RICHMOND

RICHMOND occupies the hilly terrain at the falls of the James River in Virginia. Native Americans inhabited that area, but the English created a series of temporary settlements there beginning in 1609 and erected a fort in the 1640s. Later, planter William Byrd I maintained a trading

post in the same vicinity. His son, William Byrd II, founded and named Richmond, incorporated in 1742. The meeting place for several notable Revolutionary War–era conventions, the town served as a storehouse for American armies, became the state capital in 1779, and suffered damage from two British raids in 1781.

After the Revolution, Richmond featured distinctive buildings, especially the state capitol, designed by Thomas Jefferson. The city was the scene of the Gabriel Prosser slave conspiracy of 1800, the Aaron Burr treason trial of 1807, and a deadly theater fire in 1811. During the antebellum period, Richmond became a manufacturing center known for its flour, iron, and tobacco products. Steamboat traffic, a westward canal, and railroads made the town a transportation and commercial hub. German and Irish immigrants augmented a workforce that included free blacks and African American slaves.

As the capital of the Confederate States of America during the Civil War, Richmond became the target of repeated Union military campaigns. Facing a population, swollen by military personnel, government officials, refugees, and Union prisoners, authorities struggled to provide such essential goods as food and vital services, including medical care for the many wounded soldiers. As retreating Confederates evacuated the city on 3 April 1865, fires that had been set to destroy warehouses spread and incinerated much of the downtown. Postwar commemorations gradually transformed Richmond into a shrine to the Confederacy. In addition to Hollywood and Oakwood cemeteries, the city featured countless statues, stately Monument Avenue, and numerous museums and historic sites.

Following Reconstruction, conservative politicians were dominant over dissenting groups, including blacks, and the city floundered economically. Despite their political suppression, African Americans developed successful secret societies, churches, and businesses. The early twentieth century brought renewed prosperity and growth fueled by diversified industries, resurgent commerce, and robust banking. Nationally acclaimed authors, significant educational institutions, and dynamic religious organizations made Richmond a cultural center. Reformers led local and statewide campaigns to improve education, health, and public welfare. Organized labor remained a political force until the 1920s, when politicians resumed a conservative course they upheld through the rest of the century. In the 1950s and 1960s, officials resisted and delayed desegregation of schools and other public facilities and whites relocated to nearby suburbs. In 1977 the black majority on the city council elected Richmond's first African American mayor. Despite post–World War II annexations, the population within the city limits shrank to 197,790 in 2000, down from 202,278 in 1990.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Chesson, Michael B. Richmond after the War, 1865–1890. Richmond: Virginia State Library, 1981.

Kimball, Gregg D. American City, Southern Place: A Cultural History of Antebellum Richmond. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2000.

Shepherd Samuel C., Jr. Avenues of Faith: Shaping the Urban Religious Culture of Richmond, Virginia, 1900–1929. Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press, 2001.

Tyler-McGraw, Marie. At the Falls: Richmond, Virginia, and Its People. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1994.

Samuel C.ShepherdJr.

See alsoCivil War ; Slave Insurrections ; South, the: New South ; Virginia .

Richmond: Transportation

Approaching the City

Six major carriers with nonstop and direct flights to more than 200 cities serve Richmond International Airport (RIA), which is located 10 minutes, via Interstate 64, from the center city. Airlines include American, Delta, US Airways, Continental, NWA and United. The airport offers complete executive and general aviation services. More than 2.7 million passengers are estimated to pass through RIA in any given year, spurring current expansion plans to add air carrier gates, new roadways and a terminal extension. As an alternative to the busier RIA, general and corporate aviation services are also available at the Chesterfield County Airport.

Crisscrossing the metropolitan area are major north-south and east-west interstates. Interstate-95 provides ready access to markets up and down the East Coast. I-64 is a major corridor from St. Louis to the port of Hampton Roads. I-295 connects with I-95 to the north and south of Richmond. Intercity bus service, freight shipments, and express shipments are provided by Greyhound.

Rail passenger service is provided by Amtrak, serving the East Coast and points west with six passenger trains daily, plus four additional trains on selected days. Amtrak opened a new downtown Main Street Station in fall 2003, restoring a train station that was originally opened in 1901. The new station integrates bus, trolley, airport shuttle, taxi, limousine and train services within a multi-modal transportation hub that returned passenger train service to downtown Richmond.

