Ashlee Parker
Williamsburg Team Lead
Williamsburg37.3100° N 76.7700° W
James City.
78,254 residents across 180 square miles, seated at Williamsburg.
One of 4 areas our Williamsburg team works.
At a glanceWilliamsburg
The publicrecord.
What the county and the census hold on James City — quoted, not estimated.
James City County's economy runs on tourism and manufacturing alike — the Anheuser-Busch brewery has operated here since 1972, Busch Gardens Williamsburg since 1975, and the county is genuinely one of Virginia's fastest-growing, up nearly 6% since the 2020 Census.
It shares the Historic Triangle with its neighbors but holds two of its most significant sites directly: Historic Jamestowne, the 1607 fort site jointly run by the National Park Service and Preservation Virginia, and Jamestown Settlement, the separate living-history museum operated by the state's own Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation. Colonial Williamsburg's Historic Area, by contrast, sits just next door in the independent City of Williamsburg, not inside the county itself.
Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools is a joint division serving both the city and the county together — one of a few places in Virginia where city and county share a single school system rather than running separate ones.
- Type
- County
- County seat
- Williamsburg
- Population (2020)
- 78,254
- Land area
- 180 sq mi
- Communities we cover
- 4
- Established
- 1634
- Real estate tax rate (FY2026)
- $0.83 per $100
Figures from Wikidata, population as of 2020. The tax rate is published by the county and set annually; check the current year before budgeting.
Where it is37.3100° N 76.7700° W
Where isJames City?
The nearest of our other Williamsburg areas is New Kent, 19 miles off.
1 mi
Central Williamsburg
south of center
36 mi
Richmond
west
42 mi
Northern Neck
north
99 mi
Fredericksburg
north
Distances are straight-line, not driving.
Getting around.
I-64 bisects the county, with Route 199 and Route 60 as the main local arterials.
I-64 and Route 199
I-64 cuts through the county with a cloverleaf at Route 199, the Humelsine Parkway connecting toward Williamsburg.
US-60 (Richmond Road / Pocahontas Trail)
The other primary arterial through the county.
Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport
Roughly 20 miles, about 20–25 minutes, from the Williamsburg area of the county.
Inside the county4 communities
Every communitywe cover.
2 of them have homes on the market today. Each figure is live, and opens that search.
- 49ToanoSee the homes
Originally 'Burnt Ordinary,' a colonial-era tavern that burned in 1780 — renamed Toano when the C&O Railway's 1881 Peninsula Extension made it the upper county's commercial hub.
- 16LanexaSee the homes
An unincorporated rail-stop community established in 1882 on the Chickahominy River, straddling the James City–New Kent county line.
- 0Norgenone on the market today
Founded in 1904 by Norwegian-American settlers recruited from the Upper Midwest — the name is Norwegian for 'Norway,' and the community hall they built still stands.
- 0Lightfootnone on the market today
Originally 'Six-Mile Ordinary,' six miles from colonial Williamsburg on Richmond Road — straddles the James City–York county line.
Living here6 reasons
The case forJames City.
The figures above read plainly, and what they look like day to day. Where something is a trade-off, it says so.
Space
435 people to the square mile.
James City is the 2nd densest of the 4 Williamsburg areas we hold both figures for. Things are close together here, which is the trade: less land, less driving.
Scale
78,254 people, as of 2020.
The 2nd largest of the 4 Williamsburg areas we hold a count for — big enough for a steady market without being the busiest one.
The line that matters
James City, seated at Williamsburg.
In Virginia the county sets the rate, runs the school division and maintains the roads — and the lines do not follow the place names, so two houses a mile apart can sit under different rates and different schools.
Jamestown is actually here
The 1607 fort site sits inside the county, not the city.
Historic Jamestowne is jointly run by the National Park Service and Preservation Virginia; Jamestown Settlement, the separate living-history museum next to it, is run by the state's own Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation. Colonial Williamsburg's Historic Area, by comparison, is technically in the adjacent City of Williamsburg.
A shared school division
Williamsburg and James City County share one school system.
Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools serves both jurisdictions together — 16 schools and roughly 11,500 students as of November 2025.
A state park with a misleading name
York River State Park is actually in James City County.
The park sits near Croaker, well inside this county rather than the one its name suggests — a detail easy to get wrong.
SchoolsJames City County Public Schools
Schools andcolleges.
A joint division with the City of Williamsburg, plus a community-college campus inside the county.
Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools
16 schools serving roughly 11,500 students as of November 2025 — a single division shared with the City of Williamsburg.
Virginia Peninsula Community College
Its Historic Triangle Campus sits in James City County; William & Mary, the nearest four-year university, is next door in Williamsburg.
Outdoors4 of them
Where theweekends go.
Two Jamestown-era historic sites and a large county park cover most of what residents actually use.
Historic Jamestowne
The 1607 fort's archaeological site, jointly run by the National Park Service and Preservation Virginia.
Jamestown Settlement
A separate living-history museum next to Historic Jamestowne, operated by the state's Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation.
York River State Park
A Virginia DCR state park near Croaker — despite the name, it's inside James City County.
Freedom Park
600 acres with more than 20 miles of mountain-biking trails, a botanical garden, and the site of a Revolutionary War skirmish.
On the market353 in James City · live
Homes on themarket now.
On the market in James City, filled out with the rest of the Williamsburg market — each card names its own town.
Live from search.hogangrp.com, refreshed hourly.
All James City listingsSearchsearch.hogangrp.com · Live MLS
Homes inJames City.
The search opens already filtered to James City — set a price and a bedroom count here and they travel with you.
See matching homes
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Your team4 in Williamsburg
People who livewhere they sell.
Williamsburg is led by 2 team leads, Ashlee Parker and Matt Gifford.
Nearby3 more in Williamsburg
The rest ofWilliamsburg.
Same team, same standard, 3 other places — nearest first.
Questions5 answered
What peopleask us.
Asked often enough by people moving to James City to be worth answering in writing.
A mix of Historic Triangle tourism economy and genuine manufacturing employment, with the county growing faster than most of Virginia.
$0.83 per $100 of assessed value for FY2026.
Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools, a joint division with the City of Williamsburg — 16 schools serving roughly 11,500 students. Virginia Peninsula Community College's Historic Triangle Campus is inside the county.
No — its Historic Area sits in the independent City of Williamsburg next door. Historic Jamestowne and Jamestown Settlement, though, are both genuinely inside James City County.
York River State Park (despite its name, it's in this county), Freedom Park's mountain-biking trails, and Chickahominy Riverfront Park for camping and river access.
Sources · checked September 14, 2026
Tax rate · Major employers · WJCC school data · Historic Jamestowne · Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation · York River State Park · Freedom Park · Virginia Peninsula Community College
Thinking of selling
What is your James City homeactually worth?
Mike Hogan founded the brokerage on knowing the county rather than the listing. Ask what that means for this street — or take a cash offer from a local investor and skip the showings entirely. Neither route commits you to the other.