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Cardinal News has launched a three-year project to spotlight Virginia’s overlooked contributions to America’s march to independence ahead of the nation’s 250th anniversary, or semiquincentennial. “Cardinal News 250: Virginia’s Stories. A Nation’s Birth” began in November 2023 and runs through 2026. The series features monthly articles that delve into the people, places and events that helped shape the nation, sharing stories often absent from classroom history books.
Want to explore more? Check out our podcast as well as our collection of Cardinal News 250 stories below and join us in rediscovering Virginia’s rich history.
Cardinal News 250 Podcast
Dive deeper into history with our podcast, hosted by Dutchie Jessee, where historians, journalists and others bring these stories to life. Find it wherever you get your podcasts, and catch the latest episodes in our monthly newsletter.
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Cardinal news 250 story collection
Long before Abraham Lincoln, Virginia’s last royal governor issued his own Emancipation Proclamation. Here’s what happened next.
In a bid to quell the growing revolution, Virginia’s royal governor tried a new strategy. He issued an emancipation proclamation to free slaves if they joined the British.
Podcast on Lord Dunmore’s Emancipation Proclamation
Historian Andrew Lawler talks with Cardinal 250 podcast host Lisa Rowan.
A frontier doctor had a plan to seize Pittsburgh for Virginia and led an Augusta County militia to arrest Pennsylvania officials.
While much of Virginia was angry with Britain, John Connolly was busy using force against Pennsylvania’s land claims. When war came, he sided with the British and wound up in custody.
Dispatch from 1775: War comes to Virginia
Our royal governor also issues an extraordinary proclamation to offer freedom to slaves if they fight with the British.
Historian says key events in Virginia early in the revolution have not gotten the attention they deserve, so he organized an event to address them
Nearly 250 years after Norfolk burned to the ground during the Revolutionary War — the only North American city destroyed at such scale — scholars, historical interpreters and enthusiasts of colonial America gathered in the port city to reflect on the significant role that eastern Virginia played in shaping both the course of the war…
Documentary reveals roots of revolution in Southwest Virginia
“Resolved to Live and Die” premieres Sunday on Blue Ridge PBS. The first showing is Tuesday night at the O. Winston Link Museum in Roanoke.
The revolution’s first battle outside Northeast was in Virginia. It started with a dispute over a runaway slave.
The Battle of Hampton was small as battles go, but it involved big issues, such as the status of enslaved workers in Virginia.
As Virginia prepared for revolution, some of its leaders took time to found a college: Hampden-Sydney
The founding of Hampden-Sydney College during a revolution was partly a coincidence, but the founders were also anti-royalist — so much so that they named the school after two Englishmen who lost their lives as enemies of the crown.
Podcast: Western Virginia’s role in the revolution
Host Lisa Rowan sits down with local historian Eric Monday to explore western Virginia’s surprising role in the American Revolution.
Dispatch from 1775: With the governor anchored on a British vessel, royal authority in Virginia has almost ceased
We still profess our loyalty to King George III — our argument is officially with Parliament, not the crown — but there is no royal authority in the land except for whatever waterways around Norfolk that Lord Dunmore commands.
Peter Francisco, the ‘Hercules of American independence’
He turned up as an orphan of 4 or 5 on the dock of what is today Hopewell. He grew into a giant of a man who struck terror into the British. When he died, Virginia gave him a state funeral. Now a filmmaker wants to turn his story into a miniseries.
Betty Zane’s legend endures in Virginia and its surrounding states
A young woman born in Virginia risked her life to carry ammunition to soldiers during a battle in what is now Wheeling, West Virginia, but what was regarded then as being very much in Virginia.
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The project is made possible in part by funding from the Virginia American Revolution 250 Commission.
Learn more about this multi-year series of events
Established by the General Assembly in 2020, the Virginia American Revolution 250 Commission (VA250) serves to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. Learn more about their other projects.
Contribute to Cardinal 250
Share a tip: Is there an untold story of the revolution we should cover?
Share memorabilia: Do you have artifacts from this period that you wish to share? Send photos to us at news@cardinalnews.org.