From collection Place
In reference to a body of water, a road or roadstead is a sheltered area of water in which vessels may ride at anchor, but which is less enclosed than a harbor. “In 1755, the Virginia General Assembly recorded the name ‘Hampton Roads’ as the channel linking the James, Elizabeth, and Nansemond rivers with the Chesapeake Bay…. Over time, the entire region has come to be known as ‘Hampton Roads,” a label more specific than its other moniker, ‘Tidewater Virginia,’ which includes the whole coastal region of the state” (“Hampton Roads” at Wikipedia: The Free Dictionary [ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hampton_Roads : accessed 03 August 2025]).
