Original subtitles

in every element of the school's creation.

that his gravestone should be an obelisk,

and he also wrote his own epitaph:

"here was buried thomas jefferson,

author of the declaration of american independence,

of the statute of virginia for religious freedom,

and father of the university of virginia."

jefferson--

who didn't even mention being the country's third president--

clearly didn't want his work at uva to be forgotten.

jefferson had his hand

jefferson left instructions

he designed the buildings, chose books for the library,

and helped shape the curriculum.

the retired statesman

even hosted a weekly dinner for students,

including a young writer named edgar allan poe.

the author of "the raven" and "the tell-tale heart"

never earned his degree here.

after running up too many gambling debts,

he had to leave school early.

when the university opened in 1825,

left the house surrounded by trees.

where the self-taught architect chose to build his home.

construction on the 43-room mansion began in 1770,

shortly after jefferson was first elected to public office.

it went through many designs and redesigns,

and wasn't finished until 1809, the last year of his presidency.

jefferson was influenced by the designs

of the late italian architect palladio.

and his travels to france inspired him to add skylights

and the famous dome room.

jefferson, who valued his privacy,

it served a class of just 123 students.

he did clear enough space for several gardens,

where the avid horticulturist

grew more than 250 kinds of vegetables and herbs.

jefferson once said: "i am as happy nowhere else

and in no other society,

and all my wishes end, where i hope my days will end,

at monticello."

his days did end here on july 4, 1826,

exactly 50 years after american independence.

soon, his wife was forced to sell montpelier

the primary author of the u.s. constitution

held back from publishing some of his papers.

he hoped they would bring cash

to his wife, dolly, when he was gone.

by the summer of 1836,

the last surviving founding father was gravely ill.

legend has it that a friend urged madison to take medicine

that would prolong his life until july 4th.

madison refused, and died less than a week

before the 60th anniversary of american independence.

and he was nearly broke.

to pay off increasing debt.

appomattox court house national park,

20 miles east of lynchburg,

is where the last chapter in civil war history

was written.

the 1,800-acre park has 27 restored structures,

including the mclean house.

it was here on april 9, 1865, that general robert e. lee

had a 90-minute meeting with ulysses s. grant.

lee and grant hammered out the terms

he donated 200 acres of land for them to do the same.

today, it regularly has an incoming class

of about 3,000 first year students.

considered one of the top public colleges in the nation,

uva is still known as "mr. jefferson's university."

the charlottesville area is also home to several wineries--

and again, they trace their heritage back to jefferson,

known by many as the father of american wine.

he planted dozens of grape varieties himself.

and when a small group of italian vintners

arrived in virginia,

a fitting description of the location

after prohibition,

virginia's wine production virtually disappeared.

but in the last 20 years,

the number of wineries has multiplied from six

to more than a hundred.

northeast of charlottesville is montpelier,

the plantation home of former jefferson protege james madison.

after leaving office, the fourth president of the united states

found that his land had fallen in value--

if he could shut down the rail lines and roads here,

and be trained by a professional coach.

he would become the first african-american winner

of wimbledon.

although virginia was one of the last states to leave the union,

more than half of the battles in the civil war

were fought here-- including at petersburg.

after a failed attempt to capture richmond in 1864,

general ulysses s. grant set his sights on petersburg.

the city had four rail lines

critical for bringing food and supplies to richmond.

where he had the chance to play on integrated courts

grant knew he could overtake the confederate capital--

and soon the longest siege in american history had begun.

over the course of 292 days, union and confederate soldiers

exchanged gunfire from their trenches.

desperate to snap the stalemate,

grant's men tunneled behind enemy lines

and packed four tons of gunpowder

beneath one of the confederate camps.

the explosion blasted this crater in the landscape

and carved a gap in the confederate's line.

and of course jefferson davis.

have roared to victory here, solidifying their reputation

as one of the first families of nascar.

richmond boasts the only street in the u.s.

that's a national historic landmark.

