Lynchburg

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Lynchburg lies in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains along the banks of the James River, located 56 miles from Charlottesville in a southwest direction. Colloquial know as the "City of Seven Hills" or the "Hill City," Lynchburg is also known locally as the "City in the Woods"; nearby cities include Roanoke, Charlottesville, and Danville.

Traveling by car, following the US-29 route, the 68 mile drive from Charlottesville and Lynchburg is 1 hour 12 minutes, if driven non-stop. There are 2 daily trains from Lynchburg to Charlottesville; traveling by rail from Lynchburg to Charlottesville usually takes around one hour and 10 minutes; the Amtrak Crescent train can make the trip in one hour and 8 minutes.

History

Lynchburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in Campbell County. It was named for John Lynch, the owner of the original town site. It was established in 1786, was incorporated as a town in 1805, and became a city in 1852. Area: 49.4 square miles. Population: 65,269 (2000), 73,933 (2009 estimate).

Poplar Forest

Located 10 miles west of Lynchburg, Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826) designed Poplar Forest as his retreat from his larger estate at Monticello; making the three-day trip on horseback or in a carriage each April. When construction began at Poplar Forest in 1806, Jefferson was still President of the United States. Beginning in 1810, Jefferson annually took the seventy-mile route from Monticello in Albemarle County to Poplar Forest in Bedford County. Jefferson died in 1826 having made his last visit to Poplar Forest in 1823. Poplar Forest was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1971.

Civil War

During the Civil War, Lynchburg served as a Confederate transportation hub and supply depot. It had 30 hospitals, often placed in churches, hotels, and private homes.

State highway system

In the 1960's, Lynchburg politicians thought President Kennedy had altered the state Highway Commission decision because his state campaign manager had requested the route benefit his home town of Charlottesville. Today, Lynchburg is the largest city in Virginia not located on an interstate highway. [1]

References

  1. "Charlottesville Won, and Lynchburg Lost; Routing of I-64 Was Major Tussle," Richmond Times-Dispatch, June 13, 1999, p.C6

External Links