The Greater
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...
area has many neighborhoods and districts.
Description of the Richmond Metro Region from a quadrant perspective
The
Greater Richmond
The Greater Richmond Region, also known as the Richmond metropolitan area or Central Virginia, is a region and metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Virginia, centered on Richmond. The U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) defines the area ...
area extends beyond the city limits into nearby counties. Descriptions of Richmond often describe the large area as falling into one of the four primarily geographic references which somewhat mirror the points of a compass:
North Side,
Southside,
East End and
West End. Since there is no one municipal organization that represents the Greater Richmond region, the boundaries of these subregions are loosely defined. The definitions are also affected by the
James River
The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confluence of the Cowpasture and Jackson Rivers in Botetourt County U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowli ...
which has separated
Henrico County
Henrico County , officially the County of Henrico, is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 334,389 making it the fifth-most populous county in Virginia. Henrico Coun ...
on the north bank and
Chesterfield County to the south since the latter was formed in the 18th century. Until 1910, the James also separated the City of Richmond on the north bank from the City of
Manchester
Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
on the south bank, until they merged by mutual agreement in 1910. A large portion of the river which divides the modern City of Richmond is part of the city's
James River Park System.
Except where the James River continues to define a boundary between the West End and Southside, drawing a theoretical line between quadrants of the metropolitan area is not well defined as one moves away from the city. This is especially true north of the James with the distinctions between East, North, and West end areas, all of which are north of the River. In the broadest context, each of these may be considered by some to include portions of
Hanover County, which at its closest point, is only 5 miles from the current city limits. However, the
Chickahominy River
The Chickahominy is an U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 river in eastern Virginia. The river, which serves as the eastern border of Charles City County, Vir ...
separates the Hanover from Henrico County at this closest point, which is in the
Mechanicsville area. Some outlying areas meeting may be considered as independent or outside the Richmond area, such as Mechanicsville, Midlothian, or Short Pump.
Downtown
Court End
Court End is one of the oldest neighborhoods in Richmond, and is composed of the most important residential structures in the city. Court End is North of the Capitol District and west of I-95. Its name is derived from the Virginia Supreme Court's proximity to the Capitol Building. This convenient location made Court End a convenient home to many prominent citizens of Richmond, including Wickham, Valentine and Benjamin Watkings Leigh. Some say that this small area contains some of the city's most valuable and unusual architecture.
Jackson Ward
Jackson Ward
Jackson Ward, previously known as Central Wards, is a historically African-American district in Richmond, Virginia, with a long tradition of African-American businesses. It is located less than a mile from the Virginia State Capitol, sitting ...
is a historically
black
Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
neighborhood that at one time was known as the "Harlem of the South. " A center for black
commerce
Commerce is the organized Complex system, system of activities, functions, procedures and institutions that directly or indirectly contribute to the smooth, unhindered large-scale exchange (distribution through Financial transaction, transactiona ...
and
entertainment
Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and Interest (emotion), interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but it is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have deve ...
, it was frequented by the likes of
Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous Big band, jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life.
Born and raised in Washington, D ...
,
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April25, 1917June15, 1996) was an American singer, songwriter and composer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phra ...
,
Bill "Bojangles" Robinson
Bill "Bojangles" Robinson (born Luther Robinson; May 25, 1878 – November 25, 1949), was an American tap dancer, actor, and singer, the best known and the most highly paid black entertainer in the United States during the first half of the 20 ...
,
Lena Horne
Lena Mary Calhoun Horne (June 30, 1917 – May 9, 2010) was an American singer, actress, dancer and civil rights activist. Horne's career spanned more than seventy years and covered film, television and theatre.
Horne joined the chorus of the C ...
,
Cab Calloway
Cabell "Cab" Calloway III (December 25, 1907 – November 18, 1994) was an American jazz singer and bandleader. He was a regular performer at the Cotton Club in Harlem, where he became a popular vocalist of the Swing music, swing era. His niche ...
,
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday made significant contributions to jazz music and pop ...
,
Nat King Cole
Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, alternatively billed as Nat "King" Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's career as a jazz and Traditional pop, pop ...
and
James Brown
James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, and record producer. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by Honorific nick ...
