Editing Hopewell, Virginia (section)

===Hopewell Farm===
Hopewell, part of the Eppes' plantation, was developed by [[DuPont|DuPont Company]] in 1914 as '''Hopewell Farm''', an incorporated area in Prince George County. DuPont first built a [[dynamite]] factory there, then switched to the manufacture of [[guncotton]] during [[World War I]].

Nearly burned to the ground in the Hopewell Fire of 1915, the city prospered afterward and became known as the "Wonder City" as the village of Hopewell grew from a hamlet of 400 in 1916 to a city of more than 20,000 people in a few short months. Unlike most cities in Virginia, Hopewell was never incorporated as a town, but it was incorporated as an [[independent city (United States)|independent city]] in 1916.

After DuPont abandoned the city following World War I, moving its manufacturing facilities elsewhere and specializing in other products, Hopewell briefly became a ghost town until 1923 when Tubize Corporation established a plant on the old DuPont site. The same year, the city of Hopewell annexed the neighboring town of City Point, which enabled it to expand and thrive. The Tubize plant was later acquired by [[Firestone Tire and Rubber Company]] and was a major employer in Hopewell for decades. [[Allied Chemical and Dye Corporation]] and [[Hercules Inc.|Hercules Chemical]] also established plants on portions of the old DuPont site.