James City Shire was formed in the British colony of Virginia in 1634. During the 17th century, shortly after establishment of Jamestown in 1607, English settlers explored and began settling the areas adjacent to Hampton Roads. On, November 18, 1618, the

Virginia Company of London The London Company, officially known as the Virginia Company of London, was a division of the Virginia Company with responsibility for colonizing the east coast of North America between latitudes 34° and 41° N. History Origins The territor ...

, proprietor of the colony, gave instructions on the formation of a laudable government for the Colony to Sir

George Yeardley Sir George Yeardley (1587 – November 13, 1627) was a planter and colonial governor of the colony of Virginia. He was also among the first slaveowners in Colonial America. A survivor of the Virginia Company of London's ill-fated Third Supply M ...

when he departed from London to become full governor of Virginia. As directed, in 1619, Governor Yeardly established four large corporations, termed citties (sic), which were designated to encompass the developed portion of the colony. These were

Kecoughtan In the seventeenth century, Kecoughtan was the name of the settlement now known as Hampton, Virginia, In the early twentieth century, it was also the name of a town nearby in Elizabeth City County. It was annexed into the City of Newport News in ...

(later renamed Elizabeth Cittie), James Cittie, Charles Cittie, and Henrico Cittie. In 1634, by order of

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

, King of England, eight shires or

counties A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

with a total population of approximately 5,000 inhabitants were established in the colony of Virginia. The area included what is now Surry County (across the James River), part of Charles City County and some of New Kent County. James City Shire, as well as the James River and Jamestown took their name from King

James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) *James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) *James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu *James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...

, the late father of the king. About 1642-43, the name of the James City Shire was changed to

James City County James City County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 78,254. Although politically separate from the county, the county seat is the adjacent independent city of Williamsburg. Located ...

. It is considered one of the 5 original shires of the Virginia colony to be extant essentially in the same political form (county) in 2005. Williamsburg became an

independent city An independent city or independent town is a city or town that does not form part of another general-purpose local government entity (such as a province). Historical precursors In the Holy Roman Empire, and to a degree in its successor states ...

from James City County in 1884. However they share a school system, courts, and some constitutional officers.

References

{{Virginia Virginia shires 1634 establishments in Virginia Populated places established in 1634