Yorktown, founded in 1691, was a busy 18th century tobacco port. The town is best remembered for the Battle of Yorktown, which effectively ended the Revolutionary War. Less than 100 years later, Yorktown was embroiled in another major battle when Union general George McClellan landed his troops at Fort Monroe in 1862 and opened the Peninsular Campaign.

General John Magruder, commanding the Confederate forces, fortified Yorktown and threw a line of trenches from town to the James River. Magruder marched his outnumbered forces back and forth behind the fortifications and convinced McClellan that he was facing a force twice the size of his own. So convincing was Magruder's charade, that the Union forces slowed their advances and began to beseige the town. General Joseph Johnson, replacing Magruder, moved towards Williamsburg rather than risk being bottled up in Yorktown. The Union forces moved into Yorktown and retained control throughout the rest of the war.