Founded in 1610, Hampton, Virginia lays claim to the title of the "oldest continuous English-speaking settlement in America." Located at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, the city, along with Norfolk, Newport News and Portsmouth, is an integral part of the area known as Hampton Roads, the greatest natural seaport between New York and Rio de Janeiro, containing over one million people, more than a fifth of the population of the state. Second only to the Port of New York as a container port on the Atlantic Coast, Hampton Roads leads all Atlantic and Gulf Coast ports in total export tonnage. Closely linked to the seaport activities is an enormous complex of related manufacturing plants, dominated by the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, the world's largest privately owned shipyard.

This report is part of the collection of scanned historical documents available to the public.