Hilton Village
Encyclopedia
Hilton Village is a planned, English-village-style neighborhood in Newport News, Virginia
. Recognized as a pioneering development in urban planning
, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
. The neighborhood was built between 1918 and 1921 in response to the need for housing during World War I
for employees of Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Company. It is recognized as the United States
' first Federal war-housing project.
Hilton Village was opened July 7, 1918. The street names in the 100 acre (0.404686 km²) tract of former pine woods honor government and shipyard officials. The 500 English village-type houses were sold to private owners after the war.
, the war effort was in full swing. Newport News Shipbuilding had many contracts to build naval ships and was hiring thousands of employees. Shipyard workers were being housed in overcrowded and/or temporary quarters The emerging community of Newport News faced a severe housing shortage. This led to the construction of Hilton Village. The housing shortage was so severe that Newport News Shipbuilding president Homer L. Ferguson
traveled to Washington to emphasize to Congress the impact of lack of housing on ship construction, and thus the war effort. Immediately after his appearance, the United States Shipping Board was provided funding of $1.2 million and authorization to create a comprehensive emergency housing program. Hilton Village was the first project of the emergency housing program.
, land known locally as the "Darling Tract" was purchased. This consisted of about 200 acre (0.809372 km²) of woodlands and, located on a bluff overlooking the James River
, the pre-Civil War homestead was named "Hilton". The planning for Hilton Village was conducted using a team approach, highly innovative for the time. Initially landscape architect Henry Vincent Hubbard
was hired as town planner, Joseph D. Leland, III as architect and Francis H. Bulot as sanitary engineer. Leland was unable to finish the assignment because of other obligations ,and Francis Y. Joannes was hired as the architect
to work on the Project. The planners met with the wives of shipyard workers. Based on their input, 14 house plans were designed for the projected 500 English-village-style homes.
The location of the neighborhood was several miles away from the urbanized areas of Newport News. Trolley car tracks were run from the city to Hilton Village to allow workers to commute to work at Newport News Shipbuilding and residents access to city services and shopping. The village-style neighborhood was planned so as to offer many services locally. Plots for four churches, a library, a fire house, commercial spaces, and a school
, Hilton Elementary School
, were provided for in the plan. The houses and services were grouped together in close proximity to allow for easy walking distances. For recreational purposes, the Hilton Pier and ravine
, containing a small park, beach and fishing pier, on the banks of the James River
were included in the plan directly behind Hilton Elementary.
Garden city movement
in vogue at the time. The major architectural themes of the houses where Jacobethan
, Dutch colonial Revival, Tudor Revival, and Colonial Revival. The houses range from one-and-a-half to two-and-a-half stories, with fourteen major variations of house style. The house types were scattered at random throughout the neighborhood, so that there is no tract house feeling to the neighborhood. Further variations on the fourteen styles was achieved by sheathing variously in stucco
, shingles
, or clapboard
s. All of the houses are wood-frame construction with steeply pitched slate
roofs. Roofing styles are varied as well and include gambrel
, hipped
, clipped gambrel, gable
, and clipped gable.
in November 1918, almost 200 homes had either been completed or were substantially complete and more than a dozen families lived in Hilton Village. Hilton’s formal dedication was held on July 7, 1918. The Hilton Elementary School
was completed in 1919. Scaled back to 473 homes after the end of World War I, by the end of 1920 all the homes had been completed and were occupied.
, chairman of the board at Newport News Shipbuilding. He formed the Newport News Land Company, which ran Hilton as an adjunct of the company. In 1922, many of the houses were put up for private sale, and Hilton Village gradually became a community of homeowners.
of Harvard University
. Recognized as a pioneering development in the area of urban planning
, Hilton Village was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1969.
Newport News, Virginia
Newport News is an independent city located in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of Virginia. It is at the southeastern end of the Virginia Peninsula, on the north shore of the James River extending southeast from Skiffe's Creek along many miles of waterfront to the river's mouth at Newport News...
. Recognized as a pioneering development in urban planning
Urban planning
Urban planning incorporates areas such as economics, design, ecology, sociology, geography, law, political science, and statistics to guide and ensure the orderly development of settlements and communities....
, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
. The neighborhood was built between 1918 and 1921 in response to the need for housing during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
for employees of Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Company. It is recognized as the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
' first Federal war-housing project.
Founding
The planned community was jointly sponsored by the U.S. Shipping Board and the Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company. It was built on the site of J. Pembroke Jones' farm "Hilton."Hilton Village was opened July 7, 1918. The street names in the 100 acre (0.404686 km²) tract of former pine woods honor government and shipyard officials. The 500 English village-type houses were sold to private owners after the war.
