1. In 1865, Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered his army to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the American Civil War.

2. In 1959, Virginia's first state-supported four-year university, Virginia Commonwealth University, was established in Richmond.

3. In 1967, the Virginia Tech massacre occurred when a student, armed with firearms, killed 32 people and wounded 17 others before taking his own life.

4. In 2017, Governor Terry McAuliffe signed a bill that legalized the production and distribution of medical marijuana in Virginia.

5. In 2020, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam issued a stay-at-home order in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, requiring residents to stay home except for essential activities.