monument avenue runs through the heart

of the city's fan district.

the tree-lined promenade

is noted for its extraordinary architecture--

but may be most famous for its statues,

including robert e. lee...

but as union troops surged into the crater to attack on foot,

in 1996, the city added the statue

of a different kind of rebel--

native son arthur ashe.

in the 1950s,

when the african-american ashe was learning to play tennis

in this segregated city,

he was turned away from the white courts

in nearby byrd park.

finally, ashe moved to st. louis,

were made by mother nature, not the course designer.

since its opening in 2001, this par-72 course

has become known as the "augusta national of virginia."

and it's been named one of america's hundred best courses.

kinloch was the brainchild of a real estate developer

who first wanted to put a residential community here.

when he decided to create

a world-class golf course instead,

he enlisted a local sports agent

to help make his vision a reality.

unlike many courses, most of the features here

may be drawn to the nearby kinloch golf club.

many of the original trees were also preserved

during the clearing of the land,

giving this the feel of a much older course.

to the northwest is charlottesville, a college town.

but it's also part of the living legacy of thomas jefferson.

jefferson lived here, at monticello.

to him, it was more than just a home--

and according to some historians,

it serves as a kind of architectural autobiography.

the name monticello means "little mountain" in italian--

like a one-third scale version of the eiffel tower.

lee's men regrouped and launched a counter assault.

fighting continued here at petersburg for several months.

grant eventually prevailed, but paid a heavy price.

during the ten-month battle at least 42,000 union soldiers

were killed, wounded or captured.

for all the emphasis on history,

virginians still know how to have fun--

especially at the king's dominion amusement park,

which has been thrilling kids of all ages since 1975.

some of the attractions from its early days still remain,

of a surrender of lee's troops,

and the carousel.

the theme park has really made its name

with adrenaline-pumping rides like the dominator.

the winding 4,000-foot steel track

anchors the longest floorless roller coaster in the world.

and the 272-foot descent on the park's drop tower ride

is the steepest in north america.

[people screaming]

those who prefer to find their thrills on the greens

in 1889, a tennessee man was arrested

it continued to be the best route to the western u.s.

until the early 1800s.

at virginia's southern border sits the city of bristol.

built on the site of a former cherokee village,

the town was a popular stop for people heading west

in the footsteps of daniel boone.

but bristol may be best known for a vicious border dispute

with the neighboring town of bristol.

bristol, tennessee, that is.

the state line ran right down the middle of main street.

helped to forge the way through the gap for early pioneers.

for trying to put a waterline

in what virginia officials claimed was their land.

with tempers flaring,

armed militias headed out from each state.

but the battle ended up in the u.s. supreme court,

which ordered the border to be finalized once and for all.

in a show of good faith,

the two bristols erected a massive sign

over the aptly renamed state street:

one half of it in virginia, the other half in tennessee.

lies the region known as appalachia.

running from front royal to waynesboro.

president herbert hoover was known to fish in the area,

and legend has it that he liked the view so much

he wanted others to be able to share it--by car.

the road was finally approved by president franklin roosevelt.

the 105-mile road was built by local farmers,

some of whom were displaced by preservation efforts here.

the eventual cost was about $40,000 a mile.

but the view--priceless.

south and west of the shenandoah valley

back in northern virginia,

this is a place with a rich culture all its own,

and a long tradition of exploration and adventure.

forged by wind and water,

cumberland gap is one of the few major breaks

in the appalachian mountain chain.

this 20-mile-long national park

contains 20,000 acres of wilderness

extending into tennessee and kentucky.

adventurers like daniel boone

abraham lincoln unveiled the emancipation proclamation--

and the stakes were even higher.

union general john pope set up headquarters behind this house,

and plotted a return strike against jackson.

a series of uncoordinated attacks

did little damage to the confederate army.

finally, after three days of fighting,

the union army fled over stone bridge.

the result was one of the south's great triumphs.

their victory was short-lived.

