Must-See Sites, N-Z
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list below:
Hull and First streets, less than a block from the south
end of the Mayo (14th Street) Bridge
Housed in a restored Railway Express Agency car, this
museum features photographs and artifacts from the area's
railroad history and steam, passenger, freight and caboose
equipment. It's located next to a former Southern Railway
passenger station. Free (donations welcome). Open Saturday
11 am - 4 pm, Sunday 1-4 pm, and Monday 11 am - 4 pm.
Telephone: (804) 233-6237.
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Pumphouse Road, just north of the Boulevard Bridge
Remaining structures here indicate how the James River
front was used in the 19th century. The impressive
Victorian Gothic pumphouse still stands where it was built
in 1883. It was abandoned in 1924. Still plainly visible
down a path from the pumphouse are stone locks used on the
James River and Kanawha Canal. One structure, a stone
arch, is part of the original canal built in 1789. George
Washington, considered the father of this and other canal
systems, passed through here when he traveled this section
in 1791. Open during daylight hours. To get there: Go
south on Boulevard through Byrd Park to Pumphouse Road,
turn right.
Chimborazo Visitors Center, 3215 E. Broad St.
Any visit to Richmond's Civil War battlefields should
begin here. A slide show or short film will orient you, a
museum and book store will enlighten you, and maps and
rangers will help you find your way. Open daily 9 am - 5
pm Free. Telephone: (804) 226-1981.
More information is maintained by the National Park
Service.
2500 W. Broad St.
Science exhibits and an Omnimax theater now occupy the
old Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad Broad
Street Station. Designed by John Russell Pope, the station
was finished in 1919 and represents Richmond's
architectural reaction to the golden age of rail travel.
Museum hours: 9:30 am - 5 pm Monday-Saturday, noon - 5 pm
Sunday. Admission: $5 adult, $4 youth and senior citizens.
Planetarium shows and Omnimax films extra. Telephone:
(804) 367-0000.
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2407 E. Grace St.
House known for its most intriguing resident, Elmira
Shelton, a friend of poet Edgar Allan Poe. Poe is said to
have visited Mrs. Shelton here shortly before his death.
Once the headquarters of the Historic Richmond Foundation,
the house is now a private home.
Dock and Pear streets
The great lock built here 1850-54 connected the James
River with the Richmond dock, completing the James River
and Kanawha Canal system that bypassed seven miles of
falls and continued 197 miles through Virginia's western
mountain ranges.
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Hospital and Fifth streets
Early Richmond burial ground established in 1820. The
graves of John Marshall, Revolutionary War hero Peter
Francisco and Union spy Elizabeth Van Lew are here.
Hundreds of Union and Confederate soldiers, many of whom
died in General Hospital No. 1 (Alms House), are buried
here as well. Access to drive-in entrance is on Hospital
Street.
Bounded by 12th and 14th, Main and Canal streets
Now one of downtown Richmond's most fashionable
shopping and entertainment areas, Shockoe Slip is the
city's oldest mercantile district. Called "the slip"
because of its proximity to the once bustling Great
Turning Basin on the James River canal system (no longer
in existence), this area had been the site of warehouse
and tobacco manufacturing since the 17th century. Burned
to the ground in the Great Evacuation Fire April 2-3,
1865, Shockoe rebuilt rapidly. Most of the structures now
housing shops and restaurants date from 1868-1888. The
site of the first Virginia capitol building located in
Richmond is marked in a parking lot at 14th and Cary
streets.
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South end of 29th Street
The base of this monument, dedicated in 1894 to the
common Confederate soldier and sailor, affords one of the
best views of the James River. Below, the Confederate
Naval Yard and the Richmond port of Rocketts were located.
It is said that William Byrd II stood on this spot and
found the view similar to one in Richmond on Thames and
therefore gave our city its name.
2401 E. Broad St.
It was here on March 23, 1775, that Patrick Henry
delivered his "Give me liberty or give me death" speech.
His argument persuaded the Second Virginia Convention to
arm a Virginia militia. Built in 1741, St. John's is the
oldest church in Richmond and is surrounded by its oldest
graveyard. Buried here are Elizabeth Arnold Poe, Edgar's
mother, and George Wythe. Still an active church. Guided
tours on the half hour Monday-Saturday 10 am -4 pm, Sunday
1-4 pm. Last tour 3:30 pm. Fees: $3 adults, $2 senior
citizens, $1 children 6-18. Telephone: (804) 648-5015.
