Bower's Hill
| Bower's Hill | |
|---|---|
| Community | |
 Bower's Hill
Location within the state of Virginia
Bower's Hill
Bower's Hill (the US)
|
|
| Coordinates: 36°47′13″N 76°24′46″W / 36.78694°N 76.41278°WCoordinates: 36°47′13″N 76°24′46″W / 36.78694°N 76.41278°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Virginia |
| Independent city | Chesapeake |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
Bower's Hill is a community located in the independent city of Chesapeake, Virginia (formerly Norfolk County) in the United States. It is located in the South Hampton Roads region at the northeastern edge of the Great Dismal Swamp, an area consisting of generally low-lying sandy terrain of the coastal plain.
Popular legend has that it was named for an early highway overpass on the Military Highway which was built around 1943. However, maps dating from the early 19th century show a place named "Bower's Hill". Other information in archives at the Library of Virginia also dates the name to a time long prior to the construction of the Military Highway.
In any event, the area now justifies its name with an elaborate interchange of overpasses at the juncture of three Interstate highways and three arterial (U.S.) highways. Bower's Hill is also the possible location of a future high-speed rail passenger station.
Bower's Hill, which was in now-extinct Norfolk County near the northeastern edge of the Great Dismal Swamp, became a crossroads as highways and railroads were built through the area in the 20th century. The natural terrain of the coastal plain of the Tidewater area is very flat and sandy. The combination of U.S. Highway 13, U.S. Highway 58, and U.S. Highway 460, known as the Military Highway, was a 4-lane undivided highway that was built about 1943. A large s-shaped highway overpass was constructed to carry the traffic across the Seaboard Air Line Railroad tracks to eliminate an at-grade crossing and to allow an interchange with Airline Boulevard.
...
Wikipedia