 English explorer John Smith passed by New Point Comfort in 1608 when returning to Jamestown from the northern Chesapeake Bay.The New Point Comfort Light was built from 1802–1805 and by 1852, it was partially cut off by the sea and formed a new island.In 1904, the New Point Comfort Development Company was formed to build a resort on the peninsula by reclaiming the marsh that separated the lighthouse from the mainland and building beaches.