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815 E. Grace St.
Known as the "Cathedral of the Confederacy" because of
the regular attendance of Jefferson Davis and the
when-in-town attendance of Robert E. Lee. While in Sunday
services here April 2, 1865, Davis received the final word
that Lee's lines had broken at Petersburg and that the
president must evacuate his government. Consecrated in
1845, this Greek Revival building still houses an active
congregation. Lee's and Davis' pews are marked. Tiffany
windows. Visitors welcome daily 10 am - 4 pm. Telephone:
(804) 643-3589.
South end of 12th Street near Byrd
Maps, photographs and artifacts help explain the
Richmond canal system and the two stone locks restored
here by Reynolds Metals Co. The locks, finished in 1854,
completed the connection between the Great Shiplock below
the James River fall line and the rest of the James River
and Kanawha Canal system that extended into the western
Virginia mountain ranges. Richmond's floodwall
construction could disrupt this park but it's well worth
the effort to see it. Parking available. Open daily 9 am -
5 pm. Parts of the park may be closed to the public for
private parties. Free.
Tredegar Street at the James River
The buildings here are reminders of what once was the
most important iron works in the South. During the Civil
War, the Tredegar turned out more than 1,100 artillery
pieces for the Confederate forces. The iron armor for the
C.S.S. Virginia (formerly the U.S.S. Merrimack), the
world's first iron-clad warship, was manufactured here.
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1015 E. Clay St.
The museum of Richmond life and history. Features
continuing and changing exhibitions on facets of city life
ranging from pre-Civil War black culture to women's
working clothes. The restored 1812 Wickham House is part
of the museum complex. Museum shop. The Wickham Garden
Cafe is open for lunch weekdays year round. Museum hours:
10 am - 5 pm Monday-Saturday, noon - 5 pm Sunday. Fees: $5
adults. Telephone: (804) 649-0711.
200 E. Marshall St.
This small, volunteer-supported museum is a must for
fire-fighting history buffs. Housed here are old hand- and
horse-drawn equipment and other fire and police artifacts.
Telephone: (804) 644-1849.
428 N. Boulevard
This venerable society, established in 1831, opened
seven renovated and expanded galleries and a museum shop
in 1992. The library houses the world's largest collection
of Virginia history materials. Hours: Monday - Saturday 10
am - 5 pm; Sunday 1-5 pm (galleries only). Admission: $4
adult, $2 children and students. Telephone: (804)
358-4901.
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Boulevard at Grove Avenue
From Faberge eggs to 20th century abstraction, from
ancient Egyptian sculptors to Monet, the Virginia Museum
offers up a wide-ranging variety of art. Galleries open
Tuesday-Sunday 11 am - 5 pm (Thursday until 8 pm).
Admission is free, but donations are welcome. Museum shop.
Telephone: (804) 367-0844.
For more information:
http://dit1.state.va.us/vmfa/
1500 N. Lombardy St.
This predominantly black, modern university traces its
roots to three schools, including the 1865 Richmond
Theological School for Freemen, that were merged in 1899
on this site. Dominating the older campus area are fine
examples of Romanesque Revival style architecture.
Telephone: (804) 257-5600.
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U.S. Route 1, just north of the Lee bridge over the James
River
An imaginative memorial to Virginia's dead from World
War II, Korea and Vietnam, this state-operated shrine
commands a great view of the downtown skyline and the
James River. Embedded in the floor of the monument are
authentic relics gathered from the world's battle areas.
Open daily approximately 6:30 am to 10 pm. Free.
1015 E. Clay St.
Completed in 1812 for one of Richmond's foremost
lawyers, John Wickham, the house is now restored and part
of the Valentine Museum complex. Tours available through
the Valentine.
3017 Williamsburg Road
Named for the ship captain who lived here in the early
1800s, this house is the sole survivor from Richmond's
port of Rocketts. An award-winning restoration, parts of
the house date from 1780. Rocketts, a bustling 19th
century sea-faring district, was once an important
mid-Atlantic port. Private home.
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