Fort Mill times. [volume] (Fort Mill, S.C.) 1892-current, 1921-05-19
OLD YORKTOWN.
Isolated Virginia Village Where
CORVALLIS Quit.

town, Va, where the British gen
eral, CORVALLIS, surrendered. and
where for all practical purposes
the American Revolution was
brought to a victorious conclusion
may soon be made into shrine
to share popularity with Bunker
Hill, Valley Forge and Mount
Vernon.
The little village. and its sur
roundings form the subject of the
following bulletin issued from the
Washington headquarters Of the
National Geographic society:
Though Yorktown was not
thriving community nor n place
noted for its accessibility during
revolutionary days, it was rcla-
tively much more important and
much less remote from the daily
life OF the country than it has
been at any time since. Most
other American towns were small
IN those days, ports were few. and
railroads were unthought of. AS
cities have sprung up where there
were only hamlets or patches of
Wilderness before, and railroads
have brought even the two oceans
relatively closer together, York
town, at point where little
commerce has been developed and
without rail connections. has be-
come in effect more and more re-.
mote, and it's character as
sleepy village has become more
emphasized.
1.-The Yorktown of today is "A
community of less than $50 in
habitantS with u few fine old CO.
lcnial homes and a number of less
pretentious dwellings. The near
est railroad lies eight miles to the
south. In the town is a monument
erected in 1881 on the Tooth ami.
versary of the surrender of the
British. AS reminder of the
early Importance Of Yorktown
there still exists the first custom
house in the United States. Near
the village are remains of the
forts and redoubts whose capture
by the Revolutionary soldiers
and their French allies marked
the real birth of the United
States. The scene of Corvallis
surrender-which was by proxy
through his General O'Hara-is
believed to be in the open coun-
try just south of the village.
Yorktown is on narrow pen
insula lying between the wide es-
tuaries of the James and York
rivers, and is where the latter
meets Chesapeake bay. Cornwall
lis, after scourging Virginia, burn
ing homes, killing and driving off
stock and capturing large NUM-
bers Of slaves, retired down the
peninsula to Yorktown. Lafay-
cite. with handful of American
soldiers, followed at distance.
l. was when this situation was
pointed out to Washington that
he was pursuaded to abandon his
plan to attack New York and in
stead to take his own forces from
West Point and Rochambeau s di-
vision from Providence, X. l., TO
stake all on a battle in the South.
The arrival of De Grasse with II
French fleet in the Chesapeake,
blocking the entrance to that bay
and preventing reinforcements
reaching CORVALLIS, made the de-
feat of the latter inevitable.
1T is not strange that Corn
wallis considered Yorktown
good location for military head
quarters in spite of the ease with
which the peninsula might be
blocked. 1t possesses a truly re-
markable deep water harbor. and
Cornwallis counted on the main
tcnance of communication by
water with the British forces in
New York. 90
"YorktOwn's harbor was put
to good use during the World
war and so for the second time
played an important part in the
conntry's martial history. 1t the
mouth of the York river opposite
the famous village the greater
part of the Atlantic fleet at times
rode at anchor. There. behind the
dcfenses at the entrance TO the
('hpSanank aud furth on. nrntnn, }