. Jackson Ward was also home to
Maggie L. Walker
Maggie Lena (née Draper Mitchell) Walker (July 15, 1864 – December 15, 1934) was an American businessperson and teacher. In 1903, Walker became both the first African-American woman to charter a bank and the first African-American woman ...
, the first woman to charter and serve as president of an American bank. The Maggie L. Walker House is now a
U.S. National Historic Site. Located in Jackson Ward and listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
is the
Shockoe Hill Burying Ground Historic District. This district includes the
Shockoe Hill African Burying Ground
The Shockoe Hill African Burying Ground (''Richmond's 2nd African Burial Ground'') was established by the city of Richmond, Virginia, for the interment of free people of color, and the enslaved. The heart of this now invisible burying ground is ...
, which is likely the largest burial ground for enslaved and free people of color in the United States. It is one of Virginia's most endangered historic places. Jackson Ward is also home to the
Hippodrome Theater.
During the construction of the
Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...
Interstate highway
The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, or the Eisenhower Interstate System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Hi ...
system in the 1950s Jackson Ward was split in two, much to the detriment of the neighborhood. In the early 2000s, the
Greater Richmond Convention Center and Visitors Bureau was built at the eastern edge of Jackson Ward.
Monroe Ward
Monroe Ward is the neighborhood defined by the following streets. East of Belvidere, South of Broad, North of Franklin, and West of 14th Street. Monroe Ward lies just north of the Midtown Neighborhood.
Midtown
Midtown is south of Monroe Ward. The neighborhood defined by the following streets. Franklin Street south to W. Canal St. Belvidere east to 7th St.
The River District
In 1999, the City of Richmond completed its canal walk project, a refurbishment of a 1.25-mile segment of the
Haxall Canal and the
James River & Kanawha Canal that had fallen into disuse. Developed as a tourist destination, the area surrounding the Canal Walk was branded by The River District Alliance (RDA) (a 501(c)6 public/private organization) as "The River District.".
The actual boundaries of the River district are not defined, and include some businesses commonly thought to belong to other districts, like Shockoe Bottom and Shockoe Slip.
Shockoe Slip
Shockoe Slip is a collection of tobacco warehouses in which are located shops, restaurants, and offices. The name "slip" refers to the canal boat slips nearby where goods were loaded and unloaded. Shockoe Slip became developed as a commercial and entertainment district in the 1970s. The nightlife district came just after Richmond passed liquor-by-the-drink laws, and when the so-called
fern bar
Fern bar is an American slang term for an upscale or preppy (or yuppie) bar or tavern catering to singles, usually decorated with ferns or other greenery, as well as such decor as fake Tiffany lamps. The phrase came into common regional usage in ...
became popular across the United States. The rough boundaries of Shockoe Slip include 14th Street, Main Street, Canal Street and 12th Street.
East End
The East End of Richmond, Virginia is actually a collection of neighborhoods. Within the city, and in Henrico County, it roughly defined as including the area of Richmond north of the
James River
The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confluence of the Cowpasture and Jackson Rivers in Botetourt County U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowli ...
and east/northeast of the former
Virginia Central Railroad
The Virginia Central Railroad was an early railroad in the U.S. state of Virginia that operated between 1850 and 1868 from Richmond westward for to Covington. Chartered in 1836 as the Louisa Railroad by the Virginia General Assembly, the railr ...
-
Chesapeake and Ohio Railway
The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway was a Class I railroad formed in 1869 in Virginia from several smaller Virginia railroads begun in the 19th century. Led by industrialist Collis Potter Huntington, it reached from Virginia's capital city of Rich ...
line (now owned by
CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of track, it is the lead ...
and operated by the
Buckingham Branch Railroad
Buckingham Branch Railroad is a Class III short-line railroad operating over 275 miles (443 km) of historic and strategic trackage in Central Virginia. Sharing overhead traffic with CSX and Amtrak, the company's headquarters are in Dill ...
) which originated at
Main Street Station Main Street station may refer to:
Canada
* Main Street station (Toronto), a subway station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada
* Main Street–Science World station, a SkyTrain station in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
United Kingdom
* Main Street ra ...
