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Charlottesville, colloquially known as C'ville, is an
independent city An independent city or independent town is a city or town that does not form part of another general-purpose local government entity (such as a province). Historical precursors In the Holy Roman Empire, and to a degree in its successor states ...
in the Commonwealth of
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
. It is the
county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...
of
Albemarle County Albemarle County is a county located in the Piedmont region of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Its county seat is Charlottesville, which is an independent city and enclave entirely surrounded by the county. Albemarle County is part of the Char ...
, which surrounds the city, though the two are separate legal entities. It is named after
Queen Charlotte Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (Sophia Charlotte; 19 May 1744 – 17 November 1818) was Queen of Great Britain and of Ireland as the wife of King George III from their marriage on 8 September 1761 until the union of the two kingdoms ...
. At the 2020 census, the population was 46,553. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the City of Charlottesville with Albemarle County for statistical purposes, bringing its population to approximately 150,000. Charlottesville is the heart of the Charlottesville metropolitan area, which includes Albemarle, Buckingham, Fluvanna,
Greene Greene may refer to: Places United States *Greene, Indiana, an unincorporated community *Greene, Iowa, a city *Greene, Maine, a town ** Greene (CDP), Maine, in the town of Greene *Greene (town), New York ** Greene (village), New York, in the town ...
, and
Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...
counties. Charlottesville was the home of two
presidents President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
,
Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...
and
James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American statesman, lawyer, diplomat, and Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. A member of the Democratic-Republican Party, Monroe was ...
. During their terms as
Governor of Virginia The governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia serves as the head of government of Virginia for a four-year term. The incumbent, Glenn Youngkin, was sworn in on January 15, 2022. Oath of office On inauguration day, the Governor-elect takes th ...
, they lived in Charlottesville, and traveled to and from Richmond, along the historic Three Notch'd Road.
Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...
, located northeast of the city, was the hometown of President
James Madison James Madison Jr. (March 16, 1751June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father. He served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison is hailed as the "Father of the Constitution" for h ...
. The
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...
, founded by Jefferson, straddles the city's southwestern border. Jefferson's home,
Monticello Monticello ( ) was the primary plantation of Founding Father Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, who began designing Monticello after inheriting land from his father at age 26. Located just outside Charlottesville, V ...
, southeast of the city, is, along with the University of Virginia, a
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
, attracting thousands of tourists every year.


History

At the time of European settlement, part of the area that became Charlottesville was occupied by a Monacan village called ''Monasukapanough''.


Founding

An Act of the Assembly of Albemarle County established Charlottesville in 1762. Thomas Walker was named its first trustee. It was situated along a trade route called Three Notched Road (present day U.S. Route 250), which led from Richmond to the Great Valley. The town took its name from the British queen
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (Sophia Charlotte; 19 May 1744 – 17 November 1818) was Queen of Great Britain and of Ireland as the wife of King George III from their marriage on 8 September 1761 until the union of the two kingdoms ...
. During the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
, Congress imprisoned the Convention Army in Charlottesville at the Albemarle Barracks between 1779 and 1781. The Governor and legislators had to temporarily abandon the capitol and on June 4, 1781, Jack Jouett warned the Virginia Legislature meeting at
Monticello Monticello ( ) was the primary plantation of Founding Father Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, who began designing Monticello after inheriting land from his father at age 26. Located just outside Charlottesville, V ...
of a planned raid by Colonel
Banastre Tarleton Sir Banastre Tarleton, 1st Baronet, GCB (21 August 175415 January 1833) was a British general and politician. He is best known as the lieutenant colonel leading the British Legion at the end of the American Revolution. He later served in Portu ...
, allowing a narrow escape.


