First Battalion Virginia Volunteers Armory
National Register of Historic Places

First Battalion Virginia Volunteers Armory

Richmond, Richmond County, Virginia
Listed
December 23, 2009
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
09001158

About this property

First Battalion Virginia Volunteers Armory, is a historic armory building located in Richmond, Virginia. It was built in 1895, and is a two-story. Late Victorian style brick structure. It also is known as the Leigh Street Armory, the Monroe School, and the Monroe Center. It features four brick towers, two circular turrets, a rectangular tower over the center front entrance, and a square tower, with crenellation along the roof parapet. The interior was rebuilt after a fire in 1985, and a 1940s gymnasium removed in 1998. The building originally housed the armory for an African-American militia company until 1899. It then housed a school for African-American children until World War II, when it again was used as a reception center for servicemen of color. It returned as a school for African-American children until 1954 and desegregation. For a period it housed The Black History Museum of Richmond. It is the oldest of three identified African-American armories in the country. It is currently home to the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia, which finished construction in May 2016. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009.

Location

122 W. Leigh St.
Richmond, Richmond County, Virginia
37.55008, -77.44138

Categories

BLACKARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Jackson Ward Historic District (Boundary Increase)
Civil War
0.1 mi
Jackson Ward Historic District
Listed
0.2 mi
Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church
Industrial
0.2 mi
Steamer Company Number 5
Industrial
0.2 mi
Baker Public School
Industrial
0.2 mi

Nearby Battles

Dahlgren Raid (Richmond Raid)
1864Civil War
0.7 mi
Kilpatrick-Dahlgren Raid
1864Civil War
0.7 mi
Battle of Bloody Run
1656Colonial
0.7 mi

Questions about this property

When was First Battalion Virginia Volunteers Armory listed on the National Register?

First Battalion Virginia Volunteers Armory was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 23, 2009.

What type of historic resource is First Battalion Virginia Volunteers Armory?

First Battalion Virginia Volunteers Armory is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for First Battalion Virginia Volunteers Armory?

The period of significance for First Battalion Virginia Volunteers Armory is recorded as the industrial era, specifically around 1895.

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