Colonial Beach

boundaries of the Town of Colonial Beach
boundaries of the Town of Colonial Beach
Source: Westmoreland County, Westmoreland Online GIS

An investor in what became the Colonial Beach Improvement Company purchased 650 acres in Westmoreland County in 1878. The town was chartered in 1882. From the begnning, it was planned as a riverside resort community that would attract land buyers and vacationers from Washington, DC. Many lots were surveyed with narrow and deep dimensions (40 to 50 feet wide and 145 to 170 feet long) to ensure waterfront access.1

Westmoreland County

Colonial Beach has been a waterfront resort since the founding of the town in 1882
Colonial Beach has been a waterfront resort since the founding of the town in 1882
Source: Library of Congress, Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Colonial Beach, Independent Cities, Virginia (1934)

Links

steamships delivered vacationers to Colonial Beach
steamships delivered vacationers to Colonial Beach
Source: Library of Congress, Colonial Beach, Virginia, 1913/a>

References

1. "Colonial Beach Commercial Historic District," National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, Virginia Department of Historic Resources, August 3, 2022, https://www.dhr.virginia.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/199-5037_Colonial_Beach_Commercial_HD_2021_NRHP_FINAL.pdf (last checked January 2, 2023)

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