November 2010

Besides being the resting place to the only Confederate States President, it is also the resting place of 25 Confederate generals, the most of any cemetery in the country, including George Pickett and J.E.B. Stuart. In 1869, a 90 foot granite pyramid was built as a memorial to the more than 18,000 enlisted men of the Confederate Army who are buried in the cemetery. Visitors are intrigued by the many legends surrounding certain tombs grave sites in the cemetery.

Henricus was an early settlement established on Indian land by Sir Thomas Dale in 1611 as an improved version of Jamestown. As at Jamestown, today's fort and town are re-creations, but the effort is realistic and highly educational. From costumed interpreters, period crafts, and special events, visitors learn the true story of Pocahontas and John Rolf, and even how the first settlers lived and died in 1622 when the Indians destroyed the town.

Tredegar was the main production site for Confederate War material, and its five surviving buildings make up a Civil War hub on eight acres beside the James River. This should be the first stop for anyone intending to visit the area's battlefields. A new museum, The American Civil War Center at Historic Tredegar, is next door. A pedestrian bridge gives visitors access to Belle Isle, formerly a Civil War prison camp for Union soldiers. The Center's flagship exhibit In the Cause of Liberty explores the war's causes, course, and legacies through artifacts, media, and programs. The education programs offered at the museum are designed to expand the critical thinking skills of students through a variety of innovative and exciting programs. Students can explore the era of the Civil War and its many legacies through artifacts, exhibitions and hands-on activities.

The city was flooded with casualties after the first battle of Manassas during the Civil War, which quickly overwhelmed existing hospitals. Wounded were treated in any space available - hotels, private homes, even barns. Realizing that a long war and thousands more casualties lay ahead, Southern leaders ordered the construction of five general hospitals in Richmond to treat the military's injured and ill.

Chimborazo was an excellent site for a medical facility for several reasons. Its location near the James River was convenient for the transportation of supplies on the Kanawha canal. Fresh water was readily available from natural springs, plus dug wells and steep slopes on three sides of the hill afforded good drainage.

The Museum features distinctive architecture designed by the local firm of Jones and Orlopp, original family furnishings, textiles, decorative arts, and historic costumes. Guided tours of this local, state, and national landmark provide a fascinating history of this area’s early settlement and of the Kell family.

Housed in a reproduction of the colonial courthouse of 1750, this collection tells the county's story from prehistoric times through the 20th century. Visitors can tour through exhibits that include early Indian culture, artifacts from the first iron and coal mines in America, early houseland and farming tools, a country store of the late 19th century and fire department memorabilia.

One of the finest Palladian style period houses in Chesterfield County, Castlewood has a five-part building plan that bears no likeness to any other recorded dwelling in Virginia. Its unique place in the county's architectural history makes it a fitting home for the Historical Society, whose offices and research library are located on the first floor. The home's builder, Parke Poindexter, served as clerk of Chesterfield County Court from 1812 until his death in 1847.

Visitors are invited to experience the history and culture of Virginia's African-Americans from 1619 to the present. Located in the heart of historic Jackson Ward, the museum is housed in an 1832 residence that served as the first Richmond public library for blacks during the segregation era. The museum collects documents, limited editions, prints, art and photographs for use in its Black History Archives Program. This program is vitally significance because of the scarcity of written records on the Black experience.

A "transplant" from Tudor England, this half-timbered manor house built in the 15th century was dismantled and brought to Virginia in 1926 where it was reconstructed near the James River. Inside visitors can see authentic furnishings dating from 1485 to 1660. Visitors can also enjoy scenic views throughout the 23 acres of lawns and gardens that overlook the river.

This museum, located at Fort Lee, traces the history of women in the military and military nurses from the American Revolution to the present, including the advent of the WACS in World War II.

The museum opened on 14 May 1955 at Fort McClellan, Alabama as the Women's Army Corps (WAC) Museum. It was first located in one room of the WAC Headquarters building. Shortly thereafter, it was relocated to a wing of the WAC Training Battalion headquarters building at the WAC Center, Fort McClellan. In 1977 the WAC museum moved to a new building on Fort McClellan that was built entirely by private contributions raised by the WAC Foundation.

On 18 August 1961, the WAC Museum was renamed the Edith Nourse Rogers Museum in honor of the Congresswoman from Massachusetts who introduced bills in 1942 and 1943 which established the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) and later the WAC. The decision was made in 1977 to return to the original title of the Women's Army Corps Museum. This was done to reestablish the connection between the name of the museum and the artifacts it housed.