:Hopewell, Virginia

{{seealso|National Register of Historic Places listings in Hopewell, Virginia}}

{{main|City Point, Virginia}}

The city was founded to take advantage of its site overlooking the James and Appomattox Rivers. City Point, the oldest part of Hopewell, was established in 1613 by Sir Thomas Dale. It was first known as "Bermuda City". (At this time, Bermuda, the Atlantic archipelago, was considered part of the Colony of Virginia and appeared on its maps.) The name soon changed to Charles City. In 1619 Samuel Sharpe and Samuel Jordan from were burgesses from Charles City at the first meeting of the House of Burgesses. "Charles City Point" was in Charles City Shire when the first eight shires were established in the Colony of Virginia in 1634. Charles City Shire soon became known as Charles City County in 1643.

The burgesses separated an area of the county south of the river, including City Point, establishing it separately as Prince George County in 1703.

During the American Civil War, Union General Ulysses S. Grant used City Point as his headquarters during the Siege of Petersburg in 1864 and 1865. Grant's headquarters, which President Lincoln visited, were located at Appomattox Manor, one of the three plantations of Richard Eppes, who cultivated wheat and other grains and held 130 slaves at the beginning of the war.[https://www.jstor.org/stable/4248988 Bowman, Shearer Davis. "Conditional Unionism and Slavery in Virginia, 1860-1861: The Case of Dr. Richard Eppes] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160207223502/http://www.jstor.org/stable/4248988 |date=February 7, 2016 }}, Virginia Magazine of History and Biography 96 (January 1988): 31-54, accessed June 13, 2012

His property included most of the present-day city of Hopewell and Eppes Island, a plantation across the James River from City Point. Richard Slaughter, a former slave of Eppes, escaped to a Union ship during the Civil War, as did all but 12 of Eppes' 130 slaves, choosing freedom.[https://web.archive.org/web/20070102190447/http://www.nps.gov/archive/pete/mahan/edbiosre.html Dr. Richard Eppes] Slaughter recounted his life story for a Works Progress Administration interviewer in 1936.[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=mesn&fileName=170/mesn170.db&recNum=49&itemLink=D?mesnbib:4:./temp/~ammem_h6L0:: "Autobiography of Richard Slaughter"], pp. 46-49, Born in Slavery: Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1938, American Memory, Library of Congress, accessed June 13, 2012

The City Point Railroad, built in 1838 between City Point and Petersburg, was used as a critical part of the siege strategy. It is considered the oldest portion of the Norfolk and Western Railway, now a part of Norfolk Southern.

City Point was an unincorporated town in Prince George County until the City of Hopewell annexed the Town of City Point in 1923. Despite the evolving name, Hopewell/City Point is the second oldest continuously inhabited English settlement in the United States after Hampton. Jamestown no longer is inhabited.

Hopewell, part of the Eppes' plantation, was developed by DuPont Company in 1914 as Hopewell Farm, an incorporated area in Prince George County. DuPont first built a dynamite factory there, then switched to the manufacture of guncotton during World War I.

Nearly burned to the ground in the Hopewell Fire of 1915, the city prospered afterward and became known as the "Wonder City" as the village of Hopewell grew from a hamlet of 400 in 1916 to a city of more than 20,000 people in a few short months. Unlike most cities in Virginia, Hopewell was never incorporated as a town, but it was incorporated as an independent city in 1916.

After DuPont abandoned the city following World War I, moving its manufacturing facilities elsewhere and specializing in other products, Hopewell briefly became a ghost town until 1923 when Tubize Corporation established a plant on the old DuPont site. The same year, the city of Hopewell annexed the neighboring town of City Point, which enabled it to expand and thrive. The Tubize plant was later acquired by Firestone Tire and Rubber Company and was a major employer in Hopewell for decades. Allied Chemical and Dye Corporation and Hercules Chemical also established plants on portions of the old DuPont site.

