CPWA

Chesapeake Professional Wrestling Association

Formerly	Tidewater Professional Wrestling, inc.
Sport	professional wrestling
Founded	20 March 1976 (as Tidewater Professional Wrestling) 1 January 1980 (as CPWA)
Founder	Thomas J. Daniels, Sr. (Tidewater Professional Wrestling) Thomas J. Daniels, Jr., Ray Jackson, Mark Donovan (CPWA)

The Chesapeake Professional Wrestling Association, commonly referred to as the CPWA, is an American professional wrestling company that serves the Chesapeake Bay area, hosting live events in the states of Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and the District of Columbia. Founded in 1980 after the incorporation of the Chesapeake Wrestling Alliance, the CPWA became a major player in the wrestling landscape of the Mid-Atlantic region during the height of the territory era, becoming a member of the NWA. The company is headquartered out of Norfolk, Virginia.

History

Tidewater Professional Wrestling (1976 - 1980)

Established on March 20 1976 in Virginia Beach, Tidewater Professional Wrestling was the creation of local businessmen Thomas J. Daniels, Sr. and his son, Thomas J. Daniels, Jr. According to the younger Daniels in his memoir, his father "wanted to establish the old Tidewater not as direct competition to the big guys, but as a provider of the sport to an area that was sometimes and often neglected by them." The company held their first event on June 1 in Norfolk, where Jack "the Admiral" Dawson defeated William Wheaton to become the inaugural champion.