Civil War and Reconstruction

Unlike much of Virginia, Charlottesville was spared the brunt of the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
. The only battle to take place in Charlottesville was the skirmish at Rio Hill, an encounter in which
George Armstrong Custer George Armstrong Custer (December 5, 1839 – June 25, 1876) was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the American Indian Wars. Custer graduated from West Point in 1861 at the bottom of his class, b ...
briefly engaged local Confederate Home Guards before retreating. A year later, the Charlottesville Factory, founded c. 1820–30, was accidentally burnt during General
Philip Sheridan General of the Army Philip Henry Sheridan (March 6, 1831 – August 5, 1888) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close as ...
's 1865 raid through the Shenandoah Valley, although the mayor had surrendered the city to Generals Custer and Sheridan to keep the town from being burned. The factory had been taken over by the Confederacy and used to manufacture woolen clothing for the soldiers. It caught fire when some coals taken by Union troops to burn the nearby railroad bridge dropped on the floor. The factory was rebuilt immediately and was known as the Woolen Mills until its liquidation in 1962. After the Civil War, emancipated slaves who remained in Charlottesville established communities in neighborhoods such as Vinegar Hill.


Segregation and Jim Crow laws

After Reconstruction ended, Charlottesville's African American population suffered under
Jim Crow laws The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws enforcing racial segregation in the Southern United States. Other areas of the United States were affected by formal and informal policies of segregation as well, but many states outside the Sout ...
that segregated public places and limited opportunity. Schools were racially segregated and African Americans were not served in many local businesses. Public parks were planned separately for the white and African American populations: four for whites, and one for African Americans built on the site of a former dump. The Ku Klux Klan had chapters in the Charlottesville area beginning at least in the early twentieth century, and events such as lynchings and
cross burning In modern times, cross burning or cross lighting is a practice which is associated with the Ku Klux Klan. However, it was practiced long before the Klan's inception. Since the early 20th century, the Klan burned crosses on hillsides as a way to ...
s occurred in the Charlottesville area. In 1898, Charlottesville resident John Henry James was lynched in the nearby town of Ivy. In August 1950, three white men were observed burning a cross on Cherry Avenue, a street in a mostly
African-American neighborhood African-American neighborhoods or black neighborhoods are types of ethnic enclaves found in many cities in the United States. Generally, an African American neighborhood is one where the majority of the people who live there are African American ...
in Charlottesville. It was speculated that the cross burning might be a reaction to "a white man hohad been known to socialize with one of the young Negro women in that vicinity." In 1956, crosses were burned outside a progressive church and the home of white integration activist Sarah Patton Boyle. In 1947, Charlottesville organized a local NAACP branch. In 2001, the Charlottesville and Albemarle Branches of the NAACP merged to form the Albemarle-Charlottesville NAACP Branch. In the fall of 1958, Charlottesville closed its segregated white schools as part of Virginia's strategy of massive resistance to federal court orders requiring integration as part of the implementation of the Supreme Court of the United States decision ''
Brown v. Board of Education ''Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka'', 347 U.S. 483 (1954), was a landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the segrega ...
''. The closures were required by a new series of state laws collectively known as the Stanley Plan, which prohibited and denied funding to integrated public schools. Segregated schools remained open, however. The first African-American member of the Charlottesville School Board was Raymond Bell in 1963. In 1963, later than many Southern cities, civil rights activists in Charlottesville began protesting segregated restaurants with sit-ins, such as one that occurred at Buddy's Restaurant near the University of Virginia.


Recent history

In 1965, the city government razed the downtown African American neighborhood Vinegar Hill as an
urban renewal Urban renewal (also called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address urban decay in cities. Urban renewal involves the clearing out of blighte ...
project, after the city council passing a law that "unsanitary and unsafe" properties could be taken over by a
housing authority A housing authority or ministry of housing is generally a governmental body that governs aspects of housing or (called in general " shelter" or "living spaces"), often providing low rent or free apartments to qualified residents. The existence o ...
. One hundred thirty homes, five Black-owned businesses, and a church were destroyed. Many displaced community members moved into the Westhaven public housing project. The land was not redeveloped until the late 1970s. Despite razing this small area comprising about 20 acres abutting West Main Street in the city's commercial downtown area, Charlottesville maintained its vibrant black community spanning the much larger and still extant Ridge Street and Fifeville neighborhoods to the south, and the Tenth & Page and Rose Hill neighborhoods to the north. Neighborhood civic associations, social clubs and church groups sponsored activities for its residents. The Blue Mints Social Club met at the home of Mrs. Reva Shelton on December 1, 1974. At this meeting, the group planned their annual "Baskets of Cheer," hosted a Cabaret Dance on New Year's Eve at Carver Recreation Center, with the Randolph Brothers performing. In 1974, other social clubs listed are the Bethune Art and Literary Club, The Lucky Twenty Club, and the Les Amies Club.


