Library of Virginia: Self-Guided Audio Tours

Welcome to Richmond, Virginia's centuries-old capital city! This self-guided audio tour will walk you through its present telling about its glorious past. You will start the tour by checking out the primary manufacturer of military equipment during the Civil War, the Tredegar Iron Works. Next, head over to Brown's Island, enjoy the city's green oasis, and find out Richmond's fate in the Civil War, and why canals were so important to Virginia. Off the riverside, at the Shockoe Slip Historic District, you will reimagine the newly-built Richmond after the Confederate troops burned it down to deny to the Union Army. Passing by the First Freedom Center, you will learn how Virginia's legislation inspired the US Constitution. Further along the route, the magnificent Virginia State Capitol, situated atop the hill, will grab your attention and invite you to contemplate iconic Virginia's Washington Monument of America’s first president, who himself posed for the sculptor. Toward the end of the tour, as you approach Washington's elegant residence, you will get introduced to John Marshall, the longest-serving chief justice in Court history. Your last stop will be the Virginia Civil Rights Monument, a bronze and marble sculpture telling the story of racial segregation in Virginia's public schools. Take this tour to experience the city's dramatic yet meaningful connection with early America's history and its modern identity!