The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Roanoke, Virginia, United States.
Prior to 20th century
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- 1835 - Town of Gainesborough incorporated.[1]
- 1838 - Roanoke County created.[2]
- 1852 - Big Lick Depot built near Gainesborough; Virginia & Tennessee Railroad begins operating.[3]
- 1865 - April: Big Lick settlement sacked by Federal forces during American Civil War.[3]
- 1870 - Atlantic, Mississippi & Ohio Railroad begins operating.
- 1874
- 1878 - Big Lick News begins publication.[5]
- 1882
- Big Lick and Old Lick renamed "Roanoke".[4]
- Roanoke Machine Works in business.[6]
- Population: 5,276.[6]
- 1883 - YMCA branch founded.[7]
- 1884 - City of Roanoke incorporated.[8]
- 1885 - Municipal market established.[5]
- 1886 - Roanoke Daily Times newspaper begins publication.[9]
- 1889 - Evening World newspaper begins publication.[9]
- 1890
- Roanoke Hospital founded.[7]
- Population: 16,159.
- 1891 - Roanoke Weekly Press newspaper begins publication.[10]
- 1893 - September 20: "Lynch riot" occurs.[3][10]
20th century
[edit]- 1902 - Beth Israel congregation formed.[11]
- 1903 - Agricultural "Great Roanoke Fair" begins.[6]
- 1904 - Chamber of Commerce founded.[6]
- 1906 - Virginian Railway begins operating.[5]
- 1910
- City Health Department established.[7]
- Mill Mountain Incline (funicular) begins operating.[5]
- Population: 34,874.
- 1911 - Roanoke Theatre in business.[12]
- 1913 - Bijou Theatre in business.[12]
- 1914 - YWCA branch founded.[7]
- 1919 - "Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court" established.[7]
- 1920 - Population: 50,842.[7]
- 1921
- Public Library opens.[5]
- Ku Klux Klan branch active (approximate date).[13][chronology citation needed]
- 1924 - WDBJ radio begins broadcasting.[14]
- 1925 - Patrick Henry Hotel in business.
- 1926 - Memorial Bridge opens.
- 1930 - Big Lick Garden Club formed.[5]
- 1933 - Roanoke Municipal Airport begins operating.
- 1936 - First Dr. Pepper plant east of the Mississippi River opened by John William "Bill" Davis; Roanoke soon becomes the Dr. Pepper Capitol of the World [15]
- 1939 - Roanoke Tribune newspaper begins publication.
- 1950 - Population: 91,921.
- 1952
- WSLS-TV (television) begins broadcasting.[16]
- Mill Mountain Zoo established.[17]
- 1955 - WDBJ-TV (television) begins broadcasting.[16]
- 1957 - Roanoke Historical Society founded.[18]
- 1959 - Temple Emanuel Synagogue built.[11]
- 1966 - Virginia Western Community College established.
- 1976 - Portion of Roanoke County becomes part of city.[4]
- 1980 - Population: 100,220.
- 1985 - Valley View Mall in business.
- 1992 - David A. Bowers becomes mayor.[19]
- 1993 - Bob Goodlatte becomes U.S. representative for Virginia's 6th congressional district.[20]
- 2000 - City website online (approximate date).[21]
21st century
[edit]- 2004 - O. Winston Link Museum opens.
- 2010 - Population: 97,032.[22]
- 2016
- October 25: FreightCar America shooting occurs.
- Sherman P. Lea becomes mayor.[19]
- 2020 - The Norfolk Southern locomotive shops cease production in Roanoke after 139 years of operations.[23]
See also
[edit]- Roanoke, Virginia history
- List of mayors of Roanoke, Virginia
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Roanoke, Virginia
- Timelines of other cities in Virginia: Alexandria, Hampton, Lynchburg, Newport News, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Richmond, Virginia Beach
References
[edit]- ^ "Gainsboro Neighborhood Plan". City of Roanoke. 2003. Archived from the original on March 18, 2017. Retrieved August 25, 2017.
- ^ Scholl Center for American History and Culture. "Virginia: Individual County Chronologies". Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. Chicago: Newberry Library. Archived from the original on March 5, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2017.
- ^ a b c Dotson 2008.
- ^ a b c "Maps and Formation Information: Roanoke". County and City Records. Library of Virginia. Archived from the original on March 17, 2017. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f g Federal Writers' Project 1941.
- ^ a b c d Jack & Jacobs 1912.
- ^ a b c d e f Hoffer 1928.