Traveling in the City

The Richmond area is served by a well-planned and well-maintained network of expressways, cross-town arteries, and streets that make the use of private vehicles convenient. The Greater Richmond Transit Company (GRTC) operates a fleet of buses on a radial network of routes that include park-and-ride lots and express service during peak hours. GRTC offers specialized services such as CARE and C-Van to provide access to riders with mobility issues, while the Ridefinders program matches carpool and vanpool candidates. From June through November, a trolley system connects sites in the different areas of downtown.

Richmond: Population Profile

Metropolitan Area Residents

1980: 761,000

1990: 865,640

2000: 1,096,957

Percent change, 1990–2000: 13.7%

U.S. rank in 1980: 48th (MSA)

U.S. rank in 1990: 49th (MSA)

U.S. rank in 2000: 46th (MSA)

City Residents

1980: 219,214

1990: 202,798

2000: 197,790

2003 estimate: 194,729

Percent change, 1990–2000: -2.5%

U.S. rank in 1980: 64th

U.S. rank in 1990: 76th (State rank: 3rd)

U.S. rank in 2000: 105th (State rank: 4th)

Density: 3,292.6 people per square mile (in 2000)

Racial and ethnic characteristics (2000)

White: 75,744

Black or African American: 113,108

American Indian or Alaska Native: 479

Asian: 2,471

Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander: 157

Hispanic or Latino (may be of any race): 5,074

Other: 2,948

Percent of residents born in state: 67.2% (2000)

Age characteristics (2000)

Poplation under 5 years old: 12,376

Poplation 5 to 9 years old: 12,765

Poplation 10 to 14 years old: 11,713

Poplation 15 to 19 years old: 13,870

Poplation 20 to 24 years old: 18,386

Poplation 25 to 34 years old: 32,871

Poplation 35 to 44 years old: 29,841

Poplation 45 to 54 years old: 24,985

Poplation 55 to 59 years old: 8,208

Poplation 60 to 64 years old: 6,646

Poplation 65 to 74 years old: 12,843

Poplation 75 to 84 years old: 9,764

Poplation 85 years and older: 3,522

Median age: 33.9 years (2000)

Births (2003) Total number: 3,069

Deaths (2003)

Total number: 2,368 (of which, 44 were infants under the age of 1 year)

Money income (2000)

Per capita income: $20,337

Median household income: $31,121

Total households: 84,549

Number of households with income of . . .

less than $10,000: 13,492

$10,000 to $14,999: 6,914

$15,000 to $24,999: 13,688

$25,000 to $34,999: 12,197

$35,000 to $49,999: 13,317

$50,000 to $74,999: 12,482

$75,000 to $99,999: 5,465

$100,000 to $149,999: 3,999

$150,000 to $199,999: 1,253

$200,000 or more: 1,759

Percent of families below poverty level: 17.1% (33.68% of which were female householder families with related children under 5 years)

2002 FBI Crime Index Total: 18,002

Richmond: Communications

Newspapers and Magazines

Richmond's daily newspaper is the morning Richmond Times-Dispatch. Of the nine other newspapers or tabloids published in Richmond, four are religious-oriented, several are related to business or the media, one is dedicated to Richmond nightlife, and one is aimed at the population over the age of 50. The local universities each publish their own collegiate newspaper. Several other magazines and journals are published in Richmond, including Richmond Magazine, a lifestyle magazine and Virginia Business, a comprehensive statewide business journal.

Television and Radio

Six television stations broadcast from Richmond: four network affiliates and two public broadcasting channels. Richmond is served by two cable television companies. Ten AM and FM radio stations broadcast from Richmond, featuring public radio, adult contemporary, sports, and others.

Media Information: Richmond Times-Dispatch, 300 E. Franklin Street, Richmond, VA 23219; telephone (804) 649-6000; toll-free (800) 468-3382

Richmond Online

City of Richmond home page. Available www.ci.richmond.va.us/index.asp

Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce. Available www.grcc.com

Richmond Convention & Visitors Bureau (Richmond.com). Available www.richmond.com/visitors

Richmond Public Library. Available www.richmondpubliclibrary.org

Richmond Public Schools. Available www.richmond.k12.va.us

Richmond Renaissance. Available www.richmondrenaissance.org

Richmond Times-Dispatch. Available www.timesdispatch.com

Virginia Department of Education, Superintendent of Schools' Reports. Available www.pen.k12.va.us/VDOE/Publications

Selected Bibliography

Furguson, Ernest B., Ashes of Glory: Richmond at War (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1996)

Richmond

The City in Brief

Founded: 1742 (incorporated, 1782)

Head Official: Mayor L. Douglas Wilder (D) (since 2004)

City Population

1980: 219,214

1990: 202,798

2000: 197,790

2003 estimate: 194,729

Percent change, 1990–2000: -2.5%

U.S. rank in 1980: 64th

U.S. rank in 1990: 76th (State rank: 3rd)