, and south and west of
I-295
Interstate 295
is the designation for the following eight Interstate Highways in the United States, all of which are related to I-95:
*Interstate 295 (Delaware–Pennsylvania), a bypass of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
* Interstate 295 (Florida), a be ...
.
Within the city, the East End includes neighborhoods such as
Church Hill,
Fairmount,
Union Hill, Fulton,
Fulton Hill
Fulton Hill is a neighborhood located in the East End of Richmond, Virginia. The name is used for the area stretching from Gillies Creek to the Richmond city limits. The Greater Fulton Hill Civic Association includes Fulton Bottom, part of ...
, Montrose Heights, Fairfield Court, Creighton Court, Whitcomb Court,
Mosby Court
Mosby Court is a housing project and neighborhood in Richmond, Virginia. The neighborhood is named Mosby, while the housing project is named Mosby Court.
Location
Mosby Court is located in the East End (Richmond, Virginia), East End quadrant o ...
, Eastview, Brauers, Peter Paul, Woodville, Church Hill North, Chimborazo and Oakwood.
The terminology "East End" also broadly includes much of eastern
Henrico County
Henrico County , officially the County of Henrico, is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 334,389 making it the fifth-most populous county in Virginia. Henrico Coun ...
and part of
Hanover County as a portion the Richmond Metropolitan area.
Church Hill
The historic district of Church Hill encompasses the original land plot of the city of Richmond. There
gave his 1775 "
Give me liberty or give me death!
"Give me liberty or give me death!" is a quotation attributed to American politician and orator Patrick Henry from a speech he made to the Second Virginia Convention on March 23, 1775, at St. John's Church in Richmond, Virginia. Henry is credi ...
" speech in
St. John's Church.
Chimborazo Park occupies the former site of the largest
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
Hospital. Church Hill is notable as one of the largest extant 19th century neighborhoods in America, with many fine examples of period architecture. This area has undergone significant
gentrification
Gentrification is the process whereby the character of a neighborhood changes through the influx of more Wealth, affluent residents (the "gentry") and investment. There is no agreed-upon definition of gentrification. In public discourse, it has ...
in recent years.
Fairmount
Fulton Hill
Libby Hill
Shockoe Bottom
Shockoe Bottom, just east of downtown along the James River, became a major nightlife, dining, and entertainment center in the last two decades of the 20th century. After centuries of periodic flooding by the James River, development was greatly stimulated by the completion of Richmond's James River Flood Wall in 1995. Ironically, the next flooding disaster came not from the river, but from
Hurricane Gaston
A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its loca ...
which brought extensive local tributary flooding along the basin of Shockoe Creek and did extensive damage to this area in 2004, with businesses being shut down and many buildings condemned. The city of Richmond had serious discussions about moving the
Richmond Braves
The Richmond Braves were an American minor league baseball club based in Richmond, Virginia, the Triple-A International League affiliate of the Atlanta Braves from 1966 to 2008. Owned by the parent Atlanta club and colloquially referred to as the ...
baseball stadium from its current location at
The Diamond to Shockoe Bottom or
Tobacco Row, These plans fell through and in 2009 the
Richmond Braves
The Richmond Braves were an American minor league baseball club based in Richmond, Virginia, the Triple-A International League affiliate of the Atlanta Braves from 1966 to 2008. Owned by the parent Atlanta club and colloquially referred to as the ...
moved to Gwinnett, GA..
Tobacco Row
Just east of Shockoe Bottom, Tobacco Row is a collection of tobacco warehouses and cigarette factories adjacent to the
James River and Kanawha Canal
The James River and Kanawha Canal was a partially built canal in Virginia intended to facilitate shipments of passengers and freight by water between the western counties of Virginia and the coast. Ultimately its towpath became the roadbed for ...
near its eastern terminus at the
head of navigation
The head of navigation is the farthest point above the mouth of a river that can be navigated by ships. Determining the head of navigation can be subjective on many streams, as the point may vary greatly with the size or the draft of the ship b ...
of the
James River
The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confluence of the Cowpasture and Jackson Rivers in Botetourt County U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowli ...
. Beginning in the 18th century, many growers and shippers of Virginia's major cash-crop of
tobacco
Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
maintained facilities there, as well as directly across the river at
Manchester
Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
. Substantial multi-story brick buildings were constructed to protect the contents from loss due to fire.
