Richmond Audio Walking Tour

Highlights

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  Hollywood Cemetery

  Hollywood Cemetery sits on high ground in the Oregon Hill neighborhood of Richmond, Virginia. Established in 1847 and designed by the landscape architect John Notman, this 135-acre (55 ha) rural cemetery sits on high ground and overlooks the James River.

• 
  Virginia State Capitol

  Notice the classical lines Thomas Jefferson conceived for the seat of Virginia's government in Richmond. This is where the Virginia General Assembly, the oldest elected legislative body in North America, meets — a lineage that began with the House of Burgesses first established in 1619.

• 
  White House of the Confederacy

  John Brockenbrough, president of the Bank of Virginia, built this gray stuccoed neoclassical mansion in 1818, designed by Robert Mills, and today you know it as the Second White House of the Confederacy. As you listen, imagine that this house served as the main executive residence of the sole President of the Confederate States of America, Jefferson Davis, from August 1861 until April 1865.

• 
  Robert E. Lee Monument

  For over a century the Robert E. Lee Monument, the first installation on Monument Avenue in 1890, held this spot until its removal in 2021. For over a century it honored Confederate General Robert E. Lee, shown on horseback atop a large marble base that stood over 60 feet (18 m) tall.

• 
  Monument Avenue

  Monument Avenue's tree-lined grassy mall divides eastbound from westbound traffic here in Richmond, Virginia. This stretch was originally named for its emblematic complex of structures honoring those who fought for the Confederacy during the American Civil War.

All 29 stops

• Virginia State Capitol (Richmond)

  Notice the classical lines Thomas Jefferson conceived for the seat of Virginia's government in Richmond.

• Washington Monument (Richmond)

  George Washington rides his bronze horse over the public square in Richmond on the Virginia Washington Monument, a 19th-century neoclassical statue known locally simply as…

• Governor’s Mansion (Capitol Square)

  Picture Thomas Jefferson renting a home here, the state slow to pay.

• Library of Virginia (Richmond)

  Two blocks from the Virginia State Capitol, at 800 East Broad Street, the Library of Virginia serves as the Commonwealth's library agency.

• White House of the Confederacy (Court End)

  John Brockenbrough, president of the Bank of Virginia, built this gray stuccoed neoclassical mansion in 1818, designed by Robert Mills, and today you know it…

• John Marshall House (Court End)

  Picture Chief Justice John Marshall's Federal-style brick home here in Richmond, Virginia.

• Old City Hall (Downtown Richmond)

  Picture the Gothic Revival tower Elijah E. Myers designed for this former city hall.

• The Valentine (Richmond)

  Since 1898 the Valentine, Richmond's first museum, has collected, preserved and interpreted the history of Richmond, Virginia.

• Jefferson Hotel (Richmond)

  Lewis Ginter's Jefferson Hotel opened in Richmond, Virginia, in 1895 as a luxury hotel in the Spanish Baroque style.

• Monroe Park (Fan District)

  Monroe Park, Richmond's oldest park, spreads its 7.5-acre landscaped pentagon about one mile northwest of the Virginia State Capitol Building.

• Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine (MCV Campus)

  Virginia Commonwealth University's School of Medicine has its home here on VCU's MCV Campus.

• Altria Theater (Monroe Park)

  Sometimes called the Mosque, the Altria Theater holds the southwest corner of Monroe Park on the campus of Virginia Commonwealth University.

• Monument Avenue (Richmond)

  Monument Avenue's tree-lined grassy mall divides eastbound from westbound traffic here in Richmond, Virginia.

• Robert E. Lee Monument (Monument Avenue)

  For over a century the Robert E. Lee Monument, the first installation on Monument Avenue in 1890, held this spot until its removal in 2021.

• Congregation Beth Ahabah (Richmond)

  Congregation Beth Ahabah, the Reform Jewish synagogue, occupies 1121 West Franklin Street in Richmond, Virginia.

• Masonic Temple (downtown Richmond)

  Jackson C. Gott designed the Masonic Temple, this prominent building in downtown Richmond.

• Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site (Jackson Ward)

  Quality Row in Richmond's Jackson Ward neighborhood holds the Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site at 110½ E. Leigh Street.

• Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia (Jackson Ward)

  Inside the Leigh Street Armory building at 122 West Leigh Street, in Richmond's Jackson Ward, you find the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of…

• Gallery5 (Jackson Ward)

  Gallery5 — arts center, museum, gallery, venue and community space — occupies 200 West Marshall Street in Richmond, Virginia's historic Jackson Ward neighborhood.

• Edgar Allan Poe Museum (Shockoe Bottom)

  Old stones from circa 1740 house the Poe Museum, the Edgar Allan Poe Museum, here in Richmond's Shockoe Bottom.

• African Burial Ground, Richmond, Virginia (Shockoe Bottom)

  Historically called the Burial Ground for Negroes and the old Powder Magazine ground, the Shockoe Bottom African Burial Ground lies at your feet.

• Mason's Hall (Shockoe Bottom)

  Masons' Hall rises in front of you in Richmond's Shockoe Bottom neighborhood.

• Richmond Main Street Station (Richmond)

  Locals call Richmond Main Street Station The Clock Tower, officially the Main Street Station and Trainshed.

• James River and Kanawha Canal (Richmond)

  Back in 1785, at George Washington's encouragement, the James River Company began the James River and Kanawha Canal, a bold Virginia project later restarted under…

• Browns Island (Richmond)

  Brown's Island lies under your feet, an artificial island on the James River in Richmond, Virginia.

• Belle Isle (James River Park)

  Belle Isle spreads 54 acres across the James River in the city of Richmond, part of the James River Park System.

• Hollywood Cemetery (Oregon Hill)

  Hollywood Cemetery sits on high ground in the Oregon Hill neighborhood of Richmond, Virginia.

• James Monroe Tomb (Hollywood Cemetery)

  Richmonders call it The Birdcage: the James Monroe Tomb, burial place of U.S. President James Monroe in Hollywood Cemetery.

• St. John's Episcopal Church (Church Hill)

  Patrick Henry demanded liberty or death here at St. John's Church, 2401 East Broad Street, the oldest church in the city of Richmond.

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