As early as its incorporation, Hopewell was a city of industrious migrants. Immigrants from Bohemia (now the western lands of the Czech Republic),{{cite web|url=http://www.mariepearson.com/the-bohemians-in-virginia-1880s---1930ish.html|title=The Bohemians in Virginia 1880s - 1930ish|website=Marie Blaha Pearson - A Bohemian Journey|access-date=April 3, 2018}} Italy, and Greece{{cite web|url=http://appomattoxcl.archivalweb.com/imageViewer.php?i=1134851&q=greek+immigrants&s=q=greek+immigrants&p=29&r=0|title=Appomattox Regional Library System Historic Newspapers – Microfilm Image Viewer|website=appomattoxcl.archivalweb.com|access-date=April 3, 2018}} populated the city, working in factories and opening small businesses. Others migrated from other parts of Virginia and neighboring states of North Carolina and West Virginia to work in Hopewell's industries.

As was the case in most southern cities, African Americans in Hopewell were subject to Jim Crow segregation until the success of the Civil Rights Movement. The picturesque theater in the middle of town, the Beacon Theatre, only allowed Blacks in the balcony.{{Cite book |last=Lee |first=Lauranett |title=Making the American Dream Work: A Cultural History of African Americans in Hopewell, Virginia |publisher=Morgan James Publisher |year=2008 |location=Hampton, VA |author-link=Lauranett Lee}} In August 1966, the Ku Klux Klan confronted the Reverend Curtis Harris and other Black Hopewell citizens when they attempted to petition the city manager to find an alternate location for a landfill that was going to be opened in the middle of a Black neighborhood.Interview with Curtis Harris http://dig.library.vcu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/voices/id/4 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170504132943/http://dig.library.vcu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/voices/id/4 |date=May 4, 2017 }} Hopewell public schools were desegregated under court order in 1963, following Renee Patrice GILLIAM et al v. School Board of the City of Hopewell, Virginia.{{cite web|url=http://www.freelawreporter.org/flr3d/f2d/332/332.F2d.460.9258.html|title=332 F.2d 460 - Renee Patrice GILLIAM and Reuben Lemuel Gilliam, Jr., infants, by Reuben L. Gilliam and Joy T. Gilliam, their father and mother and next friends, et al., Appellees, v. SCHOOL BOARD OF the CITY OF HOPEWELL, VIRGINIA, and Charles W. Smith, Division Superintendent of Schools of the City of Hopewell, Virginia, and E. J. Oglesby, Alfred L. Wingo and E. T. Justis, constituting the Pupil Placement Board of the Commonwealth of Virginia, Appellants.|website=www.freelawreporter.org|access-date=April 3, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180404073413/http://www.freelawreporter.org/flr3d/f2d/332/332.F2d.460.9258.html|archive-date=April 4, 2018|url-status=dead}}

Hopewell made national news when, on December 22, 1935, a bus plunged through the open draw of the Appomattox River Drawbridge on State Route 10 just outside Hopewell's city limits. Only one of the 15 occupants of the bus survived. The modern twin spans of the Charles Hardaway Marks Bridges were built to replace that bridge and cross the river nearby.

Like many cities, Hopewell embarked on an urban renewal plan in the 1960s in an attempt to revitalize its downtown retail area. The plan was a failure because many of the retail businesses that had been located downtown moved elsewhere to new shopping centers being developed outside the city limits in Petersburg, Chester, and Prince George County. With the exception of a new branch bank and a Hardee's fast food restaurant constructed in the late 1970s, the former downtown area that was razed for redevelopment remained a vast gravel parking lot for decades.

