Chesterfield County is home to many firsts. Chesterfield’s Bermuda Hundred, a small community in the southeastern part of the county, was the very first incorporated town in America and today holds a spot on the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register.
Led by Sir Thomas Dale, who had founded the Citie of Henricus in 1611, the nearby town of Bermuda Hundred was settled by English colonists in 1613 on the peninsula at the confluence of the James and Appomattox Rivers. In 1614, it became America’s first incorporated town. Dale named the site Bermuda after the islands of Bermuda off Virginia’s east coast. “Hundred” was added to denote a settlement of land to accommodate 100 families.
As one of the first settlements in Virginia, Bermuda Hundred served as a port and a key site for agriculture and trade. It was here where John Rolfe’s indentured servants and tenants cultivated several non-native strains of tobacco, providing the new Colony with a crucial cash crop to export and establish Bermuda Hundred as a significant regional shipping hub.
The Appamatuck
Long before English contact, the land that we know as Bermuda Hundred was home to the Appamatuck, an Algonquin-speaking native American tribe that was part of the Powhatan Chiefdom. At the time, an estimated 30 Powhatan tribes controlled the area then known as Tsenacomoco, present-day Tidewater, Virginia.
The Appamatuck first encountered English explorers on May 8, 1607, when a party led by Christopher Newport reached one of their villages at the mouth of the Appomattox River. Anglo-Native relations deteriorated and a battle broke out in 1610 when English forces from Jamestown campaigned against the female leader Opossunoquonuske or “Queen of the Appamatuck” in retaliation for leading an ambush against an English expedition. Opossunoquonuske led the defense of her village, located at present day Bermuda Hundred, and was killed in battle. Sir Thomas Dale seized an Appamatuck village and renamed it “The New Bermudas,” establishing what later became Bermuda Hundred.
Bermuda Hundred and the Civil War
In 1864, Union forces established a military stronghold at Bermuda Hundred, making it the center of what is now known as the Bermuda Hundred Campaign.
The Union Army, under General Benjamin Butler, set up extensive fortifications in the area aiming to take the Confederacy by surprise and cut its supply lines due to its port and railroad location. Gen. Butler hoped to threaten Richmond from the east but was ultimately defeated by General PGT Beauregard after a series of battles. This campaign was one of the last Confederate victories. Learn more about the Bermuda Hundred Campaign.
President Abraham Lincoln, his wife Mary, Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and other officers visited Butler’s headquarters at an area of Bermuda Hundred called Point of Rocks just weeks before Lincoln’s assassination on April 14, 1865. The field hospital, is where Red Cross founder Clara Barton served during the Siege of Petersburg.
Bermuda Hundred Today
Today, Bermuda Hundred is a largely residential area boasting natural beauty and rich history. Visitors can enjoy exploring R. Garland Dodd Park at Point of Rocks, 176-acre park featuring athletic facilities and a system of trails including a floating boardwalk through a freshwater tidal marsh. Remnants of Union earthworks can be seen along the park road and trails.
Bonus Fact: During the Revolutionary War in 1781, British general Benedict Arnold was briefly headquartered at Bermuda Hundred when he led a raid on Richmond.
