Richmond

the capital of Virginia. It is situated at the head of navigation on the James river, about ninety miles from the Chesapeake. In his American Notes Dickens speaks of Richmond as "delightfully situated on eight hills overhanging the James River, a sparkling stream studded here and there with bright islands, or brawling over broken rocks." The city is an important center of tobacco curing and manufacturing. The value of the output of plug tobacco, cigarettes, cigars, and smoking tobacco exceeds $10,000,000 a year. There are extensive foundries and machine shops, car shops, and wagon factories. The city is a port of entry. Lines of boats ply to the Chesapeake and several lines of railway intersect here.

Historic interest centers in Capitol Square, a beautiful park of twelve acres, in the center of which the classical state capitol stands. The building is of two stories and is oblong in shape. At the suggestion of Thomas Jefferson it was modeled after an ancient Roman temple at Nimes, France. Modern wings were added in 1905. A portion of the square was formerly part of a plantation owned by Nathaniel Bacon. The grounds are studded with fine trees, the home of large gray squirrels, so tame that they hardly scamper out of the pathways. There are numerous statues of public men, including Washington, Jefferson, Patrick Henry, Chief Justice Marshall, Clay, and "Stonewall" Jackson. The governor's mansion and the state library face the square. The latter guards the original parole signed by Cornwallis at Yorktown and many other historic documents. The church in which the famous Virginia Convention of 1775 met still stands. The attendant still points out the pew in which Patrick Henry sat and the spot where he stood when he made his celebrated speech ending, "I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death." The prevailing architecture of the city is what is known as colonial. Large porticoes and lofty pillars give dignity to the old homes. The houses of Justice Marshall and other historic residences still stand. Presidents Tyler and Monroe are buried in Hollywood Cemetery.

Captain John Smith was the first white man to visit the site of the city. The capital of Virginia was moved from Williamsburg to Richmond in 1779. In June, 1861, it became the capital of the Confederacy. The city was fortified by a circle of distant earthworks which may yet be traced from the roof of the capitol. It withstood the attack of the Federal troops for three years. Nearly two score battles and skirmishes took place in the immediate vicinity. Many of the Federal prisoners were confined in Libby Prison, an old tobacco warehouse, and on Belle Isle in the James River. The home, the official quarters, the church pew, and the burial place of Jefferson Davis are here.

Over 6,000 unknown Federal dead lie buried in the National Cemetery. Hollywood is the resting place of 12,000 Confederate dead. Their memory is commemorated by a magnificent pyramid of granite, adorned with ivy and Virginia creeper. The home of General Robert E. Lee, the hero of the Confederacy, is owned by the Virginia Historical Society. His statue and that of his well known war horse, "Traveler," grace Howitzer Park.

Richmond has been the meeting place of many noted gatherings and the scene of stirring events. Although an active manufacturing and commercial city, the historic part of the town remains practically unchanged. The chain of historic associations is still unbroken. A new city hall, a highly ornate modern building erected at a cost of $1,400,000, seems almost out of place.

See Virginia; Libby Prison; Confederacy