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Longwood University, located in the town
of Farmville, is part of the
commonwealth of Virginia, which is rich
in history.
George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James
Madison, and James Monroe, all
Virginians, were founding fathers of the
United States and were among the first
five U.S. presidents.
THE FARMVILLE AREA
Longwood University is located in historic
Farmville, Virginia -- 65 miles west of
Richmond, 48 miles east of Lynchburg,
and 60 miles south of Charlottesville --
the Heart of Virginia. The Town of
Farmville has a population of 6,500.
The Farmville Area is comprised of the
town of Farmville, along with the
counties of Prince Edward and
Cumberland. This area serves as a retail
hub and commercial activity center for
eight counties of Southside Virginia and
has a service market of more than
100,000 people. Education is a dominant
factor in the area, with three
outstanding colleges offering
educational and training opportunities.
In addition to Longwood University,
Hampden-Sydney and Southside Virginia
Community colleges are located in the
area.
The Farmville Area has a diversified
economy with strong manufacturing,
trade, service, and agricultural
sectors. Manufacturing activity centers
around natural resources, textiles, and
a variety of industrial and consumer
goods.
The Town of Farmville is also home to the
annual Heart of Virginia Festival (first
Saturday in May) and many historical
sites, including Appomattox Courthouse
and Sailors Creek Battlefield. These
points of interest make the Farmville
Area a very attractive place to be.
Located in and near town are churches,
hotels, motels, a country club, a
municipal airport, and a community
hospital. Many additional points of
interest are within a short distance of
the Farmville area.
COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA
The Commonwealth of Virginia is one of the
original 13 colonies. Named for the
Virgin Queen, Elizabeth I of England,
Virginia was England's first successful
overseas colony and the site of the
first permanent English settlement in
America. West Virginia was part of
Virginia until 1863.
Virginia's rich political heritage helped
shape the democratic principles on which
the United States was founded. Virginia
played an important role in the American
Revolution (1775-1783), and it entered
the Union as the tenth of the original
13 states on June 25, 1788. During the
American Civil War (1861-1865) the
state's capital, Richmond, was also
capital of the Confederacy. The state
has long been nicknamed Old Dominion.
George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James
Madison, and James Monroe, all
Virginians, were founding fathers of the
United States and were among the first
five U.S. presidents. Virginia is also
the birthplace of U.S. presidents
William Henry Harrison, John Tyler,
Zachary Taylor, and Woodrow Wilson.
Virginia is the 35th largest state in the
United States, bounded on the east by
the Atlantic Ocean, on the north and
east by Maryland and the District of
Columbia, on the west by West Virginia
and Kentucky, and on the south by
Tennessee and North Carolina.
According to the 2000 national census,
Virginia's population was 7,078,515,
ranking it 12th among the states.
Virginia Beach (425,257) is one of the
most popular resort destinations on the
East Coast, as well as Virginia's
largest city. Richmond (197,790) is the
state capital and a center of banking
and insurance, and of both retail and
wholesale trade. The Naval Base at
Norfolk (234,403) and the Naval Shipyard
at Portsmouth (100,565) employ thousands
of civilians and military personnel.
Hampton (146,437) is important for its
aviation activities such as Langley Air
Force Base and a National Aeronautics
and Space Administration (NASA)
facility. In Newport News (180,150) is a
shipyard that builds naval ships,
including aircraft carriers. Alexandria
(128,283) is part of the Washington,
D.C., metropolitan area. Lynchburg
(65,269) is the site of light
industries. Roanoke (94,911) is the
largeest city in western Virginia.
Civilian and military employment, mostly
with the federal government, is an
essential part of the Virginia economy.
The Pentagon, which houses the
Department of Defense, is located in
Virginia and is the leading federal
employer in the northern part of the
state. There are also important military
bases in Virginia, particularly the
massive complex of army, navy, and air
force bases in the vicinity of Norfolk.
Average January temperatures range from
less than 32 F in the west to more than
42 F in southeastern Virginia. Average
July temperatures range from more than
78 F in the southeast to less than 68 F
in the western mountains. Total
precipitation ranges from about 35 to
more than 50 inches. Snowfalls are
moderate, except in the mountain
regions.
Besides Virginia, three other states -
Kentucky, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania
- use the term common-wealth as part of
their official names. The delegates to
the convention in Williamsburg, when the
first Constitution of Virginia was
adopted on June 29, 1776, used
commonwealth as the name for the new
form of government. It is very likely
they had in mind the Puritans' rebellion
against the Crown in England more than
100 years earlier.
Pennsylvania and Massachusetts also chose
to be called commonwealths after
independence from Great Britain. The
other 10 former colonies took the name
"state," the term used in the
Declaration of Independence. Kentucky
was once part of Virginia. When
Kentuckians joined the Union as the 15th
state in 1792, it also kept the name
commonwealth.
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