norfolk, Virginia, African-Americans rally to celebrate congressional action on the Civil Rights Bill Campaigns/Elections
In Richmond, the Confederate Navy convenes a court of inquiry over the destruction of the Merrimac Battles/Soldiers
In Richmond, the Confederate Navy court of inquiry into the scuttling of the Merrimac makes its report Battles/Soldiers
- In South Carolina, the U.S. South Atlantic Blockading Squadron takes Port Royal by naval bombardment Battles/Soldiers
In Virginia, a Union amphibious operation forces the surrender of Norfolk and its naval installations Battles/Soldiers
In Virginia, the famous and feared Confederate ironclad "Merrimac" is burned to avoid its capture Battles/Soldiers
Jefferson Davis declares martial law in and around the Virginia towns of Norfolk and Portsmouth Lawmaking/Litigating
Jefferson Davis declares martial law in the Richmond area and also bans the production of spirits Lawmaking/Litigating
Largest U.S. Fleet ever assembled sails from Norfolk, Virginia to blockade and harass the Confederate coast Battles/Soldiers
Near Norfolk, Virginia, a veteran U.S. Navy frigate burns and sinks at her moorings Crime/Disasters
Off Norfolk, Virginia, President Lincoln observes a bombardment of Confederate positions Battles/Soldiers
Off Norfolk, Virginia, the ironclad C.S.S. Virginia leads an attack that cripples the Union blockading fleet Battles/Soldiers
Oldest living former United States Senator dies in Norfolk, Virginia Personal
Passenger steamer bound for Havana disabled off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina Crime/Disasters
Passengers from the stricken steamer Quaker City landed safely in Norfolk, Virginia Crime/Disasters
Secretary of Navy orders U.S.S. Brooklyn to prepare to sail from Hampton Roads in Virginia Battles/Soldiers
- Serious civil disturbances rock Norfolk, Virginia, bringing federal troops to restore order Crime/Disasters
Steamship from Norfolk to Baltimore burns with one passenger and a crewman lost Crime/Disasters
The controversially captured raider C.S.S. Florida sinks off Norfolk, Virginia after a collision Battles/Soldiers
The cornerstone of the Soldiers' Monument is laid at Hampton National Cemetery in Virginia. Battles/Soldiers
- The South Atlantic Blockading Squadron runs into a storm on its way to South Carolina and ships are lost Crime/Disasters
Birthplace of
Burial Place of
Date Title
New York Times, "Runaway Slave Found," October 28, 1852
New York Times, “Louisiana Legislature,” December 11, 1852
Solomon Brown to William Still, February 20, 1854
William Henry Gilliam to William Still, May 15, 1854
W. H. Atkins to William Still, October 5, 1854
Sheridan Ford to William Still, February 15, 1855
Abigail Goodwin to William Still, March 25, 1855
Thomas Bayne to William Still, June 23, 1855
Louisville (KY) Journal, "Untitled," September 29, 1855
Henry Washington to William Still, November 12, 1855
Thomas Garrett to William Still, December 19, 1855
Anthony and Albert Brown to William Still, March 7, 1856
Thomas Garrett to William Still, March 23, 1856
James H. Forman to William Still, June 5, 1856
Agnes Willis to William Still, June 15, 1857
New York Times, “A New York Slaver Arrived at Norfolk,” December 22, 1857
Boston (MA) Liberator, "The Beauties of Personal Liberty Laws," January 8, 1858
Flarece P. Gault to William Still, March 22, 1858
Richmond (VA) Dispatch, "The Underground Railroad," June 1, 1858
Louisville (KY) Journal, "The U.G. Railroad," June 22, 1858
Charleston (SC) Mercury, “The Western Trade,” September 28, 1858
Raleigh (NC) Register, “Douglas Stock Rising,” December 8, 1858
Charleston (SC) Mercury, “A Fugitive Slave Returned to Florida,” May 18, 1859
New York Times, “The Hyannis Fugitive Slave Case,” June 4, 1859
New Orleans (LA) Picayune, "Untitled," November 25, 1859
New York Times, "Democratic National Convention," March 17, 1860
Chicago (IL) Press and Tribune, “The Artful Dodger,” September 1, 1860
New York Times, “Speech of Mr. Breckinridge,” September 10, 1860
Fayetteville (NC) Observer, “Mum on the Great Question,” September 17, 1860
New York Times, “Disunion Ravings,” September 20, 1860
(Jackson) Mississippian, "The 'Coercion' Issue," October 5, 1860
Charlestown (VA) Free Press, “A Trap For Douglas,” October 11, 1860
Chicago (IL) Press and Tribune, “Fear of Insurrection,” October 24, 1860
Charlestown (VA) Free Press, “Conservative Sentiments,” November 8, 1860
Charleston (SC) Mercury, "Federal Troops in the South," November 20, 1860
Charlestown (VA) Free Press, “The Clouds Lowering,” December 27, 1860
Chicago (IL) Tribune, “Hardly Credible,” January 28, 1861
David D. Field to Abraham Lincoln, April 23, 1861
Fayetteville (NC) Observer, “What Can We Believe?,” April 29, 1861
Fayetteville (NC) Observer, "A New Difficulty," April 29, 1861
Chicago (IL) Tribune, “Army Slave Catching,” May 28, 1861
Abraham Lincoln, Message to the Congress in Special Session, July 4, 1861
Free Blacks in Norfolk Virginia, 1790-1860: The Darker Side of Freedom
How to Cite This Page: "Norfolk, VA," House Divided: The Civil War Research Engine at Dickinson College, https://hd.housedivided.dickinson.edu/index.php/node/11533.