Chesapeake

History

In 1963, the new independent city of Chesapeake was created when the former independent city of South Norfolk consolidated with Norfolk County. The consolidation was approved, and the new name selected by the voters of each community by referendum and authorized by the Virginia General Assembly. Formed in 1691 in the Virginia Colony, Norfolk County had originally included essentially all the area which became the towns and later cities of Norfolk, Portsmouth, and South Norfolk. Its area was reduced after 1871 as these cities added territory through annexations. Becoming an independent city was a method for the former county to stabilize borders with neighbors, as cities could not annex territory from each other. The relatively small city of South Norfolk had become an incorporated town within Norfolk County in 1919 and became an independent city in 1922. Its residents wanted to make a change to put their jurisdiction on a more equal footing in other aspects with the much larger cities of Norfolk and Portsmouth. In addition, by the late 1950s, although immune from annexation by the bigger cities, South Norfolk was close to losing all the county land adjoining it to the city of Norfolk in another annexation suit. The consolidation that resulted in the city of Chesapeake was part of a wave of changes in the structure of local government in southeastern Virginia which took place between 1952 and 1975. The Chesapeake region was among the first areas settled in the state's colonial era, when settlement started from the coast. Along Chesapeake's segment of the Intracoastal Waterway, where the Great Bridge locks marks the transition between the Southern Branch Elizabeth River and the Chesapeake and Albemarle Canal, lies the site of the Battle of Great Bridge. Fought on…

Geography

Chesapeake is located at (36.767398, -76.287405). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (2.9%) is water. The northeastern part of the Great Dismal Swamp is located in Chesapeake. Chesapeake is one of the larger cities in Virginia and the nation in terms of land area. This poses challenges to city leaders in supporting infrastructure to serve this area. In addition, the city has many historically and geographically distinct communities. City leaders are faced with conflicts between development of residential, commercial and industrial areas and preservation of virgin forest and wetlands. Within the city limits in the southwestern section is a large portion of the Great Dismal Swamp. * Portsmouth, Virginia (north) * Norfolk, Virginia (north) * Virginia Beach, Virginia (east) * Currituck County, North Carolina (south) * Camden County, North Carolina (south) * Suffolk, Virginia (west) Chesapeake consists of six boroughs: South Norfolk, Butts Road, Deep Creek, Pleasant Grove, Western Branch and Washington. One of the boroughs, South Norfolk, used to be its own independent city and consolidated the surrounding portions of Norfolk County (extinct) into the City of Chesapeake. The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Chesapeake has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  10,091
• Carolina Wren

  Thryothorus ludovicianus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  9,406
• Carolina Chickadee

  Poecile carolinensis (Audubon, 1834) · Aves
  9,073
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  8,315
• Tufted Titmouse

  Baeolophus bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  7,242
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  6,387
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  6,252
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  6,016