There are two South Quays in southeastern Virginia. The modern South Quay is a quiet roadside community located on the east side of the Blackwater river in Nansemond County. The other is "Old" South Quay which was located on the west side of the Blackwater in Southampton County. They are just across the river from each other but worlds apart in historical interest.
Old South Quay, the South Quay of colonial times, was a rendezvous for militia as early as 1712, a site where site where Colonial leaders met to make plans for war against the Indians, and an important port of entry for supplies during the Revolutionary War. Old South Quay had a customhouse, a shipyard, and warehouses for tobacco and other exports. Today, Old South Quay is an unidentifiable spot of land along state route 189 where traces of the colonial activities have long since disappeared. No buildings mark the ancient port and few signs of man’s activities are present save for the occasional motor vehicle on highway 189 which skirts close to the riverbank and a lonely historical marker noting the site.
The historical marker inscription reads "Nearby along the eastern bank of the Blackwater River once existed the community of South Quay, also sometimes called South Key, Old Quay, or Old South Quay. Founded by 1657, South Quay by 1701 had become the site of a landing and trading post. A customs house for international trade had been built at South Quay by 1776. During the Revolutionary War, supplies from overseas arrived there for the colonial army and at least two ships were built there. South Quay was destroyed by fire by British troops on 16 July 1781. The port was rebuilt, but its prominence diminished by the end of the 18th century, and eventually the community disappeared."
For a comprehensive history of South Quay, see Old South Quay in Southampton County: Its Location, Early Ownership, and History John Crump Parker.
Note: The original South Quay Church was located near Old South Quay on property now owned by Joe Nye Wiggins. Church minutes show the first church service was held on March 1, 1775 making it one of the oldest Baptist churches in Virginia. The church was the only structure in South Quay not burned by by the British in 1781. The new South Quay Baptist Church dates to 1831 and is located on Rt 189 in Suffolk VA.
[1] Old South Quay in Southampton County: Its Location, Early Ownership, and History, John Crump Parker, The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 83, No. 2 (Apr., 1975), pp. 160-172, Published By: Virginia Historical Society