Author Description

Virginia, the "Old Dominion" state, is at once timeless and strikingly contemporary. Birthplace of eight of America's presidents, including Washington, Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe, and home to an impressive array of ultra-modern industries, Virginia is a land of endless variety, beauty, and charm. A state of seeming contradictions―onetime queen of the Confederacy, yet proud to elect as Governor the grandson of former slaves―Virginia celebrates its vivid and romantic past, while striding towards it future confidently.A land of serenely bucolic landscapes, of fox hunts, debutante cotillions, peaceful plantations, and stately historic tours, Virginia also dazzles with its diversity. Where else can one leave the glistening strand of Virginia Beach for the airy splendor of the Blue Ridge Mountains? What other state boasts both legendary Jamestown―site of England's first permanent colony in the New World―and rustic Chincoteague Island, second home to wild ponies descended from horses that swam to safety after a Spanish galleon sank? Indeed, Virginia is the site of many of America's most famous cultural landmarks and homes. From Colonial Williamsburg to Yorktown, Appomattox Court House to the somber National Cemetery at Arlington; from Washington's gracefully proportioned Mount Vernon to Jefferson's classically beautiful Monticello to the humble and immensely moving place of Booker T. Washington's birth―Virginia, A Photographic Tour, a marvelous portrait in words and pictures, perfectly captures the many glories of this historic state.This book is perfect for the history buff and for anyone wanting to explore beauty and majesty.