"House of Justice". Charles City Courthouse. Charles City, Virginia
Leica MM1; 7Artisans 28mm f1.4
Background (continued): In post #4479 on this page, I mentioned the history of the Nance-Major store which eventually became Cul's Courthouse Grill (shown), named for it's location directly across the street from the famed Civil War era courthouse which is now on the National Register of Historical Places and has just recently undergone restoration. Although the name Charles City implies a growing metropolis, the word "city" in this case is anything but. The center of this history laden crossroad has one eatery (Cul's), the courthouse, a house of worship and recently added library and social support facilities.
In January 1781, General Benedict Arnold (yes that Benedict Arnold) sent the Queen's Rangers to attack the Virginia militia at the Charles City Courthouse where many lost their lives in that attack.
It was during the America Revolution, that soldiers enlisted here (at the courthouse) to join the Continental Army. When the war ended, disabled warriors and their widows came to collect their pensions.
During the Civil War, Charles City lay between the two armies, the confederate Army of Northern Virginia, which safeguarded the Confederate Capital "Richmond", which was approx. 30miles due east and the Union Army of the Potomac. In 1862, 60,000 troops of the Union Army marched to the Charles City Courthouse and encamped there before heading to nearby historic Williamsburg, the colonial village and Governors Palace during revolutionary times.
Eventually many of the Virginia Cavalry were captured in a surprise attack by Union soldiers at the courthouse and once again the courthouse passed into the hands of the Northern Army when General Grant moved 115,000 men across nearby territory in a lightning fast raids. Throughout the war, Charles City passed in and out of the hands of both armies but unfortunately occupation of the Charles city area saw the burning and distruction of the tavern, nearby buildings and records.
The Capital to Capital Trail (which runs contiguously from "The South's" Civil War Capital, Richmond Va. to the Colonel Capital of Jamestown Va.) is used by hikers, cyclists, and others, and passes directly in front of the original courthouse. Paralleling the Cap to Cap trail is motor Route 5, a two lane auto road, which has seen troops movement and battles from revolutionary times thru the Civil War and beyond and historical markers now dot the landscape along this journey with putouts for motorcyclists and motorists to stop along the way. A number of Presidential homes or Presidential birthplaces and also well known southern Plantations (many depicted in motion pictures) can also be found along route 5. Some of these plantations have recently become wineries.
Dave (D&A)