Discover Petersburg

Petersburg can be explored through its varied historic and natural highlights: a large district with residential, commercial, and industrial architecture; individual buildings with distinctive architectural features; and trails in Petersburg National Battlefield. When planning your trip, you can decide whether to focus primarily on historic buildings, exhibitions, or outdoor trails.

Historic Architecture on Different Scales

The Petersburg Old Town Historic District encompasses approximately 250 buildings across 190 acres. Its residential, commercial, and industrial architecture dates mainly from the 19th and early 20th centuries. The district preserves one of the richest collections of historic buildings in Virginia, offering an overview of several architectural forms and uses.

Individual buildings add their own distinctive character: Second Presbyterian Church is considered a typical example of mid-19th-century Gothic Revival architecture. Its features include Gothic-style plasterwork, a central pulpit, and a ribbed, vaulted apse. The Nathaniel Friend House was built in 1815–1816 as an example of Petersburg’s Federal-style architecture. The city acquired the house to preserve it and carried out essential structural stabilization; the house was successfully rehabilitated.

Battersea and Centre Hill Mansion also show that Federal style is not the only theme in the area’s architecture: Battersea was built in 1768 on the banks of the Appomattox River in the Neoclassical Palladian style. Centre Hill Mansion dates from 1823 and is an example of the Federal style; its basement galleries feature exhibitions on the history of Petersburg.

Other notable buildings include today’s City Market building. The Petersburg Farmers’ Market, built in 1879, is now known as City Market or Old Market. The present-day building stands out for its shape and decorative cast-iron brackets, which support the canopy and projecting market shelter. The Appomattox Iron Works complex, meanwhile, constitutes one of the most complete architectural records of an early iron foundry in the United States.

Places of Remembrance and Outdoor Trails

Pocahontas Island offers different perspectives on the city’s history. The Pocahontas Island Historic District includes archaeological sites that illustrate the island’s history from prehistoric times through the 20th century. In the 19th century, Pocahontas Island became a Freedom Colony; it is considered the first settlement in Virginia inhabited predominantly by free Black people. The Appomattox River Trail runs along the island. There is also a natural launch site for canoes and kayaks.

At Petersburg National Battlefield, a 16-stop driving tour through all four park units offers an alternative to choosing from the trails. The Eastern Front Unit has approximately 10 miles of natural-surface trails suitable for hiking, running, and cycling. Three historic interpretive trails are each approximately half a mile long. This makes it possible to distinguish the driving tour, natural-surface trails, and shorter interpretive trails by their described formats and lengths, without assuming a particular walking time.

Museums, Tours, and Events

A tour of the Blandford Church Museum introduces its history as an 18th-century Anglican church and its use as a field hospital during the Siege of Petersburg. The museum’s decorative stained-glass windows were designed and installed entirely under the direction of Louis Comfort Tiffany of New York. South Side Depot, Virginia’s oldest surviving railroad station, has a gallery space featuring rotating exhibitions by local and regional artists.

The Farmers Bank of Petersburg was built in 1817. A tour includes the original vault and safe, a printing press, teller windows, and other artifacts. If you plan to take this tour, check opening hours before your visit. The Battle of Petersburg Rev War Re-enactment takes place every April at Battersea; it is worth checking the current events calendar before your trip.

Discover more destinations: Petersburg

Go to the main travel overview: Petersburg.