People

A Norfolk merchant who supported the patriot cause and served on the local Committee of Safety. Hutchings represented the minority of Norfolk's commercial class that sided with the Revolution, at considerable personal and financial risk in a town with strong Loyalist sympathies.

One of Norfolk's wealthiest merchants and owner of the Gosport shipyard, Sprowle was a committed Loyalist who supported Dunmore and provided supplies to British forces. His property was targeted by patriot forces, and he died aboard a British ship in the harbor in 1776, his fortune destroyed.

Virginia's last royal governor, who issued the proclamation offering freedom to enslaved people who joined the British — a measure that enraged patriot Virginia and deepened the colony's commitment to independence. Dunmore directed the bombardment of Norfolk from his ships on January 1, 1776, before eventually withdrawing from Virginia entirely.

Virginia militia officer who commanded patriot forces at the Battle of Great Bridge on December 9, 1775, defeating Dunmore's troops in a decisive engagement that drove the royal governor from the Virginia mainland. Woodford later served in the Continental Army and died as a prisoner of war in New York in 1780.

Approximately 800 to 2,000 enslaved people reached Dunmore's lines after his November 1775 proclamation, though many more attempted the journey. Those who arrived were organized into the "Ethiopian Regiment" and saw combat at Great Bridge. Smallpox ravaged the refugees, and most did not survive the war. Their stories are largely unrecorded.

Continental officer from North Carolina who commanded patriot forces in the Norfolk area in late 1775 and early 1776. Howe's troops contributed to the destruction of Norfolk after Dunmore's bombardment, burning buildings to deny them to the British and to punish suspected Loyalists.

British officer involved in the naval operations around Norfolk in late 1775 and early 1776. Leslie participated in the bombardment of the Norfolk waterfront on January 1, 1776, part of Dunmore's attempt to punish the town for its growing patriot sympathies and to maintain British access to supplies.

A Norfolk resident displaced by the destruction of the town in January 1776. Like hundreds of other civilians, she lost her home and property in the combined British bombardment and patriot burning. The displaced residents of Norfolk scattered across the Virginia countryside, and many never returned.