During the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
(1861–1865), Tobacco Row was the site of infamous
Libby Prison
Libby Prison was a Confederate States of America, Confederate prison at Richmond, Virginia, during the American Civil War. In 1862 it was designated to hold officer prisoners from the Union Army, taking in numbers from the nearby Seven Days battl ...
and nearby
Castle Thunder, detention facilities of the
Confederate
A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
government.
The area was vacated by the tobacco companies by the late 1980s. Led by Richmond developer William H. Abeloff, many of the old warehouses of Tobacco Row were modernized and converted into developments of loft apartments, condominiums, offices, and retail space along part of the restored canal system. In 2006 the Richmond Housing Authority using
HOPE VI
HOPE VI is a program of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. It is intended to revitalize the most distressed public housing projects in the United States into mixed-income developments. Its philosophy is largely based o ...
grants worked with developer
McCormack Baron Salazar
McCormack Baron Salazar is an American real estate development firm based in St. Louis, Missouri specializing in economically integrated urban neighborhoods with more than $4.23 billion invested in affordable and mixed-income housing project ...
to redevelop former warehouses in Tobacco Row into 250
mixed-income housing
The definition of mixed-income housing is broad and encompasses many types of dwellings and neighborhoods. Following Brophy and Smith, the following will discuss “non-organic” examples of mixed-income housing, meaning “a deliberate effort to ...
units.
Union Hill
Union Hill is one of the oldest and most historically significant neighborhoods of Richmond and, as such, has been the recent focus of rapid gentrification and preservation. Its architectural and historical significance has earned the neighborhood designation on the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register. It is situated on the high eastern bluff above
Shockoe Bottom
Shockoe Bottom, historically known as Shockoe Valley, is an area in Richmond, Virginia, just east of downtown, along the James River. Located between Shockoe Hill and Church Hill, Shockoe Bottom contains much of the land included in Colonel ...
. Houses of a remarkable mix are balanced along the irregular, picturesque and sometimes narrow streets that follow the curve of the hill. Those homes that line
Jefferson Park have a clear view of downtown Richmond. Union Hill is bordered on the south by Jefferson Avenue, on the north by Venable Street, on the east by 25th Street, and by Mosby on the west. The term “Union Hill” first occurs in 1817 — probably referring to the combination of several hills that were joined by fill and grading over the years.
Union Hill was featured in November 2007 on
The Learning Channel
TLC is an American multinational cable television, cable and satellite television, satellite television network owned by the Warner Bros. Discovery Networks, Networks division of Warner Bros. Discovery. First established in 1980 as The Learn ...
's television program "Flip It Back." The episode highlighted the opportunities for historic preservation and investment in the neighborhood while focusing on the efforts by local entrepreneurs to restore and market a turn-of-the-century double house located at 816 and 818 North 23rd Street.
Near West and West End
This section covers those neighborhoods that have at any point historically been considered part of the West End of Richmond.
Byrd Park
The Byrd Park neighborhood was in the Far West End of the City when it was planned in the late 1910s. This is a residential area, now in the Central neighborhoods of the city, bounded on the south by
Byrd Park
Byrd Park, also known as William Byrd Park, is a public park located in Richmond, Virginia, United States, north of the James River and adjacent to Maymont. The park includes a mile-long trail with exercise stops, monuments, an amphitheatre, and ...
and
Maymont Park
Maymont is a 100-acre (0.156 sq mi) Victorian estate and public park in Richmond, Virginia. It contains Maymont Mansion, now a historic house museum, an arboretum, an Italian and Japanese garden, a carriage collection, native wildlife exhibit ...
, on the north by the
Downtown Expressway, on the east by Meadow Street. The heart of the neighborhood is located north and east of its namesake and its three lakes; Boat, Swan and Shields. Homes include row houses built in the 1920s, two-story frame bungalows, brick Colonials, Cape Cods, tri-levels, ranchers and American Four Squares mostly built in the 1930s and 1940s. Westover Road hosts a number of large lakefront Spanish, Georgian and Colonial Revival mansions. The Fountain Lake area features upscale condos and apartments. A small, neighborhood retail section and a converted 1922 public school (now retirement home) is located along middle blocks Idlewood Avenue in the northern part of the neighborhood.
