Richmond's History

[RVA-Is-The-Best]

Wow! He has nearly every neighborhood completely covered! That must have taken a lot of patience! My hats off to you, Cadeho, nice job!

Also, I like how you got every single island on the James River's names. I didn't even know all of those had names.... I just called them "trees on a river"....

All I knew was Belle, Mayo, and Brown's Islands. But still, you did great.

[540_804]

I think my favorite names are Devil's Kitchen Island and Pawpaw Island.

[Cadeho]

Thanks Burt. I was going to post it here but I've definitely been busy. The bulk of the map was completed in 2009 and 2010. The copied maps with the neighborhoods drawn on them were completed in 2008. I really wanted to release it when I could verify each and every one of the subdivisions and were in possession of each of their plats. However, I have enough information to have made it public. there are still some things to correct on it (Google at times has bugs). I have several other maps I've worked on including the additions map which I shared above. I incorporated some of it into the neighborhood/subdivision map on top of some of the more recently renamed areas. I also realized I have yet to add the James River Park system to the map, which I'll have to do soon.

While the main focus is supposed to be on the subdivisions and neighborhoods, not every place belongs to a neighborhood. The blank areas are basically places that were not proper subdivisions or did not have any information. Just like in the Henrico map, there are places they label as acreage and don't belong to any subdivision. They could be lands that were privately subdivided by their owners. When I looked at old maps that included many of these forgotten names, I found they also included the names of the owners of big parcels of land in Henrico and Chesterfield. I decided to do that for places such as the Philip Morris plants, DuPont, Sonoco, etc, as well as places like schools, parks, and shopping centers not associated with any particular subdivision.

Thanks RVA-Is-The-Best and welcome to the board! The names of the islands are all on the city's GIS Parcel Mapper along with the names and information on their owners. This is kind of a newer addition that I noticed last year. The James River itself is owned primarily by the Commonwealth of Virginia Department of General Services along with Dominion Resources and The United States of America which own smaller portions. This shocked me that anyone could actually claim the river! I wish I knew the history behind Devil's Kitchen Island's name. It's had that name over 100 years.

I have many more maps created using Google that I'll add here.

DelWill, I haven't but I will look into it. I am behind in my books on Richmond. I need to see what is out there now.

[RVA-Is-The-Best]

Style Weekly has chronicled some of Richmond's flawed and hated history in "Unhealed History". Some of this "flawed" history includes segregation, a touchy topic to all Americans, and suburban sprawl, something VERY touchy to people like us, who believe that reviving downtown is the true answer.

http://www.styleweekly.com/richmond/unhealed-history/Content?oid=1669944

[burt]

The great-grandfather of Kitty Snow operated a streetcar through Richmond's Jackson Ward and took photos as he drove along the tracks in the early 1900's.

Ms Snow has inherited over 3,000 images and has written a book which will be released in November.

This video shows the author discussing the pictures with 104-year old Wesley Carter.

From today's RTD:

http://www2.timesdis...09259-vi-35037/

[burt]

Here is some wonderful stock film footage of Richmond in the early 20th Century.

There are many reminders of the horrible segregation years. If you can get past those you'll see moving images of a city you'll hardly recognize.

John Murden of CHPN has uncovered this treasure trove and he has posted still photos from each of the film clips that feature Richmond in VIRGINIA (there are other Richmonds included.)

Click the links in John's intro:

http://chpn.net/news...ly-1900s_21977/

[burt]

Phil Riggan who writes for Richmond dot com and is a champion of the James River also is author of a feature called "Why, Richmond, Why."

Lately he has been inquiring about the lack of maintenance on the statues that line Monument Avenue. Several of them are oxidizing into a greenish tone.

Here's Phil's story in today's Richmond dot com (and be sure to check other stories in the "Related" box:)

http://www2.richmond...ues-ar-1840260/

NOTE: There are three Confederate military represented on the Avenue. From east to west, they are J. B. Stuart at Lombardy Street, Robert E. Lee at Allen Avenue and Stonewall Jackson at The Boulevard.

Those facing north (Stuart and Jackson) died in battle. General Lee, facing south, did not.

[Cadeho]

I thought I had posted, but John Murden posted a map of mine plotting some pics of Fulton he had posted last week. http://chpn.net/news/2012/04/18/placing-old-fulton_22104

[burt]

I thought I had posted, but John Murden posted a map of mine plotting some pics of Fulton he had posted last week. http://chpn.net/news...ld-fulton_22104

Thanks, Cam for bringing these maps over.

When you open the link to Cadeho's maps be sure to click the highlighted "Streets of Old Fulton" which show what the area looked like before urban renewal.

[burt]

Richmond has some old buildings, and one of them dates to the 15th Century when it was constructed near Manchester in the UK.

I'm old enough to remember when The Aluminum Building was moved from Broad Street to a lot beside my ancestors' home in Morson's Row on Governor Street. And the amazing thing is that workers stayed on the job throughout the move.

