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Virginia

Capital	Richmond
Population	7,078,515 Source: U.S. Census Bureau GCT-PH1-R. Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density (geographies ranked by total population): 2000 Data Set: Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data
Governor	Tim Kaine (D, to January 2010)
Entered the Union	June 25, 1788 as the 10th state
Motto	Sic Semper tyrannis (Thus always to tyrants)
Nickname	The Old Dominion; Mother of Presidents
Flower	American Dogwood
Bird	Cardinal
Song	Carry Me Back to Old Virginia
Professional Sports Teams (sports listing policy)	No NFL, MLB, NBA, WNBA, MLS, or NHL teams.
Origin of Name	In honor of Elizabeth, Virgin Queen of England
Major Industries	Agriculture, Government and Manufacturing (Transportation Equipment and Textiles), Food Processing, Printing
Historical Sites	Mt. Vernon, home of George Washington; Monticello, home of Thomas Jefferson; Stratford, home of Robert E. Lee, Confederate general; Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial; Richmond, capital of both the Confederacy and of the state today; Booker T. Washington's birthplace near Roanoke; Colonial Williamsburg
Points of Interest	Shenandoah National Park; Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Parks; the Skyline Drive; and the Blue Ridge National Parkway
Bordering States	Virginia borders Maryland, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, and North Carolina.
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Follow these links to read articles about Virginia from Encyclopedias and Almanacs:

• Encarta Concise Encyclopedia
• Columbia Encyclopedia
• Information Please Almanac

• Virginia.gov: The Official Commonwealth of Virginia Home Page
  http://www.virginia.gov/
  This is the official website for the State of Virginia.
• The Library of Virginia
  http://www.lva.lib.va.us/
  Here is the homepage for the Virginia State Library.
• Virginia Historical Society
  http://www.vahistorical.org/index.htm
  Here is the homepage for the Virginia State Historical Society.
• Virginia Frontier Culture Museum: Bringing the Past to Life
  http://www.frontier.virginia.gov/
  Here is the homepage for one of the Virginia State Museums, this one specializing in history.
• Virginia Museum of Natural History
  http://www.vmnh.net/
  Here is the homepage for another of Virginia's State Museums.
• Virginia Archives Research Services/The Library of Virginia
  http://www.lva.lib.va.us/whatwedo/archives/index.htm
  Here is the homepage for the Virginia State Archives.
• Virginia Parks and Natural Areas
  http://www.dcr.state.va.us/parks/
  Here is the homepage for Virgina State Parks.
• Virginia is for Lovers: Official Tourism Website of the Commonwealth of Virginia
  http://www.virginia.org/
  Here is the official state tourism website for Virginia.
• Kids Commonwealth
  http://www.kidscommonwealth.virginia.gov/home/
  Here is Virginia's official state site for kids.

• 50states.com: Virginia
  http://www.50states.com/virginia.htm
  The site provides a wealth of information about Virginia. It includes everything from the highest point to county profile to climate.
• Things To Do in Virginia
  http://www.thingstodo.com/states/VA/index.htm
  ThingsToDo.com is an online guide to information about Virginia's entertainment, recreation, and travel, and includes the state's interesting facts, famous people, and special events.
• Roadside America: Virginia Attractions
  http://www.roadsideamerica.com/map/va.html
  Roadside America describes itself as an online guide to offbeat attractions. This site offers reviews of "weird sites along the highway" in Virginia.
• Civil War Richmond
  http://www.mdgorman.com/
  This site is an online research project that collects documents, photographs, and maps having to do with Richmond, Virginia during the Civil War.
• Children's Museum of Virginia
  http://www.childrensmuseumva.com/
  This lively site describes the exhibits, activities, and classes available in a special museum for kids found at Portsmouth, Virginia.
• FedStats: MapStat: United States: Virginia
  http://www.fedstats.gov/qf/states/51000.html
  Fast access to statistics from more than 100 federal agencies on "economic and population trends, crime, education, health care, aviation safety, energy use, farm production and more" in Virginia.

• Virginia was the site of the surrenders ending the American Revolution (Yorktown) and the Civil War (Appomattox).
• Virginia is called the Mother of Presidents because eight U.S. Presidents were born there.
• Tobacco was once Virginia's sole economic crop.
• Opened in 1964, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is 18 miles long and has two bridges and two mile-long tunnels. It extends over the mouth of Chesapeake Bay and connects the cities of Cape Charles and Norfolk.
• Government employment, especially the Federal government and military, has replaced tobacco as the state's number one industry.

• Explorers William Clark and Merriwether Lewis, who led a famous expedition to the Pacific ocean.
• Admiral Richard E. Byrd, explorer and first man to fly over North and South poles.
• Edgar Allen Poe, author of works such as The Tell-Tale Heart and The Fall of the House of Usher.
• Booker T. Washington, African-American educator and founder of Tuskegee Institute.
• Presidents from Virginia with links to the IPL's POTUS (Presidents of the United States) page:
  
  
  • George Washington
  • Thomas Jefferson
  • James Madison
  • James Monroe
  • William Henry Harrison
  • John Tyler.
  • Zachary Taylor
  • Woodrow Wilson