Carver
The Carver neighborhood, also called Sheep Hill, lies north of
Broad Street (Richmond, Virginia)
Broad Street is a road located in the independent city of Richmond, Virginia, and adjacent Henrico County. Broad Street is significant to Richmond due to the many commercial establishments that have been built along it throughout Richmond's hist ...
to the west of Jackson Ward and downtown Richmond. Carver was first settled by blue-collar
Jewish
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
and
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
tradesmen, and became a thriving black community in the early 1900s before being cut through by major thoroughfares such as
Jefferson Davis Highway
The Jefferson Davis Highway, also known as the Jefferson Davis Memorial Highway, was a transcontinental highway in the United States in the 1910s and 1920s that began in Arlington County, Virginia, and extended south and west to San Diego, Cali ...
,
Belvidere Street and
Interstate 95
Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...
. As the years passed, more and more houses became vacant, and the neighborhood declined. By the 1950s, Carver began to sharply decline and was seen as a "dangerous" neighborhood.
In modern times, Carver has seen new life, with redevelopment of older housing, some new homes, expansion to the north side of Broad Street of
Virginia Commonwealth University
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is a Public university, public research university in Richmond, Virginia, United States. VCU was founded in 1838 as the medical department of Hampden–Sydney College, becoming the Medical College of Virgin ...
facilities and student housing. Today, Carver is a diverse mix of students, singles, young families, and elderly residents.
Carytown/Museum District
Carytown is a residential and commercial area that generally consists of 1920s era homes and privately owned shops, clothing stores, cafes, and restaurants along Cary Street. The
Byrd Theatre
The Byrd Theatre is a cinema in the Carytown neighborhood of Richmond, Virginia. It was named after William Byrd II, the founder of the city. The theater opened on December 24, 1928 to much excitement and is affectionately referred to as "Richmo ...
, located in this district, is a historic 1920s era
movie palace
A movie palace (or picture palace in the United Kingdom) is a large, elaborately decorated movie theater built from the 1910s to the 1940s. The late 1920s saw the peak of the movie palace, with hundreds opening every year between 1925 and 1930. Wi ...
that shows second run movies and that offers periodic performances of its
Wurlitzer
The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to as simply Wurlitzer, is an American company started in Cincinnati in 1853 by German immigrant (Franz) Rudolph Wurlitzer. The company initially imported stringed, woodwind and brass instruments ...
organ.
The Museum District (also sometimes known as West of the Boulevard, and often the Upper Fan) is located just west of the Fan district (and the Boulevard) and north of Carytown. Historically, this area was a site where many Confederate Soldiers were hospitalized/lived after the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
. Some large institutions in this district are the
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA) is an art museum in Richmond, Virginia, United States, which opened in 1936. The museum is owned and operated by the Commonwealth of Virginia. Private donations, endowments, and funds are used for the supp ...
, the world headquarters for the
United Daughters of the Confederacy
The United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC) is an American neo-Confederate hereditary association for female descendants of Confederate Civil War soldiers engaging in the commemoration of these ancestors, the funding of monuments to them, a ...
, and the
Virginia Museum of History & Culture.
The architecture is predominantly from the 1920s, though other styles from Victorian through Art Deco, up to the modern period, are also represented. Most houses are attached, or semi-detached, with occasional apartment buildings, and large Mansions along Monument Avenue. Occasional houses are distinguished, but as in the neighboring Fan the most interesting aspect is the general preservation of the neighborhood—it has mostly been preserved as built.
The Fan District
A residential neighborhood which is home to
Virginia Commonwealth University
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is a Public university, public research university in Richmond, Virginia, United States. VCU was founded in 1838 as the medical department of Hampden–Sydney College, becoming the Medical College of Virgin ...
