Since its original publication in 1975, The Old Dominion in the Seventeenth Century has become an important teaching tool and research volume. Warren Billings brings together more than 200 period documents, organized topically, with each chapter introduced by an interpretive essay. Topics include the settlement of Jamestown, the evolution of government and the structure of society, forced labor, the economy, Indian-Anglo relations, and Bacon's Rebellion. This revised, expanded, and updated edition adds approximately 30 additional documents, extending the chronological reach to 1700. Freshly rethought chapter introductions and suggested readings incorporate the vast scholarship of the past 30 years. New illustrations of seventeenth-century artifacts and buildings enrich the texts with recent archaeological findings. With these enhancements, and a full index, students, scholars, and those interested in early Virginia will find these documents even more enlightening.

"On the morning of 26 April 1607, three small ships carrying 143 Englishmen arrived off the Virginia coast of North America, having spent four months at sea.... All hoped for financial success and perhaps a little adventure; as it turned out, their tiny settlement eventually would evolve from colony into a prominent state in an entirely new nation." So begins Old Dominion, New Commonwealth: A History of Virginia, 1607-2007 and the remarkable story behind the founding not only of the state of Virginia but of our nation. With this book, the historians Ronald L. Heinemann, John G. Kolp, Anthony S. Parent Jr., and William G. Shade collaborate to provide a comprehensive, accessible, one-volume history of Virginia, the first of its kind since the 1970s. In seventeen narrative chapters, the authors tackle the four centuries of Virginia’s history from Jamestown through the present, emphasizing the major themes that play throughout Virginia history—change and continuity, a conservative political order, race and slavery, economic development, and social divisions—and how they relate to national events. Including helpful bibliographical listings at the end of each chapter as well as a general listing of useful sources and Websites, the book is truly a treasure trove for any student, scholar, or general-interest reader looking to find out more about the history of Virginia and our nation. Timed to coincide with the 2007 quadricentennial, Old Dominion, New Commonwealth will stand as a classic for years to come.

Find out about all the strange phenomena that abounds in Virginia.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1837.