U.S. rank in 2000: 105th (State rank: 4th)

Metropolitan Area Population

1980: 761,000

1990: 866,000

2000: 1,096,957

Percent change, 1990–2000: 26.6%

U.S. rank in 1980: 48th (MSA)

U.S. rank in 1990: 49th (MSA)

U.S. rank in 2000: 46th (MSA)

Area: 62.55 total square miles (2000)

Elevation: Ranges from 9 to approximately 312 feet above sea level

Average Annual Temperature: 57.7° F;

Average Annual Precipitation: 43.13 inches of rainfall; 16.9 inches of snowfall

Major Economic Sectors: government; education, health and social services, retail trade

Unemployment rate: 3.6% (December 2004)

Per Capita Personal Income: $20,337 (1999)

2002 FBI Crime Index Total: 18,002

Major Colleges and Universities: Virginia Commonwealth University, University of Richmond, Virginia Union University, J Sargeant Reynolds Community College, ECPI Technical College

Daily Newspaper: Richmond Times-Dispatch

Richmond: Health Care

Richmond has obvious credentials to support its claim as one of the best medical/health-service areas in the country. Eighteen general and specialized hospitals employ 2,000 physicians in the metropolitan area. The Columbia/HCA health system operates three hospitals in Greater Richmond: Chip-penham and Johnston-Willis Hospitals have been merged to form CJW Medical Center, nationally recognized as a heart-bypass surgery center and also on the cutting edge of neuro-science; Henrico Doctors' Hospital, which performs organ transplants and is home of the Virginia Cancer Treatment Center; and Retreat Hospital, which offers mind-body medicine, wound healing, and geriatric care. Bon Secours Richmond Health System, a not-for-profit Catholic system, operates three hospitals and numerous outpatient service sites.

Largest among the area's major health-care institutions is the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center. The Medical Center provides a real-life laboratory for teaching, research, community service, and health-care delivery and is the centerpiece of the health sciences campus of Virginia Commonwealth University. The hospital has the area's only Level I Trauma Center and sees more than 30,000 admissions per year, with 500,000 outpatients seen annually.

Richmond: Convention Facilities

The Greater Richmond Convention Center (GRCC) is the most capacious meeting and exhibition space in town, with 700,000 total square feet of room. Adjacent to the Richmond Marriott Hotel and close to sports venues, GRCC accommodations include 180,000 square feet of exhibit space, 32 meeting rooms and a Grand Ballroom that spans 30,550 square feet. Within a short walk or trolley ride are one-third of the area's hotel rooms. The center is just blocks off Interstate 95 and within easy access of the Richmond International Airport.

Other convention and meeting facilities include the recently-renovated Richmond Coliseum, which offers a total of 50,000 square feet of exhibition space under a giant circular dome and is capable of seating up to 13,359 persons; Rich-mond's Landmark Theater; the Fairgrounds; the Showplace, and the Carpenter Center for the Performing Arts. More than 40 hotels have extensive meeting facilities.

Convention Information: Richmond Region Visitors Center, c/o Greater Richmond Convention Center, 403 North 3rd Street, Richmond, VA 23219; telephone (804)783-7450

Richmond, Va. The first theatre in Richmond was built in the 18th century at the intersection of Twelfth and Broad Streets, and was destroyed by fire in 1811 with the loss of 72 lives. A new theatre, the Marshall, opened in 1818 and saw the first appearance in America of the elder Booth, in 1821, and Edwin Forrest, in 1841; Joseph Jefferson the third managed it from 1854 to 1856, and in 1859 John Wilkes Booth, the assassin of President Lincoln, was a member of its stock company. The theatre burned down on 1 Jan. 1862 and was replaced in 1863 by a lavishly decorated new theatre which became known as the New Richmond. It was destined to become the leading Confederate theatre, all the outstanding theatre personalities of the South appearing there. It retained much of its glamour in the post-war years, but was finally demolished in 1896.

Richmond: Municipal Government

The city of Richmond operates under the mayor-council form of government, with council members serving two-year terms and each representing one of nine districts in the city. A mayor is elected by the general populace, and the council elects a vice-mayor and assistant vice-mayor from among its own ranks. The city was formerly governed by a council-manager system and in 2004 elected its first mayor in almost 60 years.

Head Official: Mayor L. Douglas Wilder (D) (since 2004; current term expires 2006)

Total Number of City Employees: 8,761 (2004)

City Information: City of Richmond, 900 East Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23219; telephone (804) 646-7000

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