However, a new urbanization is occurring, and many long vacant storefronts are now refurbished and occupied. Several others are now under construction. Further, the City invested $12 million in a new beautiful state of the art flagship library for the busy Appomattox Regional Library System, the Maude Langhorne Nelson Library. The library has a cyber cafe, extensive YA and children's collections, and a replica of the historic, 1600s-era frigate ship, Hopewell, installed as a centerpiece.Institute of Museum and Library Services, 2014 ARLS {{cite web |url=https://data.imls.gov/Public-Libraries-Survey/Library-Systems-FY-2014-Public-Libraries-Survey-Ad/ckgu-babp |title=Archived copy |access-date=November 9, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161104151425/https://data.imls.gov/Public-Libraries-Survey/Library-Systems-FY-2014-Public-Libraries-Survey-Ad/ckgu-babp |archive-date=November 4, 2016 }}Official Website of the City of Hopewell http://hopewellva.gov/library/ The city also restored the Beacon Theatre, which was built in 1928, and there are 70 or more concerts and other events annually. Performers there include The Temptations, The Four Tops, Vince Gill, Travis Tritt, Clint Black, Amy Grant, Average White Band, Vanilla Ice, The Commodores, Pure Prairie League, Delbert McClinton, and many more.

New plantings and street beautification projects have been put into place, to attract more businesses and shoppers to the East Broadway area.

Image:Hopewell29.jpg

Hopewell is located at the confluence of the Appomattox and James rivers.Sean Gorman, [https://www.richmond.com/news/local/central-virginia/hopewell-opens-new-riverwalk-path-to-take-advantage-of-shoreline-views-waterway-access/article_1ba1292a-969d-5b6b-a568-822f50d81229.html Hopewell opens new Riverwalk path to take advantage of shoreline views, waterway access], Richmond Times-Dispatch (May 3, 2019). The James River has suffered from serious water pollution problems attributable to chemical dumping; Kepone insecticide (manufactured in Hopewell from 1966–1975) was dumped in the river by the pesticide's manufacturer Allied Signal and subcontractor LifeSciences Product Company. The LifeSciences facility in Hopewell was the world's only manufacturer of Kepone, producing up to 6,000 pounds daily.Richard Foster, [https://richmondmagazine.com/news/kepone-disaster-pesticide/ Kepone: The 'Flour' Factory], Richmond Magazine (July 8, 2005). Although closely related to the toxic pesticide DDT, which was banned in the U.S. in 1972 because of the dangers it presents to humans and wildlife, Kepone was not federally regulated until after the Hopewell disaster, in which 29 factory workers were hospitalized with various ailments. In 1975, the state health department shut down the facility, and fishing in the James River from Richmond to the Chesapeake Bay was banned due to contamination concerns.

Kepone is cited amongst a handful of other noxious substances as the driver for Gerald Ford's half-hearted approval of the Toxic Substances Control Act, which "remains one of the most controversial regulatory bills ever passed".{{cite journal |last1=Hanson |first1=David J. |title=Those Were The Days |journal=Chemical & Engineering News |date=15 January 2007 |volume=85 |issue=3 |url=https://cen.acs.org/articles/85/i3/Those-Days.html |publisher=American Chemical Society|doi=10.1021/cen-v085n003.p044 }} Since the discovery of the Kepone disaster in 1975, the water quality has improved, and the fishing ban was lifted after 13 years. In 2019, after years of planning, the city opened a "Riverwalk" boardwalk, seeking to use scenic views and water access as part of overall economic redevelopment efforts. Bass and catfish are now routinely fished at a Hopewell marina.

Hopewell is the location of several large chemical plants owned by the Honeywell Corporation, Ashland, Evonik Industries, as well as a Green Plains Inc. ethanol plant and paper mill owned by WestRock.

The Federal Correctional Complex, Petersburg (FCC Petersburg), two federal prisons which house 3400 inmates, are located just outside the Hopewell city limits, in Prince George County{{cite web|url=http://www.bop.gov/locations/institutions/pem/|title=FCI Petersburg Medium|work=bop.gov|access-date=August 3, 2015}}{{cite web|url=http://www.bop.gov/locations/institutions/pet/|title=FCI Petersburg Low|work=bop.gov|access-date=August 3, 2015}}

In 1977, Hopewell again made the national news due to another accident involving a drawbridge when the tanker S.S. Marine Floridian outbound under the command of a James River pilot suffered a steering malfunction just after dawn on February 24 that caused it to veer out of the channel and hit the Benjamin Harrison Memorial Bridge just east of town. The accident caused serious damage to the bridge and it was closed for months.

