Editing Caroline County, Virginia (section)

==Geography==
According to the [[United States Census Bureau|U.S. Census Bureau]], the county has a total area of {{convert|537|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|528|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|9|sqmi}} (1.7%) is water.<ref name="GR1">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=April 23, 2011|date=February 12, 2011|title=US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990}}</ref> Caroline County is {{convert|30|mi|km}} north of the capital in [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]] and {{convert|32|mi|km}} south of [[Fredericksburg, Virginia|Fredericksburg]].

Caroline County is bounded on the north by [[Spotsylvania County, Virginia|Spotsylvania]] and [[King George County, Virginia|King George]] counties; on the south by [[Hanover County, Virginia|Hanover County]]; on the east by [[King William County, Virginia|King William]], [[King and Queen County, Virginia|King and Queen]], and [[Essex County, Virginia|Essex]] counties; and on the west by [[Spotsylvania County, Virginia|Spotsylvania County]].

The county is home to a quarry that has proved a rich source of pre-historic [[whale]] and [[shark]] skeletons. The whole county is located in what was in ancient times land under an ocean. It is known to [[paleontologist]]s as the middle Miocene [[Calvert Formation]] of Virginia. A whale skeleton discovered there in 1990 was proved to be a new whale species (see ''[[Eobalaenoptera harrisoni]]'').

Caroline County is served by [[Interstate 95 in Virginia|Interstate 95]], [[U.S. Route 1 in Virginia|US 1]] and [[U.S. Route 301 in Virginia|US 301]]. These three routes are important for inter-regional travel.

===Adjacent counties===
*[[King George County, Virginia|King George County]] – north
*[[Hanover County, Virginia|Hanover County]] – south
*[[King William County, Virginia|King William County]] – east
*[[King and Queen County, Virginia|King and Queen County]] – east
*[[Essex County, Virginia|Essex County]] – east
*[[Spotsylvania County, Virginia|Spotsylvania County]] – northwest

===Major highways===
* {{Jct|state=VA|I|95}}, the major north–south [[highway]] on the [[East Coast of the United States|Eastern Seaboard]] runs through Caroline County. Exits 104 and 110 are located in the county and provide numerous motorist services. A pair of rest areas are located between the two interchanges at Milepost 108.
* {{Jct|state=VA|US|1}}, a principal route connecting Richmond, Petersburg, and beyond enters Caroline County after the North Anna River Bridge. The road is known locally as [[Jefferson Davis Highway]], and [[George Washington Boulevard (Virginia)|George Washington Boulevard]], depending on which communities it runs through. The road is a four-lane, undivided highway with occasional left turn lanes and dividers at many intersections. It runs through Chandler Crossing, Ruther Glen, [[Golansville, Virginia|Golansville]], Ladysmith, Ryland Corner, [[Cedon, Virginia|Cedon]], and Ann Wrights Corner, before crossing into the Spotsylvania County Line.
* {{Jct|state=VA|US|17}}, a principal route connecting the Hampton Road area with Fredericksburg as it runs through Caroline County along close proximity to the [[Rappahannock River]]. The road is known locally as '''Tidewater Trail'''. U.S. 17 is a four-lane, divided highway until it reaches [[Port Royal Crossroads, Virginia|Port Royal Crossroads]] and becomes a four-lane undivided highway. Dividers briefly return at the intersection with US 301, and then the road becomes a two-lane highway throughout the rest of the county before crossing into Spotsylvania County.
* {{Jct|state=VA|US|301}}, a principal route connecting Richmond, Petersburg, and beyond enters Caroline County shortly after crossing a bridge over the Pamunkey River. The road is known locally as '''Richmond Turnpike''' for points south of the Bowling Green Bypass and as '''A.P. Hill Boulevard''' north of the bypass, and Main Street north of US 17 until it crosses the bridge over the Rappahannock River. The road is a two-lane undivided highway until reaching Antioch Forks, where it becomes a four-lane divided highway almost entirely throughout the county. U.S. 301 runs winds through [[Fort A.P. Hill]] until approaching Port Royal Crossroads at US 17, where the divider ends as it becomes Main Street until the bridge over the Rappahannock.
* {{Jct|state=VA|SR|2}}, a south-to-north state route that runs concurrent with US 301 until Bowling Green. North of the Bowling Green Bypass it becomes Main Street, and north of the town limits, it becomes Fredericksburg Turnpike, until it crosses the Spotsylvania County Line.
* {{Jct|state=VA|SR|30}}, a west to east state route that winds through southern Caroline County as Dawn Boulevard. It enters the county from Doswell in Hanover County and crosses the King William county line before entering [[Calno, Virginia|Calno]].
* {{Jct|state=VA|SR|207}}, a major state route that runs from Ruther Glen to Bowling Green {{convert|11.93|mi|km}} and connects US 1 and I-95 to US 301. The road is known for most of its length as '''Rogers Clark Boulevard''', until it moves onto the Bowling Green Bypass.

===National protected area===
*[[Rappahannock River Valley National Wildlife Refuge]] (part) Port Royal unit