Petersburg Old Town Historic District - Petersburg (Independent City) VA
Posted by: 
nomadwillie
N 37° 13.912 W 077° 24.321
18S E 286616 N 4123305
The Old Town District is located in the city's earliest section.
Waymark Code: WMJZXX
Location: Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 01/23/2014
Views: 4
The district has a varied collection of late 18th thru 20th century architecture including Georgian, Federal, Greek Revival and various Victorian era styles. It covers over 250 buildings.
Petersburg as an early colonial settlement is one of Virginia's oldest cities. Early in its development Petersburg became a major tobacco center. The city was served by four railroads and a canal system in the mid 1800's. It was devastated physically and economically during the Civil War, but gained prosperity thru leaf tobacco, cotton, grain, peanut and lumber industries.
Exact dates of the earliest settlement of the area is up for debate, however it is written that 4 European settlers were killed there in an Indian attack in 1622. Fort Henry was built early on due to these killings. Over the next 30 or years Petersburg gained importance as a trading post and point of departure for points south and west.
Street address:
U.S. 1 and VA 36
Petersburg (Independent City) , VA
County / Borough / Parish: Petersburg
Year listed: 1980
Historic (Areas of) Significance: Information Potential, Event, Architecture/Engineering
Periods of significance: 1925-1949, 1900-1924, 1875-1899, 1850-1874, 1825-1849, 1800-1824
Historic function: Commerce/Trade, Domestic, Industry/Processing/Extraction
Current function: Commerce/Trade, Domestic
Privately owned?: yes
Primary Web Site: [Web Link]
Season start / Season finish: Not listed
Hours of operation: Not listed
Secondary Website 1: Not listed
Secondary Website 2: Not listed
National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
Please give the date and brief account of your visit. Include any additional observations or information that you may have, particularly about the current condition of the site. Additional photos are highly encouraged, but not mandatory.