In 1983, Hopewell again received negative publicity from the national news media when it was discovered that Evelyn Rust Wells, an elderly woman, had been held captive and terrorized in her home in the City Point section. Her captors, mostly male teenagers under 18, cashed her Social Security checks at local grocery stores. A local grocer noted a change in purchases from when neighborhood kids assisted Wells and called the police. They investigated and freed Wells who was by then severely malnourished.[https://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0D16F7345C0C728FDDA80894DB484D81 "Woman freed after two months"], New York Times, January 31, 1983, Section A, p. 10

Although still an important industrial city, Hopewell has struggled with transitions through loss of jobs due to plant closures, changes in residential housing patterns, and the costs of environmental clean-up. Much of its middle-class population moved to neighboring Prince George and Chesterfield Counties for newer housing during the suburban expansion of the 1960s and 1970s. The city's housing stock is dominated by relatively small homes with a significant percentage being offered as rental properties. Of these, many were hastily constructed over a century ago by DuPont to house plant workers during the First World War.

Hopewell has encouraged re-development along its waterfront areas along the James and Appomattox Rivers, in the downtown area, and the City Point Historic District, as well as the sites of several long vacant industrial plants. Due to its hasty construction as a mill town during the First World War, Hopewell had a large number of kit homes that were hauled in and erected in neighborhoods laid out by DuPont known as "A Village" and "B Village". The city has a surviving group of Sears Catalog Homes, with several available for exterior viewing on a self-guided tour. The city also has numerous Aladdin Kit Homes; at one time, it may have had the most such homes in the nation. Because residents moved to newer houses and the Aladdin Homes were abandoned and deteriorated, many have been razed. {{Citation needed|date=February 2013}}

Hopewell has struggled with high rates of violent crime.[https://www.progress-index.com/article/20090403/NEWS/304039906 Violent crime up 36% in Hopewell], The Progress Index (April 3, 2009).Karina Bolster, [https://www.nbc12.com/2019/12/07/city-leaders-address-citizens-concerns-violence-hopewell/ City leaders address citizens' concerns of violence in Hopewell], WWBT (December 6, 2019).

File:Hopewell Lofts.jpg, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was renovated from 2009 to 2010 and now serves as an apartment building.]]

In September 2010, a series of explosions occurred at a controversial new ethanol plant that had recently been constructed on a long vacant site formerly occupied by a Firestone plant. In 2007, former Hopewell mayor and civil rights leader Curtis W. Harris, had marched against the proposed ethanol plant being built in Hopewell with support from the national Southern Christian Leadership Conference.{{cite web|url=http://www.dom.com/about/education/strong/2001/curtisharris.jsp |title=2001 Honorees - Curtis W. Harris |access-date=February 2, 2008 |publisher=Dominion |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080315100101/http://www.dom.com/about/education/strong/2001/curtisharris.jsp |archive-date = March 15, 2008}} The plant had not yet become fully operational when the explosions occurred. There was no loss of life due to the accident but shortly after the explosion Osage BioEnergy, the owners of the $150 million facility, announced that the plant was for sale. Although the facility was sitting idle through 2013 with the city of Hopewell taking legal action to recoup unpaid taxes on the property, the facility was eventually purchased by another firm and operations were restarted in 2014.{{cite news|last1=Johnson|first1=Katherine|title=Plant has produced over 11 million gallons of ethanol|url=http://www.progress-index.com/article/20140922/NEWS/140929963|access-date=November 17, 2015|work=The Progress-Index|date=September 22, 2014}} In 2015 the troubled ethanol plant closed again for a second time after less than a year in operation with its owners citing a lack of profitability as the reason for the shutdown.{{cite web|url=http://www.hopewellnews.com/article_7718.shtml#.VlfStvdOnIU |title=The Hopewell News - Articles |access-date=November 27, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208131504/http://www.hopewellnews.com/article_7718.shtml |archive-date=December 8, 2015 }} The plant has since been purchased and re-opened by Green Plains Inc. of Omaha, Nebraska.