Impetus for creation
In 1917, during World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the war effort was in full swing. Newport News Shipbuilding had many contracts to build naval ships and was hiring thousands of employees. Shipyard workers were being housed in overcrowded and/or temporary quarters The emerging community of Newport News faced a severe housing shortage. This led to the construction of Hilton Village. The housing shortage was so severe that Newport News Shipbuilding president Homer L. Ferguson
Homer L. Ferguson
Homer Lenoir Ferguson was an author and businessman. He was President of Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company in Newport News, Virginia from July 22, 1915 through July 31, 1946.- Biography :...
traveled to Washington to emphasize to Congress the impact of lack of housing on ship construction, and thus the war effort. Immediately after his appearance, the United States Shipping Board was provided funding of $1.2 million and authorization to create a comprehensive emergency housing program. Hilton Village was the first project of the emergency housing program.
Planning
About three miles (5 km) north of the Newport News city limits, in Warwick County, VirginiaWarwick County, Virginia
Warwick County was a county in Southeast Virginia that was created from Warwick River Shire, one of eight created in the Virginia Colony in 1634. It became the City of Warwick on July 16, 1952...
, land known locally as the "Darling Tract" was purchased. This consisted of about 200 acre (0.809372 km²) of woodlands and, located on a bluff overlooking the James River
James River (Virginia)
The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia. It is long, extending to if one includes the Jackson River, the longer of its two source tributaries. The James River drains a catchment comprising . The watershed includes about 4% open water and an area with a population of 2.5 million...
, the pre-Civil War homestead was named "Hilton". The planning for Hilton Village was conducted using a team approach, highly innovative for the time. Initially landscape architect Henry Vincent Hubbard
Henry Vincent Hubbard
Henry Vincent Hubbard was an American landscape architect and planner, famous for his unique teaching styles at Harvard University, and his many publications. He was one of the prime supporters for a national system of public parks....
was hired as town planner, Joseph D. Leland, III as architect and Francis H. Bulot as sanitary engineer. Leland was unable to finish the assignment because of other obligations ,and Francis Y. Joannes was hired as the architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
to work on the Project. The planners met with the wives of shipyard workers. Based on their input, 14 house plans were designed for the projected 500 English-village-style homes.
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
, Hilton Elementary School
Hilton Elementary School (Newport News, Virginia)
Hilton Elementary School is an elementary school in Newport News, Virginia. Hilton is the oldest elementary school in the city still in operation. It was completed in 1919. Hilton is a Communication Arts Magnet School....
, were provided for in the plan. The houses and services were grouped together in close proximity to allow for easy walking distances. For recreational purposes, the Hilton Pier and ravine
Hilton Pier/Ravine
The Hilton Pier/Ravine is a park located in the Hilton Village historic district in Newport News, Virginia. It is maintained by the Newport News Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism.- Location :...
, containing a small park, beach and fishing pier, on the banks of the James River
James River (Virginia)
The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia. It is long, extending to if one includes the Jackson River, the longer of its two source tributaries. The James River drains a catchment comprising . The watershed includes about 4% open water and an area with a population of 2.5 million...
were included in the plan directly behind Hilton Elementary.
Architecture
Hilton was modeled after an early-English village, a decision which was probably influenced by the BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Garden city movement
Garden city movement
The garden city movement is a method of urban planning that was initiated in 1898 by Sir Ebenezer Howard in the United Kingdom. Garden cities were intended to be planned, self-contained communities surrounded by "greenbelts" , containing proportionate areas of residences, industry and...
in vogue at the time. The major architectural themes of the houses where Jacobethan
Jacobethan
Jacobethan is the style designation coined in 1933 by John Betjeman to describe the mixed national Renaissance revival style that was made popular in England from the late 1820s, which derived most of its inspiration and its repertory from the English Renaissance , with elements of Elizabethan and...
, Dutch colonial Revival, Tudor Revival, and Colonial Revival. The houses range from one-and-a-half to two-and-a-half stories, with fourteen major variations of house style. The house types were scattered at random throughout the neighborhood, so that there is no tract house feeling to the neighborhood. Further variations on the fourteen styles was achieved by sheathing variously in stucco
Stucco
Stucco or render is a material made of an aggregate, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture...
, shingles
Wood shingle
Wood shingles are roof shingles made of cut wood, used for roofing material. Such roofing material made from split wood is referred to as "shakes"....
, or clapboard
Clapboard (architecture)
Clapboard, also known as bevel siding or lap siding or weather-board , is a board used typically for exterior horizontal siding that has one edge thicker than the other and where the board above laps over the one below...
s. All of the houses are wood-frame construction with steeply pitched slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
roofs. Roofing styles are varied as well and include gambrel
Gambrel
A gambrel is a usually-symmetrical two-sided roof with two slopes on each side. The upper slope is positioned at a shallow angle, while the lower slope is steep. This design provides the advantages of a sloped roof while maximizing headroom on the building's upper level...
, hipped
Hip roof
A hip roof, or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope. Thus it is a house with no gables or other vertical sides to the roof. A square hip roof is shaped like a pyramid. Hip roofs on the houses could have two triangular side...
