Hog Island (Virginia)
Encyclopedia
Hog Island is a barrier island
located in Northampton County, Virginia
, and is a part of the Virginia Coast Reserve
of The Nature Conservancy
. Starting in the mid-19th century the town of Broadwater, Virginia
was located on the southern end of the island, but had to be abandoned in the 1930s when rapid beach erosion made its continued existence untenable. However, many of the houses and other buildings were floated by barge to the mainland and can be found in Willis Wharf, Virginia
and Oyster, Virginia
.
In 2008, in conjunction with the Barrier Islands Center in Machipongo, Virginia, filmmaker James Spione
directed a documentary, Our Island Home, which featured three of the last surviving people to be born on Hog Island. The film grew out of an ongoing oral history project at the Center designed to record survivors' memories of a bygone way of life on the island.
Since 1987 it has served as a major ecological research location for the Virginia Coast Reserve Long-Term Ecological Research
(VCR/LTER) project http://vcr.lternet.edu. Hog Island is one of three primary ecological research stations used by faculty and students at the University of Virginia
.
Barrier island
Barrier islands, a coastal landform and a type of barrier system, are relatively narrow strips of sand that parallel the mainland coast. They usually occur in chains, consisting of anything from a few islands to more than a dozen...
located in Northampton County, Virginia
Northampton County, Virginia
As of the census of 2010, there were 12,389 people, 5,321 households, and 3,543 families residing in the county. The population density was 63 people per square mile . There were 6,547 housing units at an average density of 32 per square mile...
, and is a part of the Virginia Coast Reserve
Virginia Coast Reserve
The Virginia Coast Reserve is a biosphere reserve created by The Nature Conservancy in the early 1970s. It consists of 14 barrier islands along the Atlantic coast of the Virginia portion of the Delmarva Peninsula, including Parramore Island, Hog Island, Virginia, Smith Island, Virginia, Assawoman...
of The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy is a US charitable environmental organization that works to preserve the plants, animals, and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive....
. Starting in the mid-19th century the town of Broadwater, Virginia
Broadwater, Virginia
Broadwater is a former town and unincorporated community located on Hog Island in Northampton County, Virginia, United States.-References:*...
was located on the southern end of the island, but had to be abandoned in the 1930s when rapid beach erosion made its continued existence untenable. However, many of the houses and other buildings were floated by barge to the mainland and can be found in Willis Wharf, Virginia
Willis Wharf, Virginia
Willis Wharf "clam town USA" is an unincorporated community in Northampton County, Virginia, United States.-References:*...
and Oyster, Virginia
Oyster, Virginia
Oyster is a small unincorporated community on the Atlantic Coast of the Eastern Shore of the U.S. state of Virginia in Northampton County. It is at an elevation of 3 feet above sea level....
.
In 2008, in conjunction with the Barrier Islands Center in Machipongo, Virginia, filmmaker James Spione
James Spione
James Michael Spione is an American director, producer, writer and editor of both documentary and fiction films. Early on in his career, he developed a reputation for suspenseful dramatic shorts; his later career, however, has been marked by a new focus on short and feature-length documentaries...
directed a documentary, Our Island Home, which featured three of the last surviving people to be born on Hog Island. The film grew out of an ongoing oral history project at the Center designed to record survivors' memories of a bygone way of life on the island.
Since 1987 it has served as a major ecological research location for the Virginia Coast Reserve Long-Term Ecological Research
Virginia Coast Reserve Long-Term Ecological Research
The Virginia Coast Reserve Long-Term Ecological Research project is funded by the National Science Foundation. The VCR/LTER project's research activities focus on the mosaic of transitions and steady-state systems that comprise the barrier-island/lagoon/mainland landscape of the Eastern Shore of...
(VCR/LTER) project http://vcr.lternet.edu. Hog Island is one of three primary ecological research stations used by faculty and students at the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
.