Hopewell has come to the attention of AAA because some of its members have complained that Hopewell is a speed trap for its practice of citing drivers for speeding along a 1.7 mile stretch of Interstate 295, nicknamed the "Million Dollar Mile" by disgruntled drivers. AAA, claimed in a press release that Hopewell employs 11 sheriff's deputies working in 14-hour shifts to patrol less than two miles of the highway that lie within the city limits of Hopewell. However, this statistic has been denied by the sheriff of Hopewell, who was baffled as to where that information was generated as he said the deputies working on I-295 only work eight-hour shifts.{{cite web|url=http://www.hopewellnews.com/article_7357.shtml#.VYsC4vlVhBc|website=The Hopewell News|access-date=June 24, 2015|title=Putting brakes on I-295 tickets?|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150704015007/http://www.hopewellnews.com/article_7357.shtml#.VYsC4vlVhBc|archive-date=July 4, 2015|url-status=dead}} This practice, which it has been claimed, annually generated $1.8 million in revenue from speeding tickets, of which 75% were issued to out of state drivers, triggered a court clash between the Commonwealth's Attorney and the city prosecutor, and elicited an official ruling from the Attorney General of Virginia.{{cite web|url=http://cqrcengage.com/autoclubpartners/VA_legislative_agenda|title=VA Legislative Agenda|work=cqrcengage.com|access-date=August 3, 2015}} Sheriff Luther Sodat said that the almost two-mile stretch of highway "is a safety issue for Hopewell." Virginia's urban interstates have a fatality rate about one-third the Statewide rate for all roads combined.{{cite web|url=https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2013/fi30.cfm|title=Table FI-30 – Highway Statistics 2013 - Policy - Federal Highway Administration|website=Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)|access-date=April 3, 2018}}

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of {{convert|10.8|sqmi|1}}, of which {{convert|10.2|sqmi|1}} are land and {{convert|0.5|sqmi|1}} (4.9%) is water.{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=April 23, 2011|date=February 12, 2011|title=US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990}}

{{Weather box

|location = Hopewell, Virginia (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1916–present)

