Virginia Geography

The first permanent British settlement in North America was also the first capital of Virginia. But Jamestown was a killer – the swampy land carried diseases that killed thousands of colonists. One winter there was cannibalism! Trace the struggle that changed the Old Dominion from a deathtrap into the most powerful of the 13 colonies and home of many of America’s Founding Fathers in this funny, colorful graphic novel that will excite reluctant readers, prepare students for standardized tests in history and help homeschooling parents!

Comic sample page #1: Why are those mountains blue?
Comic sample page #2: Where did Africans settle Virginia?
Topics covered in this comic book
Teacher’s Guide for this comic

Where are Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains?

Where did Africans settle in the Virginia colony?

Chapter 1: 5 Regions
Geography is the study of the physical surface of an area and its animals, climate, and resources. There are five different kinds of land areas in Virginia. It is a state whose geography spreads from low, coastal land up to very old mountains. There is even a small plateau tucked in the corner. Chester takes to the skies in his Piper Crab plane to get the best view of all five regions . . .

5 Regions includes the following topics:
What can you see in Virginia?
Where does water fall in Virginia?
Why are those mountains blue?
Where is the apple basket of Virginia?
Where do those coal trains start?

Chapter 2: 3 Capitals
Did you know that Virginia has had three different capital cities in its 400-year history? Chester takes a look at the choices and goals that put the colony’s government first in swampy Jamestown, then at the Middle Plantation area renamed Williamsburg, then on the Fall Line city we now call Richmond …

3 Capitals includes the following topics:
Why did Virginia have 3 capitals?
Why was Jamestown a sick capital?
Where was Virginia’s second capital?
How did people live in Williamsburg?
Why did Virginia get a third capital?

Chapter 3: Settlement Patterns
The First Americans have lived for thousands of years in the area we now call Virginia. In the 1600s people came from other continents to build new settlements across the land England claimed as a colony. Some of these settlers came by choice. Some came because they were forced to. Each group added to the culture and history that all Virginians share today . . .

Settlement Patterns includes the following topics:

What groups settled early Virginia?
Where did Africans settle in Virginia?
Where did the Scotch-Irish settle?
Where did Germans settle in Virginia?
How did the early settlers shape Virginia?

Chapter 4: The James River
One way to experience a lot of Virginia is to take a trip down the James River. This waterway touches four of the five regions of the Old Dominion, from its beginning as a trickling stream in the mountain regions to the Fall Line to the meandering, murky water of the Coastal Plains region . . .

The James River includes the following topics:
Where does the James River begin?
Who lives in the freshwater James?
What happens at Virginia’s Fall Line?
How did kepone hurt the James?
What do tides do to the James?

Virginia Geography

View the Teacher’s Guide for this comic.