{"nrhp_refnum":"06000138","name":"Werowocomoco Archeological Site","other_names":["44gl32","036-5049"],"category":"site","location":{"address":"3051 Ginny Hill Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Gloucester","county":"Gloucester County","state":"VA","lat":37.41142799550005,"lon":-76.65558076373588,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2006-03-15","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Historic - Aboriginal","Prehistoric","Exploration/Settlement"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"An archaeological site on Purtan Bay along the York River in Gloucester County, Virginia, covering about 45 acres. It is a Native American village dating to the Late Woodland and Early Contact periods (A.D. 900-1609).","why_significant":"The nomination argues the site was Werowocomoco, the capital of the Powhatan chiefdom and the principal residence of the paramount chief Powhatan when the English founded Jamestown in 1607. Early maps and written accounts, along with archaeological survey since 2002, place it at Purtan Bay. It is described as nationally significant and well preserved.","narrative":"Werowocomoco is a 45-acre archaeological site on Purtan Bay, off the York River in Gloucester County, Virginia. It preserves a Native American village occupied from the Late Woodland period (beginning about A.D. 900) into the Early Contact era. When the English settled Jamestown in 1607, the village served as the capital of the Powhatan chiefdom and was the principal residence of its paramount chief, Powhatan, who moved his capital westward in 1609 to gain distance from the colonists. Early maps by Tindall, the Zuñiga map and John Smith's 1612 map, together with Smith's written descriptions of a shallow bay fed by three creeks, point to Purtan Bay. The nomination rejects an older theory favoring the Timberneck area. Archaeological work, begun after a landowner's artifact collection drew attention in 2001, surveyed the site in 2002-2003. The land remains mostly pasture, fields and forest, and the site is considered well preserved and nationally significant.","period_of_significance":"A.D. 900-1609 (Late Woodland and Early Contact periods, as described in the text)","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as in excellent condition, largely in pasture, agricultural fields, forest and residential lawns; current functions are agriculture and single dwelling.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:03.401367-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/2/6809/41680902/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/06000138.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/06000138/f982b85558-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/06000138/f982b85558-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"engraved by William Hole","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Powhatan_john_smith_map.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">engraved by William Hole</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Powhatan_john_smith_map.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41680902","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Werowocomoco","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q301064"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/gloucester-county/werowocomoco-archeological-site-06000138/"}