OTL, the city began to decline after Williamsburg was made the capital of Virginia and by 1750s was just a bunch of overgrown weeds and abandoned buildings.
What if it didn't just disappear into insignificance after the capital moving? It was on flat land, which might help it in the era of canal-building, unlike Williamsburg. Perhaps a twin-city port to Norfolk or so. I suppose the POD will be the capital never moving in the first place.
I'm not looking for it to be a major city, though that'd be nice if possible, just to have it exist as a still-living community-period-and not a mere 'museum town'.