South of the James, between the Mayo Bridge and the Robert E. Lee Bridge in downtown Richmond, Virginia, the neighborhood of Manchester is a thriving, industrial, working-class area. The site of restaurants, breweries, and numerous apartment complexes, Manchester’s urban character and its history, are reflected in many of its inlying buildings, structures, recreational trails, and other areas. This tour, with assistance from local museums and websites, will help history continue to emerge. Long known to many Richmonders as “Southside,” Manchester was once a town in Chesterfield County and later an independent city. Today, it s a place where the past is learning to exist in harmony with the future. 

This blog and tour exist to bring that past world back to life. It will cover the Civil War and Reconstruction-era history of the formerly independent city of Manchester, Virginia. No other websites or blogs have been solely devoted to this important time and municipality, despite its proximity to the Confederate Capital and vital contributions to the war effort. The website civilwarrichmond.com and The Valentine’s 2017 exhibit Manchester: From Sister City to South Richmond have greatly influenced Dogtown Manchester, as has the 1993 book Old Manchester and its Environs, 1769-1910, by Benjamin B. Weisiger III. My intention is to reintroduce the world to the class divide inherent in nineteenth-century Manchester and, in doing so, help guests to better understand how far the neighborhood has come in recent years, and where it should go from here.

Stops on the tour include Mayo’s bridge; the Manchester Docks, site of Confederate Navy Yard and currently the Richmond Slave Trail; the Manchester Courthouse, the Maury and Mt. Olivet Cemetery, and the neighborhood of ‘Old Manchester,’ former site of the First Baptist Church of South Richmond, as well as that of the Manchester Masonic Lodge No. 14.

A city is a living, breathing thing, and covering each item, subject, person, photograph, structure, and so forth allows for a deeper understanding of each subject at every stop. This tour and blog will strive to present the best of both approaches. The history of Manchester, “southside” Richmond, and Chesterfield County is rich and this will be an ongoing project. At this writing, I intend to present one new post per week discussing and analyzing the parts of the area’s story which are not as well known in the twenty-first century. 

The Library of Virginia, the Valentine Museum, the Virginia Museum of History and Culture, James Branch Cabell Library at Virginia Commonwealth University, and the Richmond Railroad Museum have already proven invaluable resources for this project and will continue to, I’m sure. The project will rely and has already relied on maps, letters, newspapers, photographs, directories, diaries, and other online records. I want to thank them all, especially Dr. Daniel Morales, Ph.D my faculty mentor, and John Glover at the VCU Library, for providing research assistance and resources. I am enjoying the journey already, and am grateful for their wisdom! 

Let’s Get Started! 

Elliott Martin 

Richmond, Virginia

April 2025.