About preserve yorktown

Our Vision

Our vision is to support safe and responsible tourism for

Historic Yorktown, Virginia and the York River.

Responsible tourism benefits both visitors to our historic village and the merchants who so graciously welcome guests to our area,

and it also protects our culture, natural resources, and environment.

Our Mission

Our mission is to support and empower residents and others

who value Yorktown

as they seek to work with

the key stakeholders in York County tourism.

We believe that by addressing the root causes of decisions that may be harmful to out community, we can create lasting change.

Our People

We are residents of Historic Yorktown, York County, the Commonwealth of Virginia, neighboring states, and the world beyond.

We are those who value historic preservation and environmental conservation.

We know how difficult it can be to reverse a bad decision, so we are joining together to help Yorktown and York County make the decision to manage tourism responsibly and limit the size of the ships that sail up the York River and dock in Yorktown.

Our Story and the Effort to Stop LARGE Cruise Ships

Our Story

The character of Yorktown, the home to the final victorious battle of the American Revolution, is threatened by plans to bring massive...over 3 football fields long... ocean-class cruise ships to this small river community.

We ask that concerned citizens speak out against these ships. They will radically alter the character of Yorktown and may have harmful impacts on the York River and the protected site of the Revolutionary War ships in its waters.

The scale of one of the ships is depicted relative to landmarks in Yorktown. Towering over the height of the Coleman bridge and the Yorktown Victory monument these ships simply have no place in our historic viewshed.

Tourism has always been a part of Yorktown but it is not responsible to bring in massive vessels that will pollute the environment. Think of the continuous emissions from floating city with over 3000 residents generating power.

The York River system supports diverse fauna (oysters, blue crabs, menhaden, drum, dolphin, and much more) enjoyed by both tourists and locals. This complex and fragile ecosystem needs our protection.

The citizens of York County have not been included in the decision bring these massive ships that could have significant impact on our historic community, environment, and the quality of life in Yorktown.

Please speak out now against these massive cruise ships in Yorktown by signing this petition.

If you would like to keep informed about efforts to stop Mega-Cruise ships, contact PreserveYorktown@gmail.com.