less than a month later,

by then, they were much more seasoned--

a decisive moment in ending slavery and the civil war.

from its pre-revolutionary roots to its civil war battles,

from its celebration of architecture

to its preservation of natural splendor--

virginia has been critical in the shaping of modern america.

by celebrating the traditions of its founding fathers

without losing its sense of fun--

virginia remains a place well rooted in the past

yet firmly grounded in the present,

and well positioned for the future.

behind general thomas j. jackson.

civil war buffs can visit a spot that reveals history times two.

manassas national battlefield

is the site of a pair of deadly encounters--

the first and second battles of bull run.

on july 21, 1861, the civil war was just getting underway.

when union troops arrived here, they expected a quick victory--

and a short war.

at first, the union army seemed to have the upper hand

on henry hill.

but one group of soldiers managed to hold their ground

that hugs the blue ridge mountains,

a fellow officer shouted,

"look! there is jackson standing there like a stone wall."

and from that day on, he was known as stonewall.

as the battle raged on, the southerners managed

to push back their northern counterparts.

but the two sides had lost a total of 900 men.

and any hope for a fast end to the war had vanished.

here on battery heights,

the two armies faced off again in august 1862.

has more than a thousand students.

until the early 1700s.

with its scenic countryside,

lexington has attracted many transplants to the area--

including stonewall jackson, who spent a decade here.

he noted that, "lexington is the most beautiful place

that i remember of having ever seen

in connection with the surrounding country."

jackson lived here while teaching

at the virginia military institute.

the nation's oldest state-supported military college

but the first european settlers didn't put down roots here

they serve in rotc while enrolled here,

but may go into the armed forces or become civilians

when they graduate.

when stonewall jackson taught here,

he was still known by his given name, thomas.

but he soon earned his first nickname.

he was so unpopular that his students called him "tom fool."

jackson left to fight the civil war in april 1861

and never returned.

he was buried here in may 1863

and the alleghenies on the other--

ending the bloodiest war in american history

with a handshake.

there was never an official peace treaty signed

between the north and the south.

that would have meant acknowledging the confederacy

as a separate country,

something the united states refused to do.

virginia's shenandoah valley is a 200-mile-long swath

of wide-open green space.

bordered by the blue ridge mountains on one side

after the battle of chancellorsville.

this lush space is dotted with historic villages and towns,

and filled with more than its fair share

of natural wonders.

the valley is named for the majestic river

that runs through it.

the native americans called it the shenandoah,

or "daughter of the stars,"

because of the way the light sparkles off it.

explorers first discovered the area in the mid-1600s,

the first version of it blew right over,

jefferson felt that in this spot

"the rapture of the spectator is really indescribable."

near natural bridge sits a curiosity

that's definitely manmade--

seemingly familiar, and yet unique.

this replica of stonehenge, built by mark cline,

opened on april fool's day 2004, and is known as foamhenge.

the original in england was built over hundreds of years.

this replica--with 16-foot-tall pieces of styrofoam--

went up in little more than a day.

to make sure that it stayed in public hands.

so cline added pipes to root it to the ground--

and it's been standing tall ever since.

the valley is dotted with small towns,

each one more picturesque than the last.

but rural virginia doesn't get much more quaint than mayberry.

mayberry's picturesque mabry mill

is one of the most popular spots on the blue ridge parkway--

and one of the most photographed sites in virginia.

bordering the shenandoah valley is a scenic stretch of road

natural bridge is 90 feet wide and over 200 feet tall,

the former teacher of artillery tactics

died of complications from a gunshot wound--

after being accidentally shot by his own men.

lexington is also the final burial place

of general robert e. lee.

his remains are at washington and lee university,

where he served as president.

not far away, one of the oldest

tourist attractions in the nation

soars across the sky.

lee, richard, and kyle--

and estimated to weigh about 36,000 tons.

this was a sacred site for native americans,

who first dubbed it "the bridge of god."