Conflict over Confederate symbols

Starting in the 2010s Charlottesville received national attention because of local conflict between those who do and those who do not want Confederate symbols removed. ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' has reported that "Nowhere has this clash been more fraught than in Charlottesville, where parks have been renamed, then renamed again, streets have been re-christened, and stickers bearing white supremacist slogans go up as quickly as activists can remove them." City attempts to remove statues of Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson from downtown parks have been the subject of extensive, unresolved litigation. In August 2017,
white supremacist White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White s ...
groups opposed to their removal organized the "
Unite the Right rally The Unite the Right rally was a white supremacist rally that took place in Charlottesville, Virginia, from August 11 to 12, 2017. Marchers included members of the alt-right, neo-Confederates, neo-fascists, white nationalists, neo-Nazis, ...
", to protest against the removal of the ''Robert E. Lee'' statue from then Lee Park, subsequently renamed Emancipation Park. After the rally, a white nationalist drove a car into protesters, resulting in the death of counter-protester Heather Heyer and causing injuries to 19 others.Joe Heim, Ellie Silverman, T. Rees Shapiro & Emma Brown (August 12, 2017)
"One dead as car strikes crowds amid protests of white nationalist gathering in Charlottesville; two police die in helicopter crash"
, ''The Washington Post''.
The incident became national news and Charlottesville became a symbol of political turbulence nationwide. The city succeeded in the removal of the Lee and Jackson statues on July 10, 2021, in addition to a statue of Lewis and Clark and Sacajawea. On July 1, 2019, the Charlottesville City Council voted 4 to 1 to drop Thomas Jefferson's birthday as a city holiday; according to news stories, this was because Jefferson was a slave owner. In a separate vote, they unanimously created a new day of celebration called Liberation and Freedom Day, to be celebrated on March 3, the day in 1865 when Gen.
Philip Sheridan General of the Army Philip Henry Sheridan (March 6, 1831 – August 5, 1888) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close as ...
's troops rolled through town and found a population that was majority enslaved - and although emancipation for most of them didn't occur on that day, it was the opening salvo for a lot of Charlottesvillians' freedom.


Slave auction block

A small plaque in a downtown sidewalk marked the site of Charlottesville's slave auction block. In 2020 it was removed by a private individual, who said he did so because, in his opinion, "slaves and their descendants deserved a more prominent memorial", and was frustrated by inaction from the Charlottesvile city government.


Religious history

Christ Episcopal Church was Charlottesville's first church. It was begun in 1820 by builders on loan from Thomas Jefferson, and the congregation's current home was completed in the early 1900s. The first black church in Charlottesville, the First Baptist Church of Charlottesville, was established in 1864. Previously, it was illegal for African-Americans to have their own churches, although they were allowed to worship in designated areas in white churches, if the white church members allowed it. Its first black pastor (previously, it was required by law that all churches have white pastors), was William D. Gibbons. The date he became pastor is not known with certainty, but was about 1868. A current predominantly African-American church can trace its lineage to that first church. Congregation Beth Israel's 1882 building is the oldest synagogue building still standing in Virginia. In 1974, some of the Baptist churches in Charlottesville included the Union Run Baptist Church, the South Garden Baptist Church, and the Ebenezer Baptist Church. The first
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
church in Charlottesville was the Church of the Paraclete, built in 1880 and erected as a parish in 1896. In 1906 the church building was renovated and the parish was renamed to Holy Comforter. A second parish was erected for the growing Catholic population in 1976 called the Church of the Incarnation. In 1967 a Dominican-run parish for Catholic students at the University of Virginia was dedicated (replacing a Newman Center begun in 1943), and named St. Thomas Aquinas University Parish. The first Mass of record in Charlottesville was celebrated in the parlor of F. M. Paoli's residence, presumably on Random Row, now West Main Street. Services were held for about 12 years after that in the Town Hall. The presiders were priests who came from St. Francis Assisi Church in Staunton and then traveled on to other missions in the area.


