• Newspaper
  • Community

  • Founded in 1920, The Smithfield Times today remains a vibrant community newspaper. We pride ourselves in being the two counties’ center for critical local information and the public’s forum for discussing issues vital to Isle of Wight and Surry counties, located in Southeast Virginia.

    We are traditionalists who believe in the strongest journalistic and advertising ethics, but we are not bound to the past. Today, we offer electronic subscriptions for our more mobile and web-connected readers, as well as traditional paper editions for those who still like the subtly blended aroma of ink on paper and the sense of connection that a newspaper and a cup of coffee brings — though we don’t sell the coffee.

    The Smithfield Times staff writes exclusively for our Surry and Isle of Wight readers, and our advertising sales consultants focus on helping businesses that serve those readers, but judges of statewide newspaper competition have deemed our work superior year after year.

    Here’s the bottom line. We exist for the benefit of people who live or work in Isle of Wight and Surry counties. They are our customers, our readers and our friends. Whether it is this newly revamped website, or our weekly newspapers, we pledge our best efforts to that continued relationship.

  • Located in Isle of Wight County in southeast Virginia’s Hampton Roads region, Smithfield has a population of approximately 8,100. Smithfield offers residents a small-town atmosphere, a good school system, affordable housing, a historic downtown and a state-of-the-art community/conference center, The Smithfield Center. According to the Virginia Review, Smithfield is “without a doubt, one of the prettiest towns in Virginia.”

    Smithfield has many of the charms associated with Hampton Roads communities, including 18th & 19th century architecture, a revitalized historic downtown, and all the character of a former colonial seaport. According to the Virginia Landmarks Register, Smithfield is “perhaps the best preserved of Virginia’s Colonial seaports.”

    Nurtured by trade and commerce, Smithfield soon became a town of industry with four plants devoted to the art of curing the world famous “Smithfield Ham”. Once a commercial center for shipping, Smithfield has evolved to host one of the area’s largest meat-processing industries as well as the home to one of Hampton Roads’ largest employers – Smithfield Foods Inc. – a Fortune 500 company with its corporate headquarters in Smithfield. Smithfield was just recently named “one of the 50 best small southern towns.”