in the eighteenth and nineteenth century,

european tourists traveling the countryside by carriage

considered this a favorite destination.

and it was often listed

as one of the seven natural wonders of the world.

thomas jefferson bought the site from king george iii of england

some of the earliest experiments in aeronautics

hampton has played a key role

in the world of modern aircraft--

and in the space program.

air warfare as we know it began at langley field in 1921.

this is where brigadier general william mitchell

led the first trials on airplanes

designed to attack battleships--

an experiment that would eventually lead

to the creation of the air force.

around the same time,

to deter others from entering a life of crime.

were being done here.

and when nasa decided to put a man on the moon,

they brought the first astronauts here to train.

near hampton is the home

of the gibraltar of the chesapeake,

better known as fort monroe.

named for the fifth president,

it's the largest stone fort ever built in the u.s.--

and the moat that surrounds it

makes it a remnant of a lost era.

it's the site of the oldest

norfolk's macarthur square

is named in honor of douglas macarthur,

the larger than life five-star general.

the centerpiece is the macarthur museum,

formerly the norfolk courthouse.

when it originally opened in 1850,

this cupola was the highest point in the city--

and visitors used to climb into it

to get a bird's eye view of the harbor.

just north of the chesapeake bay lies hampton roads.

during the civil war, the fort remained in union hands--

continually english-speaking settlement in america--

and an aeronautics and commercial fishing hub.

but it originally made its name as a haven for pirates.

every summer, a festival is held here

in honor of one of the legendary figures

who terrorized the high seas-- blackbeard.

when blackbeard was finally captured,

his severed head was put on a pike

at the entrance to the hampton river

to keep the herd from getting too big.

home to just 4,000 people,

it hosts a million visitors a year.

chincoteague is known for its oysters, clams, and fishing--

but it's surely most famous for its feral horses.

chincoteague horses are notable for their unusually small size--

full-grown ones are no bigger than the average pony

and seem to be the perfect resting place for these birds.

every year, all of the horses are taken by water

to the nearby island of assateague,

where they are auctioned off

and that's just what this is.

assateague is a barrier island

that's been designated a national seashore.

the goal is to protect its 37 miles of beach,

as well as the many different animals that live here,

including 320 species of birds.

more than half of the national seashore's 48,000 acres

is near the coast...

a landscape that's constantly changing due to wind and water.

to the south is virginia beach,

the most well-populated city in the state

and here in yorktown,

and later, it was the home of a very famous prisoner--

confederate president jefferson davis,

who was captured in georgia in may 1865

and immediately brought to this stone fortress.

for months, davis was kept in chains,

cut off from the outside world, and denied bail or a trial.

he was finally released on parole after almost two years,

and later received amnesty from president andrew johnson.

long before it was torn apart by civil war,

america fought for its freedom from england.

after 47 years of service in september 1991.

troops fought the last major land battle

of the revolutionary war.

general george washington and his army--

assisted by french soldiers--

won a decisive battle here,

leading to a surrender of british forces.

there's only one resort island in virginia,

and it sits along virginia's eastern shore.

chincoteague means "beautiful land across the water,"

but in 1994, archaeologists began to uncover

lined with massive estates and pockets of wilderness,

the james cuts a wide swath through the state.

but it's here at jamestown island

where the story of virginia-- and a nation--begins.

settlers arrived here in 1607.

and low walls mark the outlines

of the first permanent english settlement in north america.

the community was anchored by an old fort,

which most people believed

had been washed into the james river.

to the new american continent.

remnants of the fort,

including more than 150,000 artifacts.

all of this land was once controlled

by a collection of native american tribes.

they were often at war with the settlers

led by captain john smith.

in december 1607, smith and some of his men

were captured by the algonquins.

according to smith, the tribe's chief, powhatan,

was on the verge of killing him

as well as a school

and with good reason--

the history of virginia is the history of america.

virginia was home to many leaders

of a fledgling young nation--

and the structures they built

stand tribute to their ingenuity and their vision.

