08/01/2026
On a hot summer day in August 1619, a moment of profound consequence unfolded on the shores of what’s now Hampton, Virginia. It was here that the first enslaved Africans from present day Angola were brought to English North America, marking the beginning of a harrowing chapter in history.  Commemoration events will be held to honor the first Africans brought here in 1619 and to highlight their legacy of culture, identity, resistance and triumph.