|single line = Y

|Jan record high F = 81

|Feb record high F = 84

|Mar record high F = 91

|Apr record high F = 100

|May record high F = 100

|Jun record high F = 104

|Jul record high F = 105

|Aug record high F = 106

|Sep record high F = 104

|Oct record high F = 100

|Nov record high F = 88

|Dec record high F = 85

|year record high F = 106

|Jan high F = 50.4

|Feb high F = 54.3

|Mar high F = 61.7

|Apr high F = 72.7

|May high F = 79.1

|Jun high F = 86.0

|Jul high F = 89.6

|Aug high F = 87.9

|Sep high F = 81.9

|Oct high F = 72.6

|Nov high F = 62.2

|Dec high F = 53.4

|year high F = 71.0

|Jan mean F = 40.8

|Feb mean F = 43.6

|Mar mean F = 50.7

|Apr mean F = 60.7

|May mean F = 68.5

|Jun mean F = 76.2

|Jul mean F = 80.1

|Aug mean F = 78.4

|Sep mean F = 72.5

|Oct mean F = 61.9

|Nov mean F = 51.7

|Dec mean F = 44.0

|year mean F = 60.8

|Jan low F = 31.2

|Feb low F = 32.9

|Mar low F = 39.7

|Apr low F = 48.6

|May low F = 57.8

|Jun low F = 66.3

|Jul low F = 70.6

|Aug low F = 68.9

|Sep low F = 63.2

|Oct low F = 51.2

|Nov low F = 41.1

|Dec low F = 34.6

|year low F = 50.5

|Jan record low F = −11

|Feb record low F = −3

|Mar record low F = 8

|Apr record low F = 20

|May record low F = 30

|Jun record low F = 40

|Jul record low F = 44

|Aug record low F = 45

|Sep record low F = 38

|Oct record low F = 23

|Nov record low F = 14

|Dec record low F = 3

|year record low F = -11

|precipitation colour = green

|Jan precipitation inch = 3.53

|Feb precipitation inch = 3.01

|Mar precipitation inch = 4.02

|Apr precipitation inch = 3.84

|May precipitation inch = 4.25

|Jun precipitation inch = 4.56

|Jul precipitation inch = 5.18

|Aug precipitation inch = 5.59

|Sep precipitation inch = 5.15

|Oct precipitation inch = 3.67

|Nov precipitation inch = 3.43

|Dec precipitation inch = 3.84

|year precipitation inch = 50.07

|Jan snow inch = 2.1

|Feb snow inch = 1.0

|Mar snow inch = 0.0

|Apr snow inch = 0.0

|May snow inch = 0.0

|Jun snow inch = 0.0

|Jul snow inch = 0.0

|Aug snow inch = 0.0

|Sep snow inch = 0.0

|Oct snow inch = 0.0

|Nov snow inch = 0.0

|Dec snow inch = 0.4

|year snow inch = 3.5

|unit precipitation days = 0.01 in

|Jan precipitation days = 9.9

|Feb precipitation days = 9.3

|Mar precipitation days = 10.6

|Apr precipitation days = 10.4

|May precipitation days = 10.6

|Jun precipitation days = 10.4

|Jul precipitation days = 10.7

|Aug precipitation days = 9.4

|Sep precipitation days = 8.6

|Oct precipitation days = 8.4

|Nov precipitation days = 8.3

|Dec precipitation days = 10.1

|year precipitation days = 116.7

|unit snow days = 0.1 in

|Jan snow days = 0.7

|Feb snow days = 0.6

|Mar snow days = 0.0

|Apr snow days = 0.0

|May snow days = 0.0

|Jun snow days = 0.0

|Jul snow days = 0.0

|Aug snow days = 0.0

|Sep snow days = 0.0

|Oct snow days = 0.0

|Nov snow days = 0.0

|Dec snow days = 0.1

|year snow days = 1.4

| source 1 = NOAA

{{cite web

| url = https://w2.weather.gov/climate/xmacis.php?wfo=akq

| title = NowData – NOAA Online Weather Data

| publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

| access-date = July 5, 2021}}

{{cite web

| url = https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/services/data/v1?dataset=normals-monthly-1991-2020&startDate=0001-01-01&endDate=9996-12-31&stations=USC00444101&format=pdf

| title = Station: Hopewell, VA

| work = U.S. Climate Normals 2020: U.S. Monthly Climate Normals (1991-2020)

| publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

| access-date = July 5, 2021}}

}}

• City Point – annexed in 1923
• City Point National Cemetery

• Chesterfield County, Virginia - north
• Prince George County, Virginia - east, south, west
• Charles City County, Virginia - northeast

• Petersburg National Battlefield Park (part)

{{US Census population

|1920= 1397

|1930= 11327

|1940= 8679

|1950= 10219

|1960= 17895

|1970= 23471

|1980= 23397

|1990= 23101

|2000= 22354

|2010= 22591

|2020= 23033

|estyear=

|estimate=

|estref=

|align-fn=center

|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/prod/www/decennial.html|title=Census of Population and Housing from 1790|publisher=US Census Bureau|access-date=January 24, 2022}}
1790-1960{{cite web|url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu|title=Historical Census Browser|publisher=University of Virginia Library|access-date=January 6, 2014}} 1900-1990{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/va190090.txt|title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=January 6, 2014}}
1990-2000{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf|title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=January 6, 2014}} 2010-2020

