Here’s The Most Important Historical Event In Virginia

America is relatively young compared to other nations at 242 years old, but that doesn’t mean it’s short on historical contributions. And just as the U.S. has played a key role in shaping the world, Virginia, the first of the 13 colonies, has helped shape America into what it is today.

Along with Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, Virginia receives much — or most — of the recognition for its contributions to America’s founding. The state is home to founding fathers Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and George Washington. A century later, Virginians Gen. Robert E. Lee and Gen. Jeb Stuart led the ill-fated Confederacy, while explorer Meriwether Lewis charted the American West at President Jefferson's behest in the early 1800s. And Mars candy and General Dynamics were founded here. But according to a new report, none of this was the most significant thing to happen in Virginia's history.

The website 24/7 Wall St., a Delaware-based company that covers financial news and offers opinions, looked over state historical information, research sources and media reports of major events throughout U.S. history to come up with what it calls the “most important” event for each state, including disasters — due to Mother Nature or people —important legislation and scientific breakthroughs. See if you agree.

In Virginia, the site says the founding of the first English settlement in the United States in 1607 at Jamestown was the single most significant event in the history of the Commonwealth, paving the way for all the history to come. The settlement began 13 years ahead of the Pilgrims, who landed in what became Massachusetts.

Per 24/7 Wall St., "Early attempts by the English to establish a colony in the New World had failed, including the “lost colony” of Roanoke in 1587. The English tried again in 1606. King James I issued a charter to the Virginia Company to create a settlement in the New World. About 100 colonists in three ships reached a peninsula on the James River on May 14, 1607. The early settlers fought off hunger and illness, and council leader John Smith forged an understanding with Native American Chief Powhatan. More settlers and supplies came to support the colony to finally secure England’s toehold in the New World.

Tell Us: What local and state events were significant in the history of Virginia. Tell us what you think in the comments.

Other major events you may recognize from around the country include the opening of Grand Canyon National Park in 1919 in Arizona, the desegregation of schools in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1957 and the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York City.

“Many of the events on our list are tragic, including the forced removal of Native Americans from their lands — the Trail of Tears in the South — as well as attacks from domestic and foreign terrorists,” the site says.

“In the case of several states, fighting between white settlers and Native Americans ranked as the most important historical event. The treatment of indigenous people shaped America in many ways, and often occurred in frontier states.”

Some events technically happened before the area was formally established as a state, but those events were still considered due to the prominence of that event, such as the founding of the Jamestown settlement in present-day Virginia. Also of note, the site ignored events that simply happened in a state that could’ve happened anywhere else and had the same impact, such as an international treaty signing.

To see the full list of events that shaped the nation, with pictures, to boot, click here.

Patch reporter Dan Hampton contributed to this report.

Photo credit: Queen Elizabeth II and Vice President Dick Cheney watch a performance as they tour Jamestown Settlement on May 4, 2007 in Williamsburg, Virginia. It was the second day of a six day state visit of the United States to commemorate the 400 year anniversary of the Settlement of Jamestown. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images)