, named for the fan-shaped grid of its streets. The Fan District is dominated by late-19th and early-20th century architecture. It lies immediately to the west of Downtown and east of Carytown/Museum district, between Broad Street and VA-195 (Downtown Expressway)
Newtowne West
Located west of Carver, Newtowne West is a residential neighborhood located north of Broad St. between Hermitage Rd. and Lombardy St., and south of Interstates 95 and 64. Newtowne West began as a working-class
African-American neighborhood
African-American neighborhoods or black neighborhoods are types of ethnic enclaves found in many cities in the United States. Generally, an African American neighborhood is one where the majority of the people who live there are African American ...
in the 1890s but gradually became a more self-sufficient community in the 1920s before falling into disrepair during the second half of the twentieth century. Selected in 1999 as a part of Richmond City's Neighborhoods in Bloom program, Newtowne West is currently a center of revitalization including the renovation of the historic
Maggie L. Walker High School in 2001.
Oregon Hill
Randolph
This is a residential area bounded on the south by Colorado Avenue, on the north by the
Downtown Expressway, on the east by several historic cemeteries and on the west by Meadow Street and
Maymont Park
Maymont is a 100-acre (0.156 sq mi) Victorian estate and public park in Richmond, Virginia. It contains Maymont Mansion, now a historic house museum, an arboretum, an Italian and Japanese garden, a carriage collection, native wildlife exhibit ...
. Randolph is notable for its access to the historic and scenic areas of
Maymont Park
Maymont is a 100-acre (0.156 sq mi) Victorian estate and public park in Richmond, Virginia. It contains Maymont Mansion, now a historic house museum, an arboretum, an Italian and Japanese garden, a carriage collection, native wildlife exhibit ...
, North Bank Park, and Hollywood Cemetery. The neighborhood is home to many blue-collar families.
Scott's Addition
A neighborhood and
National Historic District located across Broad Street from the Museum District, it is a former industrial neighborhood which has been
redeveloped into a commercial hub, with numerous modern restaurants and bars. Scott's Addition is bounded on the south by Broad Street, on the east by Boulevard, on the north by I-95/I-64 and on the west by I-195.
Three Corners District
Uptown
Also known as the Lower Fan area. Neighborhood area popular with VCU students and containing much of the campus. (Campus is also contained in Midtown some, but the rest is mostly in Monroe Ward—where the name Monroe Campus comes from.) The area is defined by streets as follows: Meadow Street east to Belvidere. W. Canal St. north to Broad St.
Windsor Farms
Northside

Richmond's North Side is home to many diverse neighborhoods, including
Barton Heights, Bellevue,
Chestnut Hill-Plateau,
Ginter Park
Ginter Park is a suburban neighborhood of Richmond, Virginia built on land owned and developed by Lewis Ginter. The neighborhood's first well known resident was newspaperman Joseph Bryan, who lived in Laburnum, first built in 1883 and later reb ...
, Rosedale, Washington Park,
Hermitage Rd,
Highland Park,
Sherwood Park
Sherwood Park is a large hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Strathcona County that is recognized as an urban service area. It is adjacent to the City of Edmonton's eastern boundary. While long confined to generally south of Highway 16 ( Ye ...
, etc. These neighborhoods are made up of houses with a variety of architectural styles, which include Arts and Crafts Bungalows, Victorian, Romanesque Revival, and Queen Anne houses among other styles. The city's North Side includes the campuses of
Virginia Union University
Virginia Union University is a Private university, private Historically black colleges and universities, historically black university in Richmond, Virginia.
History
The American Baptist Home Mission Society (ABHMS) founded the school as Rich ...
and
Union Presbyterian Seminary
Union Presbyterian Seminary is a Presbyterian seminary in Richmond, Virginia, and Charlotte, North Carolina, offering graduate theological education in multiple modalities: in-person, hybrid, and online.
History
As a result of efforts underta ...
, as well as regional attractions such as the
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden is a , botanical garden in Henrico County, just outside of Richmond, Virginia. It features over a dozen themed gardens, a conservatory, a library, and a café. Regular daily admission is $20 for adults, $15 for sen ...
,
Bryan Park,
Richmond Raceway
Richmond Raceway (RR) is a , ''D''-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in unincorporated Henrico County, Virginia, Henrico County. It currently hosts one NASCAR Cup Series race weekend and the NASCAR Craftsman Tr ...
, and the
Richmond Staples Mill Road Amtrak train station.