its lush fields have been the site of bloody battles,

as well as moments of great triumph.

it's the site of what may be

the most ambitious history lesson in america...

until the chief's daughter, pocahontas, intervened--

that charted the path for american education.

from ancient natural wonders to modern curiosities,

aerial virginia travels across a diverse and rugged landscape.

it is the realm of pirates, the source of legends,

and the launching pad for american democracy.

the james river.

it's a vital waterway that handles more than 25,000 barges

full of gravel and grain every year.

and it's the artery that first led european settlers

the wisconsin was part of a fleet

on the northern edge of the city,

norfolk houses the largest naval installation in the world.

the seven miles of wharf and pier space

are home to 75 ships.

another 3,000 ships pass through here every year.

one ship that's not going anywhere is the uss wisconsin,

which has been decommissioned and turned into a museum.

one of the largest battleships in the world,

it's also one of the toughest.

commissioned in april 1944,

and it's still a stop for many seafaring military officers.

that destroyed hundreds of japanese ships and planes

in the philippines.

but after several successful missions,

a furious typhoon swept through,

sinking three supporting destroyers.

the wisconsin was unharmed.

the vessel's durability would be tested again and again,

as it later held off enemy forces

in the korean war and the gulf war.

the old battleship was finally decommissioned

probably carried 105 passengers and 40 crew members

and saved his life.

modern historians believe this scenario is unlikely.

they argue that smith's account

was probably based on a cultural misunderstanding.

the early history of this area is further explored

at the nearby jamestown settlement.

the ships we see in the harbor below

are recreations of the vessels

that early settlers would have taken over from england.

the biggest of these, the susan constant,

and a premiere tourist destination

on the arduous four-month-long journey.

the james fort area

features replicas of thatched-roof buildings

including a church, a guardhouse,

and the governor's house.

to the southeast is norfolk,

the world's largest natural harbor,

and a city with a proud military tradition.

many world war ii veterans served here--

as a day of thanksgiving to almighty god."

according to legend,

"taps" was played over the burial of a union soldier.

["taps" playing]

but this site is probably most famous

for what some consider the first thanksgiving.

on december 4, 1619,

more than a year before the pilgrims set sail,

captain john woodlief and a group of englishmen

landed on the james river.

he said that this day "shall be yearly and perpetually kept holy

a simple but powerful tune known as "taps."

but it was abraham lincoln

who made thanksgiving an official holiday,

and he was honoring the pilgrims' feast

in massachusetts, not jamestown.

another historic home along the james river

is the shirley plantation.

although it's now a national historic landmark,

the main house is still owned and lived in

by descendants of the original owner, edward hill.

this is the site of one of the oldest family-owned businesses

and a 1770 inventory listed many of the original furnishings.

some are actors or historians,

and others just have great enthusiasm for america's past.

as a result, what might have been a colonial footnote

is a tourist mecca.

a million visitors come here every year.

not all the buildings here are originals--

but it can be hard to tell which are authentic and which aren't.

the magnificent governor's palace burned down in 1781.

this is a reconstruction

based on floor plan drawn by thomas jefferson.

in north america,

just north of williamsburg, in charles city county,

the ten-acre berkeley plantation is linked to many firsts.

it's the birthplace of president william henry harrison,

who died just one month after his inauguration--

the first president to die in office.

and in july 1862,

when union troops occupied the plantation,

it was the first spot

where a new lights-out bugle call was played--

when davis himself fled.

nearby stands a historic building

that's nearly hidden by a group of towering modern structures.

it's the white house of the confederacy.

in august 1861, when jefferson davis moved in,

he had no idea he was under close watch--

by one of his own slaves.

mary bowser was a union spy-- with a photographic memory.

but under suspicion,

mary escaped from richmond in january 1865--

just months before the arrival of union troops,

he modeled it after a roman temple.

on the outskirts of richmond, in neighboring henrico county,

is the largest sports venue in virginia--

the richmond international raceway.