Geography

According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...
, the city has a total area of , virtually all of which is land. Charlottesville is located in the center of the Commonwealth of Virginia along the
Rivanna River The Rivanna River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the James River in central Virginia in the United States. The Rivanna's tributaries or ...
, a tributary of the James, just west of the Southwest Mountains, itself paralleling the Blue Ridge about to the west. Charlottesville is from
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
and from Richmond.


Climate

Charlottesville has a four-season humid subtropical climate (
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
''Cfa''), with all months being well-watered, though the period from May to September is the wettest. Winters are somewhat cool, with a January average of , though lows can fall into the teens (< −7 °C) on some nights and highs frequently (11 days in January) reach . Spring and autumn provide transitions of reasonable length. Summers are hot and humid, with July averaging and the high exceeding on 34.4 or more days per year. Snowfall is highly variable from year to year but is normally moderate, averaging . What does fall does not remain on the ground for long. Extremes have ranged from on January 19, 1994, up to , most recently on September 7, 1954. ''Notes'':


Demographics


2020 census

''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.''


2010 Census

As of the
census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...
of 2010, there were 43,475 people, 17,778 households, and 7,518 families residing in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...
was 4,220.8 people per square mile (1,629.5/km2). There were 19,189 housing units. The racial makeup of the city was 69.1%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...
, 19.4% Black American, 0.3% Native American, 6.4% Asian, 1.8% from
other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 3.0% from two or more races. 5.1% of the population were Hispanics or Latinos of any race. There were 17,778 households, out of which 17.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 28.1% were married couples living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 57.7% were non-families. 34.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.91. The age distribution was 14.9% under the age of 18, 24.3% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 18.8% from 45 to 64, and 9.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 27.8 years. The population was 52.3% female and 47.7% male. The city's low median age and the "bulge" in the 18-to-24 age group are both due to the presence of the
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...
. The median income for a household in the city was $44,535, and the median income for a family was $63,934. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...
for the city was $26,049. About 10.5% of families and 27.3% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including 15.8% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over. 20% of Charlottesville residents have a graduate or professional degree, compared with 10% in the United States as a whole.http://virginialmi.com/report_center/community_profiles/5104000540.pdf Federally, Charlottesville is part of
Virginia's 5th congressional district Virginia’s fifth congressional district is a United States congressional district in the commonwealth of Virginia. The district is based in Southside Virginia and is heavily rural in character. It is Virginia's largest district with an area o ...
, represented by Republican Bob Good, elected in 2020.


Crime

The city of Charlottesville has an overall
crime rate Crime statistics refer to systematic, quantitative results about crime, as opposed to crime news or anecdotes. Notably, crime statistics can be the result of two rather different processes: * scientific research, such as criminological studies, vi ...
higher than the national average, which tends to be a typical pattern for urban areas of the
Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...
. The total
crime index Crime statistics refer to systematic, quantitative results about crime, as opposed to crime news or anecdotes. Notably, crime statistics can be the result of two rather different processes: * scientific research, such as criminological studies, vi ...
for Charlottesville was 487.9
crimes In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...
committed per 100,000 citizens for the year of 2006; the national average for the United States was 320.9 crimes committed per 100,000 citizens. For the year of 2006, Charlottesville ranked higher on all
violent crime A violent crime, violent felony, crime of violence or crime of a violent nature is a crime in which an offender or perpetrator uses or threatens to use harmful force upon a victim. This entails both crimes in which the violent act is the objecti ...
s except for robbery; the city ranked lower in all categories of
property crime Property crime is a category of crime, usually involving private property, that includes, among other crimes, burglary, larceny, theft, motor vehicle theft, arson, shoplifting, and vandalism. Property crime is a crime to obtain money, property, o ...
s except for
larceny Larceny is a crime involving the unlawful taking or theft of the personal property of another person or business. It was an offence under the common law of England and became an offence in jurisdictions which incorporated the common law of Eng ...
theft Theft is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal shorthand term for som ...
. In 2013 there were a total of 371 crimes reported; of these 38 were
violent crime A violent crime, violent felony, crime of violence or crime of a violent nature is a crime in which an offender or perpetrator uses or threatens to use harmful force upon a victim. This entails both crimes in which the violent act is the objecti ...
s and 333 were
property crime Property crime is a category of crime, usually involving private property, that includes, among other crimes, burglary, larceny, theft, motor vehicle theft, arson, shoplifting, and vandalism. Property crime is a crime to obtain money, property, o ...
s. A downward trend in the number of reported crimes within Charlottesville occurred from 2009 up to 2013.


