Visit our tourism website for detailed information about attractions, events, dining, lodging, shopping, and more!
The Chesty Puller Memorial Bridges 10k Run is very proud to support the Wounded Warrior Project and the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation this year with a donation from each runner’s entry fee. The men and women that have served our country have shown their support to us with their sacrifices and we are proud to show our support of them in this great cause.
Come out and run the bridges for those who proudly served and continue to serve.
Visit the Facebook Page for current information and photos.
This annual event, usually held the first weekend in October, is famous throughout Virginia.
CLICK HERE for more information on current dates for parades, bands, booths, bike races, street fairs, and of course, plenty of seafood.
This summer concert series is held Friday evenings May – August from 6pm – 9:30pm at the Town Square located 8th and 9th Streets. A variety of music is showcased and proceeds benefit the West Point community.Please visit the West Point Chamber of Commerce website for more information.
Come one, come all and join the fun. If it's grown, produced, or made in Virginia it can be sold at the Farmer's Market! This free annual event is held Saturday mornings May through September from 8:00 am - 12:00 noon.
Arts Alive, Inc. is a non-profit art organization incorporated in June 2003 whose mission is to support and promote the visual and performing arts in the Town of West Point and the counties of King and Queen, King William, and New Kent. Information about Arts Alive’s programs and online ordering of tickets and camp registrations can be found at ArtsAliveInc.org. Call 804-843-3475 with any questions or other requests for information.
This annual event, usually held the first weekend in October. See ABOVE for additional information.
Children may enjoy the downtown playground located at 8th Street and Kirby Street with its swings, climbing equipment and slides.
Is an annual summer concert series held Friday evenings May – August from 6pm – 9:30pm showcasing a variety of music. See ABOVE for additional information.
The popular West Point facility of Glass Island Landing is owned and managed by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. Glass Island Landing provides fishing access, a boat ramp, picnicking facilities, and parking for approximately 35 vehicles and trailers. See more information at the Bureau of Inland Games and Fisheries. Turn left on Glass Island Road just before reaching the Lord Delaware Bridge, east of West Point and follow the road to the parking lot. And get a fishing license online here.
Access to the York River is provided at Beach Park located in West Point's Historical District. This park provides an exceptional view of the York River and gives the visitor an appreciation for the dynamic confluence of the Mattaponi and York Rivers. Follow Main Street to the end to reach Beach Park.
With four launch sites in the Town of West Point in which to push off from West Point is an ideal place to go kayaking or canoeing (Glass Island Landing, West Point Creek, which now has a floating launch pad, 5th Street, and Beach Park (1st & Main Street). When you are paddling the waterways of West Point you are sure to see fiddler crabs, blue crabs, and muskrats scurry along the marsh edges. Look up toward the sky and marvel at the sight of the blue heron, green heron, bald eagle and osprey nesting along the water edge. We have over 30 different species of duck and geese which visit throughout the year, you are sure to see plenty of water fowl. Whatever the season you will enjoy the plentiful wildlife the waterways harbor. A Paddler’s Guide to West Point Waterways.
Discover all the water trails Virginia has to offer at Virginia Water Trails.
Cyclists and walkers enjoy the Riverwalk Trail. From Glass Island and Kiwanis Park, follow the walking path under the Lord Delaware Bridge. This route parallels the Mattaponi River past marsh land and includes scenic overlooks. This historic area is near the site of the former Indian village of Cinquotek, chief village of Opechancanough, brother of Chief Powhatan. Historians believe that this was the site where Captain John Smith was taken as a prize captive in 1607. The Trail concludes around 8th Street near former ferry landings and warehouses from the 1800's. Loop back on the Trail or turn left on Lee Street in the Historic District and print the Historic Walking Tour. Lee Street will connect to another spur of the Riverwalk Trail and return you to your parking area.
