GPS City GuideCharlottesvilleAlbemarle County Courthouse Historic District

Stop 2 of 23 · Charlottesville audio walking tour

Albemarle County Courthouse Historic District

Court Square · 1803 · Federal-style courthouse north wing

What you'll hear here: about 90 seconds on Albemarle County Courthouse Historic District — how it came to be, who it mattered to, and what to look for while you're standing in front of it.

Your path leads to the Albemarle County Courthouse Historic District, centered on Court Square. This is a place made of 22 contributing buildings and a single contributing object: the Thomas Jonathan Jackson sculpture. The original section of the courthouse was built in 1803 in the Federal style and survives today as the north wing.

The courthouse itself is a two-story, five-bay, T-shaped brick building, set beneath a Greek Revival style portico that greets you from the square. As you turn, you can name the neighboring landmarks listed with it: the Levy Opera House (c. 1851), Number Nothing (c.

1820), the Redland Club (c. 1832), and the Eagle Tavern. This collection of buildings was recognized together when the district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, and later incorporated into the larger Charlottesville and Albemarle County Courthouse Historic District in 1982.

Imagine the layers of civic life these facades have held; imagine too that there are measured drawings and data pages recorded for the courthouse at the Historic American Buildings Survey. Your eyes can travel now from the courthouse to the opera house, the tavern, and the Jackson sculpture that anchor this district.

Where it is

Coordinates
38.03194, -78.47722
Area
Court Square
Era
1803 · Federal-style courthouse north wing
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Three stops free. No account needed. The audio plays itself as you walk.