Wednesday, November 20, 2024 Good morning! On this day in 1824, the Marquis de Lafayette stopped in Fredericksburg as part of his grand tour of the United States. Lafayette was the final surviving Major General from the Revolutionary War. During the tour, he visited all 24 states in 13 months. Did you know that November […]

Tuesday, November 19, 2024 Good morning!  On this day in 1752, George Rogers Clark, “Conqueror of the Old Northwest,” was born in Albemarle County. Clark’s military excursions during the Revolutionary War helped secure land (then claimed by Virginia but later ceded to the U.S.) in the future states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and […]

Monday, November 18, 2024 Good morning! On this day in 1618, the two leading officers of the Virginia Company of London sent instructions to the colony’s new governor, Sir George Yeardley. The document became known as the “Great Charter.” It allowed colonists to establish a general assembly, the first representative legislative body in the Western hemisphere. Those […]

Friday, November 15, 2024 Good morning! On this day in 1860, Virginia Gov. John Letcher responded to Abraham Lincoln’s election as president by summoning a special session of the General Assembly to be held on January 7, 1861. The session eventually led to Virginians voting to leave the Union and join the Confederacy. Are you […]

Thursday, November 14, 2024 Good morning! On this day in 1910, Eugene Ely made the first flight from the deck of a Navy ship. There were no aircraft carriers, of course. However, the light cruiser USS Birmingham was retrofitted in Norfolk with an 80-foot-long wooden platform to serve as a runway. Ely took off, skipped […]

Wednesday, November 13, 2024 Good morning. On this day in 2022, University of Virginia football players Devin Chandler, Lavel Davis Jr., and D’Sean Perry were killed when a fellow student opened fire on a school-chartered bus that was returning to campus after a field trip. Two other students were wounded. The alleged shooter will go […]

Tuesday, November 12, 2024 Good morning! On this day in 1792, the Virginia General Assembly established the town of Centreville, roughly 20 miles west of Washington D.C. Decades later, a writer claimed that its name derived “from its central position, being about equidistant from Leesburg, Middleburg, Warrenton, Washington, Georgetown, and Alexandria.”  Welcome to The Virginia […]

Monday, November 11, 2024 Happy Veterans Day! On this day in 1921, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was dedicated at Arlington National Cemetery. The inscription reads: “Here rests in honored glory an American Soldier, Known but to God.” Today, the Tomb contains the remains of three unidentified service members.   The Virginia Flyover wants to […]

Friday, November 8, 2024 Good morning! On this day in 1788, Virginia’s General Assembly chose Richard Henry Lee and William Grayson to serve as the state’s first two senators. Both men were antifederalists, meaning they had reservations about the recently ratified U.S. Constitution. Welcome to The Virginia Flyover, where we bring you the latest news […]

Thursday, November 7, 2024 Good morning! On this day in 1989, L. Douglas Wilder was elected governor of Virginia. He earned a narrow victory over Republican Marshal Coleman. The Richmond-born Wilder was the first African American governor in U.S. history.  Welcome to The Virginia Flyover. A busy week in our Commonwealth continues as we bring […]