Print a copy of the West Point Historic Walking Tour Map. This tour starts on 14th Street and follows through the historic downtown area along the sidewalks which follow the grid pattern of the streets. The historic buildings found in the the district include period representatives from the Victorian Italianate, Queen Anne, and Gothic Revival architectural styles, as well as Sears mail-order houses. At 5th Street, the York Wholesale Building stands as the sole survivor of a once extensive warehouse, wharf and railroad district. What is believed to be the oldest brick dwelling in West Point stands at 206 Main Street. It was built in 1887 by Robert Dudley, son of Alexander Dudley, who headed the Richmond and York River Railroad. The tour continues to Beach Park, once the site of the 200 room Terminal Hotel, which offered recreation facilities to thousands including a boardwalk, amusement park, skating rink and dance pavillions. This point offers a good view of the confluence of the Mattaponi and Pamunkey Rivers into the York River. Looping back towards 7th Street, the tour passes sites once occupied by wharfs, oyster houses and ferry boat landings and site of the future 7th Street Marina.
The Pamunkey Reservation is one of the oldest in the nation and has a small tribal museum, shad fishery and pottery school. The museum collections, organized by periods, provide an in-depth history of the ancient and modern Pamunkeys with some artifacts dating back 12,000 years. One site that attracts attention on the reservation is Powhatan's grave site. Going east, turn left on Rt 30, then follow the signs to the reservation.
Pamunkey Indian Museum
Route 1, Box 2011
King William, VA 23086
Phone: 804-843-4792
The Mattaponi Museum is less formal. It holds many artifacts, some dating to 5000 BC, which are labeled with handwritten index cards. One of its most famous exhibits is a necklace that once belonged to Pocahontas. Often referred to as Pocahontas' people, the Mattaponi are the direct descendants of Powhatan and Pocahontas. Going east, turn left on Rt 30, then follow the signs to the reservation. For more information, call 804-769-2194.
West Point Country Club offers nine holes of golf with reciprocal arrangements with other private clubs.
West Point Country Club
Route 30
West Point, Virginia 23181
King William County
Mike Pumo (804) 514-5928
The Town of West Point has a long and unique history related to its location in Colonial Virginia and its American Indian heritage. West Point was once the site of an Indian village named Cinquoteck, chief village of Opechancanough, brother of Chief Powhatan. Historians believe that this was the site where Captain John Smith was taken as a prize captive in 1607. Later, in 1664, the West Point area became part of a large land grant made to Captain John West. In 1691, an act by the General Assembly arranged the purchase from West Point Plantation of 50 acres of land for the development of Delaware Town. A rail line was completed in 1859 to White House across the Pamunkey from West Point, and, in 1860, an iron drawbridge was built across the river. All of this was destroyed during the Civil War. Only four houses from that time survive today.
West Point became an incorporated town in 1870 and soon became a thriving commercial port and resort destination. The City of Richmond used West Point as its eastern shipping terminus. Traffic included schooners, then later steamships and barges. West Point was also the first terminus for the Richmond York River Railroad, another factor in the Town's growth. West Point became a destination for socializing and recreation. The Terminal Hotel stood at the site of the existing Beach Park and was a popular attraction for both tourists and visitors. After the decline of tourism, a shipyard built in 1917 and a pulp mill built in 1918 revitalized the Town.
Get an Historic Walking Tour Map for more information on West Point's history.The Town has a grid pattern of streets and blocks comprised of half-acre lots. Main Street is the primary north-south thoroughfare on which most of the district's late 19th century and early 20th century commercial, religious and residential buildings are located. Beginning at the tip of the peninsula with First Street, the Town's east-west streets continue north in numerical order to Fourteenth Street. The historic buildings found in the the district include period representatives from the Victorian Italianate, Queen Anne, and Gothic Revival architectural styles, as well as Sears mail-order houses. Visit the Historical Society of West Point for more information about West Point’s unique and storied past.
See Benefits of Listing in the National Register of Historic Places.
For those interested in genealogical research in West Point, additional information can be found on our cemetery page in our online services section.
