See where American independence was won at the Yorktown Battlefield, a National Park Service site. Today, Yorktown remains much as it was during the waning days of the Revolution. Earthworks and siege lines mark positions of British and American Troops, cannons stand ready behind the embattlements, and Surrender Field is a silent reminder of English General Cornwallis’ capitulation. Explore the 18th-century homes of Augustine Moore, where the terms of surrender were negotiated, and Thomas Nelson, Jr., a signer of the Declaration of Independence and commander of the Virginia militia. Visit the Yorktown Victory Monument, commissioned by the Continental Congress in 1781 and completed in 1884 to commemorate the victory at Yorktown.
See Cornwallis’ Cave, where legend has it that the English General and his staff sought refuge from the bombardment by American and French Troops. Other sites of interest include the Custom House, built in 1720 and the Poor Potter Site which preserves the remains of the kiln used by William Rogers as early as the 1720s to produce pottery that rivaled English quality.
For more information visit the National Park Services' website for Yorktown Battlefield. |
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