}}

As of the census{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=May 14, 2011 |title=U.S. Census website }} of 2000, there were 22,354 people, 9,055 households, and 6,075 families residing in the city. The population density was {{convert|2,182.3|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|people |people}}. There were 9,749 housing units at an average density of {{convert|951.7|/mi2|/km2}}. The racial makeup of the city was 47.1% White, 43.5% Black, 0.8% Asian, 0.4% Native American, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.2% from other races, and 1.8% from two or more races. 3.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 9,055 households, out of which 32.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.6% were married couples living together, 21.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.9% were non-families. 27.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.94.

The age of the population was spread out, with 26.7% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 14.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.7 males. For every 100 women aged 18 and over, there were 82.2 men.

The median income for a household in the city was $39,156, and the median income for a family was $49,730. Males had a median income of $34,849 versus $25,401 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,041. About 15.8% of families and 17.73% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.6% of those under age 18 and 10.4% of those age 65 or over.

The following are schools in the Hopewell, Virginia school division.

• Hopewell High School

• Carter G. Woodson Middle School

• Dupont Elementary School
• Harry E. James Elementary School
• Patrick Copeland Elementary School

All of the schools above are accredited by the Virginia Board of Education and by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

• Appomattox Regional Governor's School for the Arts And Technology Petersburg, VA, Open to students entering the 9th grade, with approval of passing through the admittance process.

Appomattox Regional Library serves as the library system for Hopewell, Virginia.

{{More citations needed section|date=January 2015}}

• Robert Bolling and Jane Rolfe, colonists{{cite web|url=http://www.uky.edu/PR/News/Archives/2002/March2002/HOPEWELL.HTM|title=UK Archaeologist Locates 17th Century Merchant's House, Plans Excavation With Students|website=www.uky.edu|access-date=April 3, 2018}}
• Nelson Barclift, choreographer{{cite web |url=https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/nelson-barclift-1038|title=Nelson Barclift|work=Internet Broadway Database|year=2019|access-date=March 30, 2019}}
• Sam Bass, artist{{Cite web|url=https://www.richmond.com/sports/auto-racing/nascar/nascar-artist-sam-bass-a-hopewell-high-grad-holding-auction/article_59b147a5-eff6-5767-8f56-d6976bc533b3.html|title=NASCAR artist Sam Bass, a Hopewell High grad, holding auction in N.C. after filing for bankruptcy|last=correspondent|first=RANDY HALLMAN Special|website=Richmond Times-Dispatch|date=April 30, 2017 |language=en|access-date=February 19, 2019}}
• Curtis W. Harris, civil rights activist{{Cite web|url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/progress-index/obituary.aspx?n=curtis-west-harris&pid=187542705&fhid=23379|title=Rev. Dr. Curtis Harris|date=December 16–17, 2017|website=Legacy.com|access-date=February 2, 2019}}
• Charles Hardaway Marks, politician'Charles Hardaway Marks-obituary,' Hampton Daily Press, November 17, 2004
• TreVeyon Henderson, American football player
• Seka, adult film actress{{cite book|title=Inside Seka|author=Seka|author2=Zukus, Kerry|publisher=BearManor Media|year=2013|isbn=978-1593932725}}
• Joey Peppersack, Paralympic swimmer
• Monsanto Pope, American football player
• Steven R. Taylor, politician{{Cite web|url=https://www.richmond.com/news/hopewell-mayor-leaving-office/article_e4f944d5-daa0-5045-9863-a0b13c050e09.html|title=Hopewell mayor leaving office|last=Lazo|first=Luz|website=Richmond Times-Dispatch|date=June 30, 2008 |language=en|access-date=February 19, 2019}}
• Rebecca Beach Smith, judge
• Lamar Giles, American author{{Cite web |date=2021-07-22 |title=Local author finds voice and calling |url=https://hburgcitizen.com/2021/07/22/local-ya-author-finds-his-voice-and-his-calling/ |access-date=2024-02-26 |website=The Harrisonburg Citizen |language=en-US}}
• Darrell Taylor, American football player

