Exploring Fredericksburg

Exploring > Fredericksburg

Communities around the Old Dominion in detail

HISTORIC CROSSROADS

Gateway to North and South is its own destination

Antique stores, art galleries and fine cuisine. Walking in George Washington's footsteps. Kayaking, canoeing and fishing the Rappahannock River.

A RICH HISTORY

War, prosperity, a river and a road

This city is not just the Civil War. It's the American story. Famed Jamestown explorer Captain John Smith was among the first English-speaking people who ventured to the region.

A MENU OF CHOICES

Restaurants for many appetites

As you cruise through the area on Interstate 95, your stomach starts to rumble. Highway signs tout Cracker Barrel, Waffle House, Friendly's and the usual fast-food lineup.

LIFESTYLE OF THE CITY

A small-town feel feels good

Smack in the middle of Virginia's fastest-growing region, Fredericksburg retains a small-town feel.

RAPPAHANNOCK RIVER

From commerce to recreation

Like many cities that have grown up around water, Fredericksburg has a complex and evolving relationship with the river that runs through it.

GOLF

Fredericksburg is a golfing hotspot

Two types of battlegrounds exist in the Fredericksburg area: the hallowed grounds where Confederates and Yankees fought and the green space where golfers shoot for birdies and pars.

LIBERAL-ARTS COLLEGE REACHES OUT

UMW gains stature with its deep thinkers

Ranked among the region's best master's universities, University of Mary Washington's reputation is growing.

CREATIVE VIBE

Arts, music scenes flourish

Elizabeth Seaver found her calling as an artist after her husband's job was transferred from Houston to Fredericksburg six years ago.

DARK AND BLOODY GROUND

Inevitable fate during Civil War

The world is filled with places torn by the violence of war. During the American Civil War, that place was Fredericksburg, shredded by a cannonade that was a prelude for more.

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE

'America's Most Historic City'? Hmmm

"America's Most Historic City," a debatable distinction but one ascribed partly to its wealth of historic sites and architecture. Take the home of Fredericksburg Circuit Court, designed in the French Gothic style by James Renwick, who later designed the Smithsonian Castle and New York's St. Patrick's Cathedral it was completed in 1852.

BUSINESS

Proximity to military bases and strong retail, tourism help fuel growth in the city

When Quarles Petroleum decided to move to Fredericksburg and remodel the old Pratt Medical Center, the company wanted to bring a piece of history with it.

SHOPPING

Antiques part of Fredericksburg's small-town feel

When most people think of antiques, they think of items such as furniture, glassware and china. They don't think of a sprig of boxwood.

TIME CAPSULES

Coin toss inspired bets and debates

In 1936, Fredericksburg gave a spectacular, daylong celebration for George Washington's 204th birthday. Former Washington Senators pitcher Walter "Big Train" Johnson attempted Washington's legendary toss of a silver dollar across the Rappahannock River.

HISTORY

City has plenty of famous sons and daughters

Fredericksburg has ties to many people whose actions burned brightly on the national stage.

DINING

'Mom' knows - but don't ask

Don't ask Mary Brown how old she is, or what she puts in the coleslaw dressing, or anytying about the carefully guarded barbecue-sauce recipe at Allman's. But she doesn't mind telling you that she has made an estimated 8.6 million sandwiches.

LOCAL INSTITUTIONS

Milkshakes, anyone? Or a cheap chili dog?

Eight-year-old Caroline Smith was not trying to pick one Fredericksburg institution over another when she and her grandmother split a vanilla milkshake. They stopped recently at Goolrick's Pharmacy but would have been just as happy at Carl's Frozen Custard.

About Explore Fredericksburg

Exploring Fredericksburg is part of an occasional series of special limited-distribution sections that explore communities around the Old Dominion in detail.

www.fredericksburg.com

www.fredericksburgva.gov

University of Mary Washington

Fredericksburg timeline

1676 - The General Assembly establishes a fort on the Rappahannock River, just below present-day Fredericksburg.

1720 - The General Assembly forms Spotsylvania County from parts of Essex, King William and King and Queen counties. Spotsylvania County is named for Gov. Alexander Spotswood.

1727 - The town of Fredericksburg is established in Spotsylvania County and named for Frederick, Prince of Wales. The town consists of 64 lots and a public square.

1732 - The Spotsylvania County Court is moved to Fredericksburg. Fredericksburg will serve as county seat until 1780.

1742 - Augustine Washington, father of George Washington, is appointed trustee of the town.

1781 - The General Assembly incorporates Fredericksburg as a town, with its own court, council and mayor.

1787 - James Monroe serves as a Fredericksburg councilman. Monroe, who would become the fifth president of the United States, practiced law in Fredericksburg from 1786 until 1791.

1879 - Fredericksburg is chartered as an independent city.

1899 - The original Mary Washington Hospital opens at the corner of Sophia and Fauquier streets.

1912 - Fredericksburg adopts a city-manager form of government.

1942 - The Rappahannock River rises 41 feet above normal during October in the worst flood in the city's history. About 6,000 of Fredericksburg's 10,000 residents report to the courthouse for typhoid immunizations.

1948 - Gladys W. Cocke is elected to the Fredericksburg City Council, the first woman elected to a city council in Virginia.

1964 - The final Richmond-to-Washington leg of Interstate 95 opens through Fredericksburg. The 20-mile stretch of road reaches from U.S. 1 in Spotsylvania County to the northern end of Stafford County.

1966 - The Rev. Lawrence A. Davies is the first black elected a councilman in Fredericksburg. Davies was elected mayor in 1976 and served in that post for 20 years before retiring in 1996.

1971 - A 40-block section of Fredericksburg, including the entire downtown area, is named to the National Register of Historic Places.

SOURCES: Times-Dispatch archives, www.fredericksburg.com, www.nps.gov, "Historic Fredericksburg: The Story of an Old Town" by John T. Goolrick