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Richmond, Virginia History

Greater Richmond's 400-year history marks it as a special place, home to museums, monuments, battlefields, and historic homes commemorating its rich past and the role it played in the development of the United States.

The second English colony in America was established in 1611 at the City of Henricus in Chesterfield County. Pocahontas lived here. Patrick Henry said, “Give me liberty or give me death...” at Richmond’s St. John’s Church, one step toward the American Revolution. Thomas Jefferson designed the Virginia state capitol, in the heart of downtown Richmond. The capital of the Confederacy was located here. Two presidents, James Monroe and John Tyler, and numerous other distinguished figures are buried here at Hollywood Cemetery. Many more distinguished people have lived and made history here, including Edgar Allen Poe and Arthur Ashe, and more will undoubtedly contribute to the long-standing tradition of excellence.

Greater Richmond features over 130 sites on the National Register of Historic Places and scores of additional historic districts.

Richmond, Virginia Nowadays

Today, Greater Richmond, Virginia is a dynamic hub of national and international business. Eleven Fortune 1000 companies have their corporate headquarters here. Other internationally acclaimed companies such as Capital One, DuPont, and Hewlett-Packard represent the diversity of industries that thrive here. From biotechnology research to finance, insurance and services, the Richmond region is host and home to some of the world's most successful businesses. 

Virginia has dominated the Forbes.com and CNBC.com best state for business studies, placing either first or second since 2006. The reviews examine multiple objective measurements, including business cost, regulatory climate, quality of the workforce, and economic growth.

It's easy to see the future from here.