although there's little activity on off days,

on race days this stadium regularly packs sell-out crowds

of 110,000 spectators.

it's gone by many names over the years,

but one thing has remained constant here,

and that's the presence of the petty family.

three generations of the petty family--

has an eclectic mix of neighborhoods--

going all the way back to 1638.

that's the year hill established a tobacco farm

on this 800-acre property.

the current house was built a century later,

for his great-granddaughter.

future confederate general robert e. lee

spent much of his childhood here.

his mother, ann hill carter,

was born, raised and married at shirley plantation.

virginia's state capitol, richmond,

as though they're living in the eighteenth century.

from jackson ward, known as the harlem of the south,

to church hill, a 19th-century neighborhood

that overlooks downtown.

the history of richmond is closely tied

to its confederate past.

after virginia seceded from the union,

richmond immediately became the new capital of the confederacy--

and its headquarters was the state capitol building.

when thomas jefferson designed the structure 70 years earlier,

cape henry is home to this lighthouse,

a huge amount of waste has piled up--

and the result is mount trashmore.

the 68-foot-tall peak is made of pure garbage,

all of it covered with grass and converted into a city park.

on april fool's day in 1992, some local radio personalities

made mount trashmore the butt of a too-clever joke.

they announced that the garbage heap

was about to erupt from pent-up methane.

the humor was lost on some listeners,

who flooded 911 with calls about whether to evacuate.

as virginia beach has become more populated,

the official symbol of virginia beach.

it was commissioned by the federal government

when george washington was president,

and built with stone from the same quarry

used for the white house, the capitol, and mount vernon.

the fish oil used to keep the light going here

was always a potential fire hazard.

the original structure was replaced in 1881

by this second lighthouse just a few hundred feet away.

it's nearly twice as high as the original,

which was believed to have healing properties.

with 28 miles of surf, sand and good times.

it's hard to imagine today,

but for many years this was a quiet seaside town.

its lone hotel burned down in 1907--

and it was 20 years before another took its place.

in its heyday, the cavalier was as elegant as its name.

when it opened in 1927,

the $2-million structure featured every amenity.

one of those perks was running water in each room,

including a separate tap for salt water,

and shines a light that's visible

f. scott fitzgerald, judy garland

and several presidents have graced its halls--

as did adolph coors, the founder of coors brewery.

in 1929, the 82-year-old fell to his death

from a sixth story window.

no one knows if it was an accident or not--

but legend has it

that coors' ghost still haunts the grand old cavalier.

over the years,

when they began buying properties,

the most ambitious living history museum in the u.s.

the former capital of virginia,

it houses 88 structures from the 1700s and early 1800s--

and more than 300 acres of plants

that would have thrived here in the colonial era.

virginia's largest historical preservation project

was actually funded by a famous new yorker--

john d. rockefeller, jr.

rockefeller was brought into the project

by local pastor w.a.r. goodwin of bruton parish church.

colonial williamsburg is perhaps

rockefeller kept the project secret

so that residents selling their homes

wouldn't drive up prices.

finally, rockefeller revealed his intent

to restore the town to its colonial glory.

some residents were suspicious,

but most were intrigued by the idea.

the buildings are full of interpreters

who dress, talk and act

would have been amazed and dumbfounded

up to 19 miles from shore.

right next door to the lighthouses,

but easy to miss,

is a replica of a crucifix

erected by a ship full of englishmen in 1607.

they built it to thank god

for their safe journey to the new world.

but they were soon scared off by a group of native americans

and fled upriver to jamestown, where they settled.

of course, those early settlers

it's known as the mother of all states,

to see a bridge stretching right across the chesapeake bay.

the chesapeake bay bridge-tunnel

is both a tourist attraction and a travel convenience,

connecting the virginian mainland,

near virginia beach, with the eastern shore.

when it opened in april 1964,

this 17 1/2-mile bridge-tunnel complex

was considered one of the seven engineering wonders

of the modern world.