Boston Corbett, part of a contingent of federal troops, at the now obsolete Garrett farmstead on April 26, 1865. Probably Port Royal's most notable claim to fame is that John Wilkes Booth was killed about two miles outside town by Sgt.
Route 301, with their crossroads at Port Royal. However, Port Royal was served by the new highways which became U.S. But the last scheduled passenger ship service ended in 1932, supplanted by highways. Shipping of property from the port began to decline after completion of competing railroads in Virginia, beginning in the 1830s. By Frances Benjamin Johnston, between 19 19th-20th centuries Photo shows dirt road leading to river on left, house with stone 1st floor and wooden 2nd floor. The "town green", where the Town Hall and the firehouse stand today, was forever reserved "for public and civic use". Port Royal was incorporated as a town in 1744. In the 21st century, the chimneys of the Roy house are preserved landmarks in the town. Dorothy Roy and her husband John owned a warehouse chartered by the crown, a ferry service across the Rappahannock River to King George County, and a tavern. Local tradition holds that Port Royal was named after the Roy family.
It was an important point for export of tobacco, Virginia's cash crop. Waterways were the fastest and easiest method of transportation of people and property in the British colony of Virginia. It was first established in 1652 by English colonists as a port at the head of sea-going navigation on the Rappahannock River. Port Royal is one of the area's oldest colonial settlements.