Economy

Charlottesville is the home of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory headquarters, the
Leander McCormick Observatory The Leander McCormick Observatory is one of the astronomical observatories operated by the Department of Astronomy of the University of Virginia, and is situated just outside Charlottesville, Virginia (US) in Albemarle County on the summit of M ...
and the CFA Institute. It is served by two area hospitals, the Martha Jefferson Hospital founded in 1903, and the University of Virginia Hospital. The
National Ground Intelligence Center The National Ground Intelligence Center (NGIC) is part of the United States Army Intelligence and Security Command. The NGIC provides scientific and technical intelligence (S&T) and general military intelligence (GMI) on foreign ground forces i ...
(NGIC) is in the Charlottesville area. Other large employers include Crutchfield, Emerson Automation Solutions, PepsiCo and SNL Financial. 18% of people employed in Charlottesville live there, while 82% commute into the city. 42% of those commuting to Charlottesville live in
Albemarle County Albemarle County is a county located in the Piedmont region of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Its county seat is Charlottesville, which is an independent city and enclave entirely surrounded by the county. Albemarle County is part of the Char ...
. Additionally, 11,497 people commute from Charlottesville outside of the city for employment. 51% of those commuting from Charlottesville work in Albemarle County. In 2016, Charlottesville had a 3.3% unemployment rate.


Largest employers

According to the city's 2019 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report the largest employers in the city are: As of 2016, 11,129 people work for the government, with 376 working for the federal government, 7,796 working for the state government, and 2,957 working for the local government.


Breweries

Charlottesville has nine breweries within or near its city limits: South Street Brewery (owned by Blue Mountain Brewery), Champion Brewing Company, Three Notch'd Brewing Company, Random Row Brewing Company, Rockfish Brewing Company, Wild Wolf Brewing Company, Pro Re Nata Brewery, Reason Beer (Albemarle), and Decipher Brewing (Albemarle). The first brewery in the city was Blue Ridge Brewery, located on West Main Street, and was owned and managed by grandchildren of writer William Faulkner. Starr Hill Brewery was originally based in Charlottesville but is today located in
Crozet, Virginia Crozet is a census-designated place (CDP) in Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It sits along the I-64 corridor, about west of Charlottesville and east of Staunton. Originally called "Wayland's Crossing," it was re ...
, 13 miles west of the city.


