Cape Charles, Virginia

This article is about the town. For the headland or cape, see Cape Charles (headland).
Cape Charles, Virginia
Town

Bloxom Depot and the town water tower

Seal

Location in Northampton County and the state of Virginia.
Coordinates: 37°16′3″N 76°0′51″W / 37.26750°N 76.01417°W / 37.26750; -76.01417Coordinates: 37°16′3″N 76°0′51″W / 37.26750°N 76.01417°W / 37.26750; -76.01417
Country United States
State Virginia
County Northampton
Government
 • Mayor George Proto
 • Vice-Mayor Chris Bannon
Area
 • Total 4.4 sq mi (11.3 km2)
 • Land 3.7 sq mi (9.5 km2)
 • Water 0.7 sq mi (1.8 km2)
Elevation 3 ft (1 m)
Population (2010)
 • Total 1,009
 • Density 229.3/sq mi (89.3/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC−5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC−4)
ZIP code 23310
Area code 757
FIPS code 51-12808[1]
GNIS feature ID 1492707[2]
Website Official website

Cape Charles is a town in Northampton County, Virginia, United States. The population was 1,009 at the 2010 census.

History

Cape Charles, located close to the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, on Virginia's Eastern Shore, was founded in 1884 as a planned community by railroad and ferry interests. Historian William G. Thomas writes, "At a cost of nearly $300,000, the N.Y., P. & N. was dredging a new harbor out of a large fresh-water lagoon between King's and Old Plantation creeks in lower Northampton County, and Scott planned to develop a new town around it called Cape Charles City. The appellation "City" for any place on the Eastern Shore was romantic, a vision of the future that the railroad might make possible....In 1890 the Corps of Engineers dredged the harbor basin, its entrance, and a channel through Cherrystone Inlet and built stone jetties protecting the harbor outlet. By 1912 the Corps estimated that Cape Charles harbor handled 2,500,000 tons of freight a year."

Industrial landscape in Cape Charles

Cape Charles was, for many years, the terminal for the Little Creek-Cape Charles Ferry, providing passenger and car ferry service across the bay to Norfolk and Hampton. The last ferry left Cape Charles in 1963. Cape Charles still serves as a terminal for railway barges that carry rail cars from the former Eastern Shore Railroad which is now Bay Coast Railroad across the mouth of the Bay to Norfolk. There is also a cement factory nearby.

The town hosted the Northampton Red Sox in the old Eastern Shore Baseball League.

The Cape Charles Historic District and Stratton Manor are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[3]

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
19001,040—
19101,94887.3%
19202,51729.2%
19302,5270.4%
19402,299−9.0%
19502,4275.6%
19602,041−15.9%
19701,689−17.2%
19801,512−10.5%
19901,398−7.5%
20001,134−18.9%
20101,009−11.0%
Est. 20151,017[4]0.8%
U.S. Decennial Census[5]

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 1,134 people, 536 households, and 278 families residing in the town. The population density was 309.4 people per square mile (119.3/km2). There were 740 housing units at an average density of 201.9 per square mile (77.9/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 53.79% White, 42.86% African American, 0.09% Native American, 0.44% Asian, 1.59% from other races, and 1.23% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.82% of the population.

There were 536 households out of which 21.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 30.4% were married couples living together, 19.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 48.1% were non-families. 43.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 26.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.11 and the average family size was 2.91.

In the town the age distribution of the population shows 22.1% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 22.0% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 23.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 76.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 75.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $22,237, and the median income for a family was $29,167. Males had a median income of $25,536 versus $23,984 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,789. About 21.5% of families and 28.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 43.4% of those under age 18 and 23.0% of those age 65 or over.

Geography

Cape Charles is located at 37°16′03″N 76°00′51″W / 37.267522°N 76.014125°W / 37.267522; -76.014125 (37.267522, −76.014125).[6]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 4.4 square miles (11.3 km2), of which, 3.7 square miles (9.5 km2) of it is land and 0.7 square miles (1.8 km2) of it (16.06%) is water.

Climate

Climate data for Cape Charles, Virginia
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 75
(24)		 78
(26)		 85
(29)		 93
(34)		 95
(35)		 98
(37)		 99
(37)		 98
(37)		 98
(37)		 91
(33)		 82
(28)		 77
(25)		 99
(37)
Average high °F (°C) 47
(8)		 50
(10)		 57
(14)		 67
(19)		 75
(24)		 83
(28)		 88
(31)		 85
(29)		 80
(27)		 70
(21)		 61
(16)		 51
(11)		 67.8
(19.8)
Average low °F (°C) 31
(−1)		 32
(0)		 38
(3)		 47
(8)		 56
(13)		 65
(18)		 70
(21)		 68
(20)		 62
(17)		 51
(11)		 43
(6)		 34
(1)		 49.8
(9.8)
Record low °F (°C) −5
(−21)		 −1
(−18)		 9
(−13)		 24
(−4)		 31
(−1)		 36
(2)		 47
(8)		 44
(7)		 39
(4)		 24
(−4)		 16
(−9)		 −1
(−18)		 −5
(−21)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 3.47
(88.1)		 3.12
(79.2)		 4.13
(104.9)		 3.27
(83.1)		 3.32
(84.3)		 3.94
(100.1)		 5.04
(128)		 4.29
(109)		 3.96
(100.6)		 3.59
(91.2)		 3.11
(79)		 3.85
(97.8)		 45.09
(1,145.3)
Source: The Weather Channel [7]

Notable people

References

  1. 1 2 "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 2013-09-11. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  2. ↑ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  3. ↑ National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  4. ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2015". Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  5. ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Archived from the original on May 11, 2015. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  6. ↑ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
  7. ↑ "Climate Statistics for Cape Charles, Virginia". Retrieved March 10, 2012.
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