The Hopewell News, locally managed and operated by HPC Media, was an 8,000 circulation twice-weekly newspaper that covers local news, sports and events of interest to the communities of Hopewell, Enon and Prince George.{{cite web | url=http://www.hopewellnews.com/ | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160207100701/http://www.hopewellnews.com/ | archive-date=February 7, 2016 | title=The Hopewell News }} For more than 90 years, The Hopewell News served the greater Hopewell and Prince George communities. The paper was shut down on January 18, 2018. HPC Media also published the News-Patriot newspaper covering Colonial Heights and communities in Southeastern Chesterfield County.

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Hopewell has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.{{cite web|url=http://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather-summary.php3?s=724011&cityname=Hopewell%2C+Virginia%2C+United+States+of+America&units=|title=Hopewell, Virginia Köppen Climate Classification (Weatherbase)|work=Weatherbase|access-date=August 3, 2015}}

Hopewell was, for many decades after 1952, a Republican stronghold in presidential elections. However, in 2008, the city saw a significant shift toward the Democratic party when it voted for Barack Obama by double digits, the best Democratic performance there since 1948. In every election since then (except for 2016) Democrats have consistently maintained their double-digit lead in the city.

{{PresHead|place=Hopewell, Virginia|source={{cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS|title=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections|first=David|last=Leip|website=uselectionatlas.org|access-date=December 9, 2020}}}}

{{PresRow|2024|Democratic|3,838|5,078|110|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|2020|Democratic|4,020|5,430|158|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|2016|Democratic|3,885|4,724|399|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|2012|Democratic|3,739|5,179|113|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|2008|Democratic|4,149|5,285|90|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|2004|Republican|4,251|3,573|112|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|2000|Republican|3,749|3,024|205|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1996|Republican|3,493|2,868|701|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1992|Republican|3,818|2,863|1,361|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1988|Republican|4,672|2,566|122|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1984|Republican|5,661|2,564|67|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1980|Republican|4,423|3,102|347|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1976|Republican|3,764|3,691|352|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1972|Republican|5,229|1,485|177|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1968|Republican|2,942|1,568|2,233|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1964|Republican|3,183|2,498|10|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1960|Republican|2,169|1,805|25|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1956|Republican|1,908|1,388|243|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1952|Democratic|1,640|1,657|11|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1948|Democratic|570|1,242|169|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1944|Democratic|368|1,284|5|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1940|Democratic|308|981|1|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1936|Democratic|332|1,309|10|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1932|Democratic|342|957|21|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1928|Republican|505|482|0|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1924|Democratic|206|277|8|Virginia}}

{{PresRow|1920|Democratic|41|97|1|Virginia}}

{{PresFoot|1916|Democratic|3|24|1|Virginia}}

{{clear}}

{{Reflist}}

• [http://www.hopewellva.gov/ City of Hopewell]

{{Coord|display=title|37.290399|-77.303371}}

{{Geographic location

|Centre = Hopewell, Virginia

|North = Chesterfield County

|Northeast = Charles City County

|East = Prince George County

|Southeast =

|South = Prince George County

|Southwest =

|West = Prince George County

|Northwest =

}}

• {{Cite book |last=Lee |first=Lauranett L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=U8FDw8yklmkC |title=Making the American Dream Work: A Cultural History of African Americans in Hopewell, Virginia |publisher=Morgan James Publishing |year=2008 |isbn=9781600374661 |location=Hampton, VA |author-link=Lauranett Lee}}

{{Greater Richmond Region}}

{{Virginia}}

{{Northeast Megalopolis}}

{{Virginia county seats and independent cities}}

{{authority control}}

Category:Cities in Virginia

Category:Populated places on the James River (Virginia)

Category:Greater Richmond Region

Category:Majority-minority counties and independent cities in Virginia