Incidentally, the Aluminum building is still there, although it has been refaced. Morson's Row is still there, too -- on its original lot.

From the current Style Weekly:

http://www.styleweek...ent?oid=1716327

[calwinston]

C-SPAN's LCV Profile: St. John's Church

C-SPAN's LCV Profile: Monument Avenue

[calwinston]

C-SPAN's LCV Profile: John Marshall Home

[burt]

Richmond's old City Hall is an amazing building and Phil Riggan has done a wonderful profile of the building in today's Richmond dot com.

 

It's spire at the 10th and Broad Street corner towers 195 feet which is about 100+ feet lower than the NEW City Hall diagonally across East Broad.

 

Be sure to click 'Related Galleries' for interior photos.

 

 http://www.richmond.com/discover-richmond/article_6e22c49e-5c17-11e2-9f41-001a4bcf6878.html

[burt]

Apparently, the three oldest houses still standing in Richmond are:

 

#1.  The Old Stone House (now the Poe Museum) at 1916 East Main Street, built before 1783.

 

#2.  The frame Craig House, catty-cornered at 19th and East Grace Streets, built between 1784-1787.

 

#3.  The John Marshall House at 9th and Marshall Streets, build 1791.

 

If you ever choose to do some research on the city's rich history of residential archtecture, Mary Wingfield Scott was a tireless historian and compiled an illustrated volume called HOUSES OF OLD RICHMOND about 50 years ago.

 

Here it is in PDF format:   

 

http://www.rosegill.com/ProjectWinkie/Houses%20of%20Old%20Richmond.pdf

 

[Cadeho]

Don't forget some of the southside houses which are now within the city limits. Laurel Meadow (1640 Bramwell Rd) was built between 1750 and 1760. Brookbury (5216 Beddington Rd) was built in 1752 according to the city. A house at 2019 S Kinsley Ave, the Archer-Shelton House (1015 Bainbridge St), and the Johnson House (2718 Bainbridge St) also date to the 1780-1790s.

 

Thanks Burt! That is a gem to have!

[burt]

Don't forget some of the southside houses which are now within the city limits. Laurel Meadow (1640 Bramwell Rd) was built between 1750 and 1760. Brookbury (5216 Beddington Rd) was built in 1752 according to the city. A house at 2019 S Kinsley Ave, the Archer-Shelton House (1015 Bainbridge St), and the Johnson House (2718 Bainbridge St) also date to the 1780-1790s.

 

Thanks Burt! That is a gem to have!

 I was pretty sure if anybody commented on the Mary Wingfield Scott book it would be you, Cam.  I spent hours pouring over it and have many more hours to go.

 

Thanks for the Manchester info, although I saw something on a real estate posting about the Bramwell house just this weekend.

[Cadeho]

You're welcome. I think I'll map old houses.

[540_804]

Here's a great picture of a Greyhound Bus terminal that I had never seen before. 

 

 

 

By the address, it looks like it was on the north side of Broad Street between 4th and 5th street. I believe it was likely replaced by the convention center. 

 

It's such a beautiful-looking place. It's too bad it has been replaced. 

[Oaktowntwinz]

Wow, thanks for posting that.  I had been looking for a picture of that terminal so this really helped.  I don't know when the building was torn down but when I was a little kid, I remember going in the terminal because I had a cousin who worked there and I was fascinated by the energy.  The interior was much larger than you'd expect. The Broad St. entrance was narrow but the terminal and the gates took up the entire block.  It always seemed busy and, as a kid, it was fascinating seeing buses going to Dallas, Atlanta, New York, etc. 

[RVA2CLT]

Broad Street was such a thriving, vibrant corridor full of business and people. Check this very detailed pick of Broad looking west from 6th street in 1969.
On the right you can see the Bus depot one building down from Kelly's which was RVA's only chain hamburger joint.
On the left you can See Miller & Rhoads, Woolworths &CNB.

 

Photo courtesy of VCU Libraries via vintagerva.blogspot

[RVA-Is-The-Best]

One of my personal favorite urban planning editorial websites, The Atlantic Cities, has a front-page article on Richmond after the Civil War. Just thought it was cool, it's some good national exposure to our history.

 

http://www.theatlanticcities.com/neighborhoods/2014/04/what-richmond-looked-after-confederate-troops-set-it-fire/8811/

[RVA2CLT]

One of my personal favorite urban planning editorial websites, The Atlantic Cities, has a front-page article on Richmond after the Civil War. Just thought it was cool, it's some good national exposure to our history.

 

http://www.theatlanticcities.com/neighborhoods/2014/04/what-richmond-looked-after-confederate-troops-set-it-fire/8811/

Thanks for link.

I can never find detailed lithos, etchings, or early photos of Richmond's commercial district prior to burning in April 1865 except for a couple of the Basin and Gallego Mills.

 

I always wonder what Richmond would be like today if the city wasn't burned (or at least as badly as it had) and further to that, if Lincoln was not assassinated and was able to direct & oversee 'Reconstruction' of the south.