History of Williamsburg Landing

The foundation for Williamsburg Landing was laid in the 1970’s by a group of local residents who foresaw the need for a Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) in the Williamsburg area. Years of hard work and dedication by those visionaries and other supporters culminated in 1985 with the opening of Williamsburg Landing. Since that time Williamsburg Landing has been Williamsburg’s CCRC of choice—and the standard by which all area retirement communities are measured.

Williamsburg Landing’s tradition of providing gracious retirement living options has continued with the opening of Edgewood and Earl’s Court in 2007. Built in signature Williamsburg style and with high quality Colonial Williamsburg®-approved materials, these homes and townhomes provide the value, quality and features that people have come to expect at Williamsburg Landing. Expansion also saw the completion of a new 24,000 sq. ft. Health Club & Spa that provides the services and amenities normally found only at five star resorts.

Inspired by the rich history of this area, the name Williamsburg Landing derives from the community’s proximity to the location of an 18th-century port designed to serve the Virginia colony’s new capital, the City of Williamsburg. Designated by the General Assembly Act of 1699, Princess Anne’s Port was located within a mile of the city on what is now known as College Creek, and linked Williamsburg to the James River. Some of Williamsburg’s most distinguished names are associated with the property on which Williamsburg Landing’s campus is now located. Thomas Ludwell, who along with his brother Philip, owned a large amount of land in Williamsburg including the site of Williamsburg Landing. The Ludwell family was the original owners of the first building on Duke of Gloucester Street, the Ludwell Paradise House, purchased by Mr. Rockefeller for the restoration of what is today Colonial Williamsburg. The founder of the College of William and Mary, and its President for 50 years, the Reverend James Blair, also lived for a time on the land that Williamsburg Landing occupies.