National Monuments - Richmond NBP

Richmond NBP

Union cannon atop Malvern Hill

Richmond National Battlefield Park, Virginia

on a 4-Star Scale

The Monument Richmond National Battlefield Park consists of several units in and around Richmond, Virginia which protect the locations of key Civil War battles for the Confederate capitol city. The park is also home to four national cemeteries.

Our Visit We visited Richmond NBP in June 2008 during a visit to see family in the area.

Our Weather Partly cloudy and humid with a temperature in the upper 80s.

Overall Impression Richmond NBP is not flashy like a lot of other parks. In fact, unless you're looking for it, you'd probably drive right by. If you are looking, though, you will see hundreds of historical markers detailing the numerous battles and events surrounding Richmond during the Civil War. Because so much has grown up in this area over the past 150 years, you have to use a little imagination to see what it must have been like for the tens of thousands of Union and Confederate troops that fought and died here, but the NPS has done a good job of telling the story here with a few maps, models and displays augmenting the numerous signs.

Glendale National Cemetary

Visiting Unless you're a local or an avid Civil War buff, your visit to Richmond NBP will probably be a "drive by" like ours. We had an extra 90 minutes before we had to catch a flight, so we chose to visit the Glendale/Malvern Hill section of the park about 20 minutes from the airport. This is the largest of several sections scattered around the city. The visitors center is small, but the NPS volunteers are very helpful in orienting visitors to the local battles with the aid of a neat 3-D map with moving lights to show the evolution of the Malvern Hill battle. Glendale is also home to one of four national cemeteries at Richmond NBP, so my son and I spent a few minutes visiting the grave of a local soldier and Medal of Honor winner killed in Vietnam before driving down the road to Malvern Hill where there are some cannons set up.

For the die-hard Civil War buffs, on a full-day visit, you can hit most (or even all) of the 13 sites that make up the park. The NPS recommends you start at the Civil War Visitors Center in downtown Richmond. This was the site of the Tredegar Iron Works which produced more than 1,000 cannon during the war. From there, there is an 80-mile route mapped out to see the other sites including Cold Harbor, Chickahominy Bluff, Drewry's Bluff and Fort Harrison.

Other Nearby Attractions Petersberg National Battlefield

Official NPS Website Richmond NBP

Photos Click on thumbnails to view larger image

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Markers such as this one dot the landscape and give brief descriptions of action around Richmond. This one marks Malvern Hill where Union forces held off waves of Confederate charges with well-placed artillery.

The Malvern Hill visitors center explains the nearby battles using this nifty 3D map. The lines of colored lights move and flash along with the audio commentary to give visitors a better feel for the battles.