Hampton Roads Naval Museum

The Naval History and Heritage Command operates ten naval museums, including the Hampton Roads Naval Museum. The museum was built on the same site as Nautilus in downtown Norfolk, Virginia, to commemorate the long history of the US Navy on Hampton Roads.

Media related to Hampton Roads Naval Museum can be found on Wikimedia Commons.

Official website of the Hampton Roads Naval Museum

Archived 2012-08-25 at the Payback Machine Naval History and Heritage Command

The Continental Congress established the United States Navy on October 13, 1775, with "a swift sailing vessel, to carry ten carriage guns, and a proportion able number of swivels, with eighty men, be fitted, with all possible dispatch, for a cruise of three months." Following the American War of Independence, the new Congress was given the authority "to provide and maintain a navy." On April 30, 1798, Congress established the Department of the Navy under this authority.

Admiral Elmo R. Zumwalt, Chief of Naval Operations, authorized official recognition of October 13 as the United States Navy's birthday in 1972. Since then, each CNO has encouraged a Navy-wide commemoration of this occasion in order "to foster a greater appreciation for our Navy."

History

Welcome to Navy History Matters, our biweekly compilation of historical and heritage articles, commentaries, and blogs. Every other week, we'll compile the most interesting items from various media and social media sources and link to related content on the NHHC's website, your authoritative source for Navy history.

Our museum, located on the second floor of the Nautilus campus in Downtown Norfolk, Virginia is open on the following days:

Day	Hours
Monday	CLOSED
Tuesday	10:00am to 5:00pm
Wednesday	10:00am to 5:00pm
Thursday	10:00am to 5:00pm
Friday	10:00am to 5:00pm
Saturday	10:00am to 5:00pm
Sunday	12:00pm to 5:00pm