Founded in 1610, Hampton is a city of firsts — the first continuous English-speaking settlement was established here, America's first free public education was offered here, and NASA trained its first astronauts here in Hampton.

Hampton’s unique setting at the confluence of the Chesapeake Bay and the James River has positioned it at the forefront of fundamental milestones in our nation’s history.  The best stories tell sweeping narratives through the personal accounts of individuals and communities involved in dramatic events. The history of Hampton, a small southern city, has the ability to illuminate the arc of American history in a unique way, at once personal and complex, and fundamental in America’s early settlement, education, slavery, war, and modern technology and innovation.

Today, the people of Hampton are the product of the town’s storied history.  The local population includes descendants of original English settlers and African-American slaves, northerners who came to Hampton to invest in its natural resources after the Civil War and founded its quintessential seafood industries, southerners with old local roots, Contraband refugees who made their way to Freedom’s Fortress, and families brought here by military ties to Fort Monroe and Langley Air Force Base.  Its natural setting continues to attract visitors, military families and retirees, and locals alike.