The Yorktown Battlefield is a part of Colonial National Historical Park, which also includes the major part of Jamestown Island, together with some of the adjacent area, the Colonial Parkway, and the Cape Henry Memorial at Cape Henry, Va. The park was first established as a national monument by Presidential proclamation in 1930 and given its present designation by act of Congress in 1936.
The battlefield, except for areas in private ownership, is administered by the National Park Service of the Department of the Interior. At present, park holdings in the battlefield embrace about 4,175 acres.
Headquarters for the entire park are in Yorktown, and all communications relating to the area should be addressed to the Superintendent, Colonial National Historical Park, Yorktown, Va.
Closely Related Areas
Other areas in the South included in the National Park System connected with the Revolutionary War are: Kings Mountain National Military Park, S. C.; Guilford Courthouse National Military Park, N. C.; Cowpens National Battlefield Site, S. C.; and Moores Creek National Military Park, N. C.
Closely related to Yorktown and Jamestown, both geographically and historically, is Williamsburg (Virginia)—a national shrine of outstanding significance and interest. Much of the heart of the old 18th-century section of the city has been restored, or reconstructed, including the palace of the royal governors and the capitol building. Arts and craft shops have been developed, as well as an extensive educational program, making it possible to observe and study many aspects of life as it was in the 80-year period when Williamsburg was the capital of Virginia after the removal of the seat of government from Jamestown in 1699. The restoration of the town is being made possible through the generosity of John D. Rockefeller, Jr., and it is administered by Colonial Williamsburg as a nonprofit, educational, and inspirational shrine “That the Future May Learn from the Past.”
Suggested Readings
Doehla, Johann Conrad. “The Doehla Journal.” William and Mary College Historical Quarterly, 2nd Series, Vol. 22, pp. 229-274. Hatch Charles E., Jr. “The Moore House: A National Shrine.” William and Mary Historical Quarterly, 2nd Series, Vol. 21, pp. 293-317. October 1941. ——, and Pitkin, Thomas M. Yorktown, Climax of the Revolution. National Park Service Source Book Series No. 1, Superintendent of Documents, Washington, D. C. 1941. Johnson Henry P. The Yorktown Campaign and The Surrender of Cornwallis, 1781. Harper & Brothers, New York. 1881. Landers, H. L. The Virginia Campaign and the Blockade and Siege of Yorktown, 1781. Superintendent of Documents, Washington, D. C. 1931. Willcox, William B. “The British Road to Yorktown: A Study in Divided Command.” American Historical Review, Vol. 52, pp. 1-35. October 1946.
Appendix 1
CORNWALLIS’ PAROLE[1]