The terminology "North Side" also broadly includes much of central
Henrico County
Henrico County , officially the County of Henrico, is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 334,389 making it the fifth-most populous county in Virginia. Henrico Coun ...
to include
Lakeside, Virginia
Lakeside is a census-designated place (CDP) in Henrico County, Virginia, United States. It is an inner suburb of Richmond, Virginia. The population was 12,203 at the 2020 census.
Geography
Lakeside is located at (37.610695, −77.475747).
...
.
Southside
Manchester
Manchester is an industrial and residential area directly south of downtown Richmond across the James River from the Canal Walk. Not to be confused with the Manchester area of
Chesterfield County, Manchester (also known as Old Manchester and South Richmond) has a distinguished history of its own.
Originally known as Rocky Ridge, for over 200 years,
Manchester
Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
was a separate town and later
independent city
An independent city or independent town is a city or town that does not form part of another general-purpose local government entity (such as a province).
Historical precursors
In the Holy Roman Empire, and to a degree in its successor states ...
on the south bank of the James River across from Richmond. It was commercially successful due to its agricultural mills and docks, where
coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Coal i ...
from the Midlothian area 13 miles west was transported on the
Chesterfield Railroad
The Chesterfield Railroad was located in Chesterfield County, Virginia. It was a long mule-and-gravity powered line that connected the Midlothian coal mines with wharves that were located at the head of navigation on the James River just below t ...
, the first in Virginia, beginning in 1831. The City of Manchester merged with Richmond in 1910.
The former
Southern Railway passenger station in Manchester now houses the Old Dominion Railway Historical Society's museum at 2nd and Hull Streets, near the south end of the
Mayo Bridge
Mayo's Bridge (also known as Richmond's 14th St. Bridge) is located in Richmond, Virginia. A four lane structure, it transports U.S. Route 360 across the James River. Signage identifies the bridge as "Mayo's Bridge".
The bridge is in two sectio ...
.
Neighborhoods
• Hillside Court
• Lafayette Gardens
• Afton
•
Woodland Heights
Forest Hill
The neighborhood of Forest Hill, one of Richmond's designated Historic Districts, is located along the southern banks of the James River, extending south to Reedy Creek and Bassett Avenue, east to Forest Hill Park, and west to Cedar Lane and Westover Hills Boulevard. One of the area's first trolley car suburbs, the neighborhood was built near the terminus of the
trolley line which ran up Semmes Avenue and terminated at
Forest Hill Park, where an amusement park and swimming lakes were located.
The neighborhood was home to
Frederick William Sievers, sculptor of the
Matthew Fontaine Maury
Matthew Fontaine Maury (January 14, 1806February 1, 1873) was an American oceanographer and naval officer, serving the United States and then joining the Confederacy during the American Civil War.
He was nicknamed "Pathfinder of the Seas" and ...
and
Stonewall Jackson
Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Confederate general and military officer who served during the American Civil War. He played a prominent role in nearly all military engagements in the eastern the ...
monuments on
Monument Avenue
Monument Avenue is a tree-lined grassy mall dividing the eastbound and westbound traffic in Richmond, Virginia, originally named for its emblematic complex of structures honoring those who fought for the Confederacy during the American Civil Wa ...
as well as the Virginia Monument at
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Gettysburg (; ) is a borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Adams County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the borough had a population of 7,106 people.
Gettysburg was the site of ...
. There is a historical marker at the location of his workshop in the yard of a West 43rd Street home.
Westover Hills
Westover Hills, one of Richmond's more established neighborhoods, is located directly south of the James River where
State Route 161, a major north–south roadway through the city, crosses via the
Boulevard Bridge
Boulevard Bridge in the independent city of Richmond, Virginia is a toll bridge which carries State Route 161 across the James River
The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confl ...
(also known as the "Nickel Bridge", its original toll) from the city's Fan District. The neighborhood lies along both the east and west sides of Westover Hills Boulevard in that area. This location makes it near the geographical center of the city. Most of the homes were built during the 1920-1940 period. The styles are highly varied, with Cape Cods located next to Spanish Colonial and Tudor Revival, with the odd farmhouse or Arts and Crafts thrown in.
