This city near Norfolk is a major port and shipbuilding center that was an important embarkation point for supplies during the two World Wars. We recommend a visit to the Mariners' Museum, dedicated to all those who spend their lives aboard a ship. Attractions include crafts demonstrations, ship models, scrimshaw, figureheads and a collection of small watercraft. One exhibit spotlights Chesapeake Bay, taking a multimedia approach that depicts life in and around the Eastern Seaboard.
Military-history buffs will want to stop at the Virginia War Museum. It's a fine collection, with tens of thousands of artifacts from every U.S. war since the Revolution. The Virginia Living Museum is a native wildlife park, science museum, botanical reserve, aquarium and planetarium all rolled into one.
65 mi/105 km southeast of Richmond.