As its name indicates, the Government Center station on the GRTC Pulse bus route is located in the hub of government offices in the Richmond area. From local city government to state and federal offices, this station is where the business of government happens.
Virginia State Capitol and Executive Mansion:
Virginia State Capitol, post-1905 (The Valentine, Cook Collection)
Virginia Governor’s Mansion, 1880s (The Valentine, Cook Collection)A one-block walk south on Ninth Street will lead you to Capitol Square, an urban park that is home to the Virginia State Capitol and Executive Mansion. The 1788 Capitol, designed by Thomas Jefferson based on a Roman temple in southern France, was the original inspiration for the use of neoclassical architecture in government buildings throughout the United States. The Federal-style Executive Mansion dates to 1813 and is the nation’s oldest Governor’s Mansion in continuous use. A stroll around Capitol Square reveals a number of monuments commemorating important Virginia historical figures, including the George Washington Equestrian Statue (1858), the Virginia Civil Rights Memorial (2008), “Mantle” (2018), which honors Virginia’s Native American tribes, and the Virginia Women’s Monument, “Voices from the Garden” (2019). Free guided tours of the Capitol are offered daily at the underground Visitor’s Center on Bank Street. Free guided tours of the first floor of the Executive Mansion are offered on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. (Virginia State Capitol Visitor’s Center, 1000 Bank St., 0.2 miles. Access the Executive Mansion via Capitol Square, Ninth and Grace streets, 0.2 miles.)
Explore More of the Past for Government Center!
Estimated Time: 4.5 hours
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