Many housing sites feature large lots and a generally suburban feel. Some homes are located overlooking the banks of the James River, Westover Hills Boulevard, Forest Hill Ave. and Forest Hill Park. The neighborhood features well-established restaurants and businesses, along with churches and some arts establishments.
Stratford Hills and Southampton
Stratford Hills began life as a part of Chesterfield County, but was annexed by the City in the 1970s.
Homes in the area are predominately 1950s-style
ranchers
A ranch (from /Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of farm. These terms are most often applied to li ...
and
split-levels, with some larger, architecturally beautiful homes along stately
Riverside Drive. The neighborhood is bound by Forest Hill Avenue to the south and the
James River
The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confluence of the Cowpasture and Jackson Rivers in Botetourt County U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowli ...
to the north, with Huguenot Rd. and
Powhite Parkway roughly forming the west and east boundaries. The
Pony Pasture and
James River Park System are accessible from Cherokee Road in this neighborhood.
Bon Air

Bon Air is located in
Chesterfield County just outside the city borders. Originally developed in 1877 as a seasonal resort along the
Richmond and Danville train line, it evolved into a year-round village and is now an
inner suburb
An inner suburb is a suburban community central to a large city, or at the inner city and central business district. The urban density is usually lower than the inner city or central business district, but higher than that of the city's rural� ...
of Richmond. The north–south oriented
Buford Road connects various subdivisions between
Huguenot Road to the North and
Midlothian Turnpike to the South. The
Powhite Creek runs through the area. The central portion of the Bon Air Village has been designated as a
National Historic District with many structures of
Victorian
Victorian or Victorians may refer to:
19th century
* Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign
** Victorian architecture
** Victorian house
** Victorian decorative arts
** Victorian fashion
** Victorian literatur ...
design from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The more recent (1950s-1960s) developments along Huguenot Road include the Bon Air Shopping Center as well as residential subdivisions like Woodmont, Brookwood Estates, and Oxford. Between
Forest Hill Ave and
Jahnke Roads is Grand Summit, Crestwood Farms, and the
mid-century modern
Mid-century modern (MCM) is a movement in interior design, product design, graphic design, architecture and urban development that was present in all the world, but more popular in North America, Brazil and Europe from roughly 1945 to 197 ...
Highland Hills subdivisions. Other Bon Air subdivisions to the south of Jahnke include Brighton Green and Brown Road neighborhoods.
While remnants of the 1916 village-era post office, 1902 Hazen Library, and Hotel Grounds (currently the Bon Air Community Association) still remain at the intersection of Rockaway and McRae Roads, current day "Old Town" Bon Air is generally not a tourism attraction. Bon Air is largely a
bedroom community
A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...
, surrounded by suburban shopping centers. In some cases, these shopping centers house independent businesses (butchers, coffee shops, restaurants) that are spinoffs from downtown Richmond's thriving independent business and restaurant scene. Bon Air is 10 minutes by car from the city or the
West End via the
Powhite Parkway or
Chippenham Parkway.
Other Southside neighborhoods
Places such as
Midlothian
Midlothian (; ) is registration county, lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area and one of 32 council areas of Scotland used for local government. Midlothian lies in the east-central Lowlands, bordering the City of Edinburgh council ar ...
,
Brandermill,
Chester, Virginia
Chester is a census-designated place (CDP) in Chesterfield County, Virginia, Chesterfield County, Virginia, United States. Per the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 23,414.
History
Chester's original "downtown" was a st ...
and the
Jefferson Davis Corridor are more closely associated with
Chesterfield County, Virginia
Chesterfield County is a County (United States), county located just south of Richmond, Virginia, Richmond in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. The county's borders are primarily defined by the James River to the north an ...
but are sometimes included in the definition of Southside. The parts of Richmond that are within the city borders are sometimes referred to collectively as
South Richmond.
Notes
References
External links
Richmond Planning Department Master Plan - Section on NeighborhoodsRichmond (VA) NeighborhoodsRandolph RichmondRichmond Commission of Architectural Review Slide Collectionfrom the collection of th
VCU LibrariesRichmond Comprehensive Planning Slide Collectionfrom the collection of th
VCU Libraries
{{DEFAULTSORT:Neighborhoods Of Richmond, Virginia
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