James River

James River
James River at the crossing of the Blue Ridge Parkway
A map of the James River drainage basin
Etymology	King James VI and I
Native name	Powhatan (Powhatan)
Location
Country	United States
State	Virginia
Physical characteristics
Source	Confluence of Cowpasture River and Jackson River
• location	Iron Gate, Allegheny Mountains, Virginia
• coordinates	37°47′4″N 79°46′33″W / 37.78444°N 79.77583°W / 37.78444; -79.77583[1]
Mouth	Hampton Roads
• location	Chesapeake Bay, Virginia
• coordinates	36°56′30″N 76°26′37″W / 36.94167°N 76.44361°W / 36.94167; -76.44361[1]
Length	348 mi (560 km)
Basin size	10,432 sq mi (27,020 km2)
Discharge
• average	6,835 cu ft/s (193.5 m3/s)[2]
• minimum	10 cu ft/s (0.28 m3/s)
• maximum	313,000 cu ft/s (8,900 m3/s)
Basin features
Tributaries
• left	Chickahominy River
• right	Appomattox River

The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confluence of the Cowpasture and Jackson Rivers in Botetourt County 348 miles (560 km)^[3] to the Chesapeake Bay.^[4] The river length extends to 444 miles (715 km) if the Jackson River is included, the longer of its two headwaters.^[3] It is the longest river in Virginia. Jamestown and Williamsburg, Virginia's first colonial capitals, and Richmond, Virginia's current capital, lie on the James River.