- ^ "Cities of Virginia: Roanoke". Encyclopedia Virginia. Virginia Foundation for the Humanities. Retrieved March 17, 2017.
- ^ a b "US Newspaper Directory". Chronicling America. Washington DC: Library of Congress. Archived from the original on March 17, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2017.
- ^ a b "Encyclopedia Virginia". Virginia Foundation for the Humanities. Archived from the original on May 3, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2017.
- ^ a b "Roanoke, Virginia". Encyclopedia of Southern Jewish Communities. Jackson, Mississippi: Goldring / Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life. Archived from the original on February 15, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2017.
- ^ a b "Movie Theaters in Roanoke, VA". CinemaTreasures.org. Los Angeles: Cinema Treasures LLC. Archived from the original on March 17, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2017.
- ^ Kenneth T. Jackson (1992) [1967]. The Ku Klux Klan in the City, 1915-1930. Chicago: Ivan R. Dee. ISBN 978-1-4617-3005-7.
- ^ Jack Alicoate, ed. (1939), "Standard Broadcasting Stations of the United States: Virginia", Radio Annual, New York: Radio Daily, OCLC 2459636
- ^ Christina Rogers, "Dr Pepper pops to life again", Roanoke.com. Retrieved July 14, 2009.
- ^ a b Charles A. Alicoate, ed. (1960), "Television Stations: Virginia", Radio Annual and Television Year Book, New York: Radio Daily Corp., OCLC 10512206
- ^ Vernon N. Kisling, Jr., ed. (2001). "Zoological Gardens of the United States (chronological list)". Zoo and Aquarium History. USA: CRC Press. ISBN 978-1-4200-3924-5.
- ^ "About Us". Roanoke: Historical Society of Western Virginia. Archived from the original on March 18, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2017.
- ^ a b "City Council: Council History". City of Roanoke. Archived from the original on March 17, 2017. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
- ^ "Virginia". Official Congressional Directory. 1991/1992- : S. Pub. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office. 1993. hdl:2027/uc1.l0072691827 – via HathiTrust.
- ^ "City Web: Roanoke, VA". Archived from the original on August 16, 2000 – via Internet Archive, Wayback Machine.
- Kevin Hyde; Tamie Hyde (eds.). "United States of America: Virginia". Official City Sites. Utah. OCLC 40169021. Archived from the original on August 24, 2000. - ^ "Roanoke city, Virginia". QuickFacts. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
- ^ "End of an era for Roanoke". The Roanoke Times. Archived from the original on May 19, 2020. Retrieved 2020-02-11.
Bibliography
[edit]- Richard Edwards, ed. (1855), "Big Lick", Statistical Gazetteer of the State of Virginia, Richmond
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - F.P. Smith (1891). Synopsis of Roanoke and Her Wonderful Prosperity. W. M. Yager and Co., Real Estate Brokers.
- Reports of the City of Roanoke, Virginia circa 1893-
- Picturesque Roanoke. 1902.
- "Roanoke", Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.), New York, 1910, OCLC 14782424
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - George S. Jack; E.B. Jacobs (1912). History of Roanoke County; History of Roanoke City.
- Frank William Hoffer (1928), Public and Private Welfare, Roanoke, Virginia, Roanoke City Planning and Zoning Commissions (Fulltext)
- Federal Writers' Project (1941), "Roanoke", Virginia: a Guide to the Old Dominion, American Guide Series, Oxford University Press, pp. 301–306 – via Google Books
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: ref duplicates default (link) - Journal of the Roanoke Historical Society, ISSN 0278-2936 circa 1964-
- Ory Mazar Nergal, ed. (1980), "Roanoke, VA", Encyclopedia of American Cities, New York: E.P. Dutton, OL 4120668M
- Mary Bishop (January 29, 1995), "Street by Street, Block by Block: How Urban Renewal Uprooted Black Roanoke", Roanoke Times – via Roanoke Public Libraries (Fulltext)
- Paul T. Hellmann (2006). "Virginia: Roanoke". Historical Gazetteer of the United States. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 1-135-94859-3.
- Rand Dotson (2008). Roanoke, Virginia, 1882-1912: Magic City of the New South. University of Tennessee Press. ISBN 978-1-57233-643-8.
External links
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Roanoke, Virginia.
- "City of Roanoke". County and City Records. Richmond: Library of Virginia.
- Items related to Roanoke, Virginia, various dates (via Digital Public Library of America)
- Roanoke Public Libraries. "Virginia Room". City of Roanoke. (Local history collection)