What Is the Virginia State Capitol?
It’s the Virginia State Capitol building!
What Makes It Historical?
After arranging for Virginia’s capital to move from Williamsburg to Richmond in 1780, Thomas Jefferson was also behind the design of its capitol building! While visiting Paris in 1785, he collaborated with French architect, Charles-Louis Clerisseau, on the design, and construction lasted from 1785 until 1798, making it the second oldest working statehouse in America (after Maryland’s!
In this capitol building, the Virginia General Assembly ratified the Bill of Rights in 1791! Here, Aaron Burr was acquitted in the death of Alexander Hamilton in 1807! Here in 1861, the Virginia Constitutional Convention both voted to stay in the Union and secede with the Confederacy in the same week! It was also the site of the “Capitol Disaster” of 1870 when the Supreme Court of Appeals was so packed with spectators in a mayoral case that the floor collapsed onto the House of Delegates and killed 62 people!
How Can I #HelpTheHelpers?
- Donate to the Virginia Capitol Foundation!
- Be a responsible visitor! Please respect the signs and pathways, and treat all structures and artifacts with respect. They’ve endured a lot to survive into the present. They’ll need our help to make it into the future!
How Do I Get There?
1000 Bank St
Richmond, VA 23218
(Take Me There!)
When Should I Visit?
The capitol building is open to visitors Monday through Saturday from 9:00 AM until 5:00 PM and Sunday from 1:00 PM until 5:00 PM!
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