During the colonial era, Virginian colonists in the region cultivated tobacco with enslaved labor as a cash crop, before transitioning to mixed farming.

Early in its history, Suffolk became a land transportation gateway to the areas east of it in South Hampton Roads.

For many years, the call-letters of local AM radio station WLPM stood for World's Largest Peanut Market.

A number of government-related, contractor high-tech jobs had developed with new businesses in the city's northern corridor, bringing in wealthier residents.

Suffolk ranked a close second in median income to its neighbor Chesapeake in South Hampton Roads.

[19] After 4:00 PM EDT on April 28, a tornado touched down multiple times, causing damage and leaving more than 200 injured in Suffolk.

the path of the storm passed north and west of the downtown area, striking near Sentara Obici Hospital and in the neighborhood of Driver.

Near Driver, the large radio and television broadcast towers, which were located in an antenna farm serving most of Hampton Roads, were spared serious damage.

Suffolk's early growth depended on its waterfront location, with access to the waterways for power and transportation.

The Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge includes dozens of miles of trails accessible via White Marsh Road at Washington Ditch and other entry sites.

Additional bike trails can be found at Lone Star Lakes City Park off Godwin Blvd.

An exception was made by the General Assembly when the former Nansemond County became an independent city and consolidated Suffolk in the 1970s.

The Monitor–Merrimac Memorial Bridge–Tunnel connects Suffolk to the independent city of Newport News on the Virginia Peninsula from South Hampton Roads.

Completed in 1992, it provided a third major vehicle crossing of the Hampton Roads harbor area and cost $400 million to build.

The city and VDOT have had disputes over ownership and responsibility for the Kings Highway Bridge (circa 1928) across the Nansemond River on State Route 125.

The cost of a new bridge for the King's Highway crossing is estimated at $48 million, far more than could be recovered through collection of tolls at that location.

[25] Virginia is reviewing proposals under a public-private partnership for a major realignment and upgrade of U.S. 460 from Suffolk west to Interstate 295 near Petersburg.

[28] In modern times, Suffolk remains a major peanut processing center and railroad and highway transportation hub.

It hosts a diverse combination of industrial, manufacturing, distribution, retail, and hospitality businesses, as well as active farming.

Other large employers in the City of Suffolk include Unilever, Lipton Tea, Massimo Zanetti Beverage Group, Wal-Mart, Target, QVC, and two major modeling and simulation companies, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon.

Raytheon won a DoD contract to manufacture 'Miniature Air-Launched Decoy Jammers'(MALD-J), which it has been producing with Cobham Composite Products: 202 vehicles for a price of $81 million.

[29] The U.S. Joint Forces Command (JFCOM) facility, near the intersection of US 17 and Interstate 664, has resulted in a growth in defense contracting and high-tech jobs since 1999.

The announcement led to speculation about the effects the loss of JFCOM would have on the Hampton Roads economy in general and (more specifically), on the future of related businesses located in the Harborview section of Suffolk.

By summer 2013, city officials expected the Naval Network Warfare Command, NNWC Global Network Operations Center Detachment, Navy Cyber Defense Operations Command and Navy Cyber Forces to occupy buildings vacated by JFCOM.

[29] The buildup in these defense functions resulted in Suffolk's median income increasing markedly in this period.

Suffolk is served by a variety of radio stations on the AM and FM dials, with towers located around the Hampton Roads area.

[34] The City of Suffolk Media & Community Relations Department operates Municipal Channel 8 on the local Charter Cable television system.

[36] The boroughs are Chuckatuck,[37] Cypress,[38] Holy Neck,[39] Nansemond,[40] Sleepy Hole,[41] Suffolk,[42] and Whaleyville.

Suffolk's second sister city relationship with Oderzo, Italy, began in 1995 because of one man, Amedeo Obici.