, clipped gambrel, gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
, and clipped gable.
Construction
Clearing the wooded site began on April 18, 1918. By the time of the ArmisticeArmistice with Germany (Compiègne)
The armistice between the Allies and Germany was an agreement that ended the fighting in the First World War. It was signed in a railway carriage in Compiègne Forest on 11 November 1918 and marked a victory for the Allies and a complete defeat for Germany, although not technically a surrender...
in November 1918, almost 200 homes had either been completed or were substantially complete and more than a dozen families lived in Hilton Village. Hilton’s formal dedication was held on July 7, 1918. The Hilton Elementary School
Hilton Elementary School (Newport News, Virginia)
Hilton Elementary School is an elementary school in Newport News, Virginia. Hilton is the oldest elementary school in the city still in operation. It was completed in 1919. Hilton is a Communication Arts Magnet School....
was completed in 1919. Scaled back to 473 homes after the end of World War I, by the end of 1920 all the homes had been completed and were occupied.
Post-War to Present
In 1921, Hilton Village was purchased from the United States Shipping Board by Henry E. HuntingtonHenry E. Huntington
Henry Edwards Huntington was a railroad magnate and collector of art and rare books. Born in Oneonta, New York, Huntington settled in Los Angeles, where he owned the Pacific Electric Railway as well as substantial real estate interests...
, chairman of the board at Newport News Shipbuilding. He formed the Newport News Land Company, which ran Hilton as an adjunct of the company. In 1922, many of the houses were put up for private sale, and Hilton Village gradually became a community of homeowners.
Streets named after shipyard and government officials
Of the currently laid out streets in Hilton Village, Hopkins Street, Ferguson Avenue and Post Street are named after three of the earlier past Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company Presidents:- Walter A. PostWalter A. PostWalter A. Post was the first mayor of Newport News, Virginia. He was sent to Newport News by his brother-in-law, railroad magnate Collis P...
- Mar. 9, 1911 to Feb. 12, 1912, earlier, a builder of the C&O Railway's terminals and first mayor of Newport News - Albert L. HopkinsAlbert L. HopkinsAlbert L. Hopkins worked at the US MIT Instrumentation Laboratory during the development of the Apollo Guidance, Navigation, and Control System, or the GN&C. The system was designed in two forms, one for the command module and one for the lunar module...
- Mar. 14, 1914 to May 7, 1915, the young New Yorker who was traveling to England on the SS Lusitania on shipyard business when he died after the ship was torpedoed and sunk by a German U-boat - Homer L. FergusonHomer L. FergusonHomer Lenoir Ferguson was an author and businessman. He was President of Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company in Newport News, Virginia from July 22, 1915 through July 31, 1946.- Biography :...
- Jul. 22, 1915 to Jul. 31, 1946 A manager when Hopkins died, Ferguson, who assumed the presidency when Hopkins was killed, saw the company through both world wars, became a noted community leader, and was a co-founder of the Mariners' MuseumMariners' MuseumThe Mariners' Museum is located in Newport News, Virginia. It is one of the largest maritime museums in the world as well as being the largest in North America.- History :The museum was founded in 1932 by Archer Milton Huntington, son of Collis P...
with Archer M. HuntingtonArcher M. HuntingtonArcher Milton Huntington was the son of Arabella Huntington and the stepson of railroad magnate and industrialist Collis P. Huntington...
, stepson of shipyard founder Collis P. HuntingtonCollis P. HuntingtonCollis Potter Huntington was one of the Big Four of western railroading who built the Central Pacific Railroad as part of the first U.S. transcontinental railroad...
.
Listing on National Register of Historic Places
To build the new village, the U.S. Shipping Board hired one of the finest urban planners of the era, Henry Vincent HubbardHenry Vincent Hubbard
Henry Vincent Hubbard was an American landscape architect and planner, famous for his unique teaching styles at Harvard University, and his many publications. He was one of the prime supporters for a national system of public parks....
of Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. Recognized as a pioneering development in the area of urban planning
Urban planning
Urban planning incorporates areas such as economics, design, ecology, sociology, geography, law, political science, and statistics to guide and ensure the orderly development of settlements and communities....
, Hilton Village was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1969.
Historic Marker
The text of the historical marker that appears on Warwick Boulevard in Hilton Village reads as follows:Notable Residents
- William StyronWilliam StyronWilliam Clark Styron, Jr. was an American novelist and essayist who won major literary awards for his work.For much of his career, Styron was best known for his novels, which included...
, noted author - J. J. LankesJ. J. LankesJulius John Lankes was an illustrator, a woodcut print artist, author, and college professor.-Early life and education:Lankes was born on August 31, 1884 in Buffalo, New York to parents of German heritage. His father worked in a lumber mill and brought home small scraps of wood...
, illustrator, woodcut artist and college professor - Gary Hudson, actor