Attractions and culture

Charlottesville has a large series of attractions and venues for its relatively small size. Visitors come to the area for wine and beer tours, ballooning, hiking, and world-class entertainment that perform at one of the area's four larger venues. The city is both the launching pad and home of the
Dave Matthews Band Dave Matthews Band (also known by the initials DMB) is an American rock band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1991. The band's founding members were singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer and bac ...
as well as the center of a sizable indie music scene. Charlottesville hosts multiple orchestral groups including the Blue Ridge Chamber Orchestra, Youth Orchestras of Central Virginia, and the Charlottesville Symphony at the University of Virginia. The Charlottesville area was the home of
Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...
,
James Madison James Madison Jr. (March 16, 1751June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father. He served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison is hailed as the "Father of the Constitution" for h ...
, and
James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American statesman, lawyer, diplomat, and Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. A member of the Democratic-Republican Party, Monroe was ...
.
Monticello Monticello ( ) was the primary plantation of Founding Father Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, who began designing Monticello after inheriting land from his father at age 26. Located just outside Charlottesville, V ...
, Jefferson's plantation manor, is located just a few miles from downtown. The home of
James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American statesman, lawyer, diplomat, and Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. A member of the Democratic-Republican Party, Monroe was ...
,
Ash Lawn-Highland Highland, formerly Ash Lawn–Highland, located near Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, and adjacent to Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, was the estate of James Monroe, a Founding Father and fifth president of the United States. Purchased ...
, is down the road from
Monticello Monticello ( ) was the primary plantation of Founding Father Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, who began designing Monticello after inheriting land from his father at age 26. Located just outside Charlottesville, V ...
. About northeast of Charlottesville lies the home of James and
Dolley Madison Dolley Todd Madison (née Payne; May 20, 1768 – July 12, 1849) was the wife of James Madison, the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. She was noted for holding Washington social functions in which she invited members of bo ...
, Montpelier. During the summer, the Ash Lawn-Highland Opera Festival is held at the downtown Paramount Theater with a performance at Ash Lawn-Highland. The nearby
Shenandoah National Park Shenandoah National Park (often ) is an American national park that encompasses part of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The park is long and narrow, with the Shenandoah River and its broad valley to the west, and the ...
offers recreational activities, scenic mountains and hiking trails.
Skyline Drive Skyline Drive is a National Parkway that runs the entire length of the National Park Service's Shenandoah National Park in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, generally along the ridge of the mountains. The drive's northern terminus is a ...
is a scenic drive that runs the length of the park, alternately winding through thick forest and emerging upon sweeping scenic overlooks. The
Blue Ridge Parkway The Blue Ridge Parkway is a National Parkway and All-American Road in the United States, noted for its scenic beauty. The parkway, which is America's longest linear park, runs for through 29 Virginia and North Carolina counties, linking Shenan ...
, a similar scenic drive that extends south to
Great Smoky Mountains National Park Great Smoky Mountains National Park is an American national park in the southeastern United States, with parts in North Carolina and Tennessee. The park straddles the ridgeline of the Great Smoky Mountains, part of the Blue Ridge Mountains, w ...
in
North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...
, terminates at the southern entrance of Shenandoah, where it turns into Skyline Drive. This junction of the two scenic drives is only west of downtown Charlottesville. Charlottesville's downtown is a center of business for
Albemarle County Albemarle County is a county located in the Piedmont region of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Its county seat is Charlottesville, which is an independent city and enclave entirely surrounded by the county. Albemarle County is part of the Char ...
. It is home to the
Downtown Mall The Downtown Mall in Charlottesville, Virginia is one of the longest pedestrian malls in the United States. Located on Main Street, it runs from 6th St. N.E. to Old Preston Ave., where it extends to Water St., for total length of eight blocks. I ...
, one of the longest outdoor pedestrian malls in the nation, with stores, restaurants, and civic attractions. The renovated Paramount Theater hosts various events, including Broadway shows and concerts. Local theatrics downtown includes Charlottesville's community theater Live Arts. Outside downtown are the New Lyric Theatre and Heritage Repertory Theatre at UVa. Other attractions on the Downtown Mall are the Virginia Discovery Museum and a 3,500 seat outdoor amphitheater, the Ting Pavilion (formerly the Sprint Pavilion and the nTelos Wireless Pavilion). Court Square, just a few blocks from the Downtown Mall, is the original center of Charlottesville and several of the historic buildings there date back to the city's founding in 1762. Charlottesville also is home to the
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...
(most of which is legally in Albemarle County). During the academic year, more than 20,000 students pour into Charlottesville to attend the university. Its main grounds are located on the west side of Charlottesville, with
Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...
's Academical Village, known as
the Lawn The Lawn, a part of Thomas Jefferson's Academical Village, is a large, terraced grassy court at the historic center of Jefferson's academic community at the University of Virginia. The Lawn and its surrounding buildings, designed by Jefferson, dem ...
, as the centerpiece. The Lawn is a long esplanade crowned by two prominent structures, The Rotunda (designed by Jefferson) and Old Cabell Hall (designed by
Stanford White Stanford White (November 9, 1853 – June 25, 1906) was an American architect. He was also a partner in the architectural firm McKim, Mead & White, one of the most significant Beaux-Arts firms. He designed many houses for the rich, in addition ...
). Along the Lawn and the parallel Range are dormitory rooms reserved for distinguished students. The University Programs Council is a student-run body that programs concerts, comedy shows, speakers, and other events open to the students and the community, such as the annual "Lighting of the Lawn". One block from The Rotunda, the University of Virginia Art Museum exhibits work drawn from its collection of more than 10,000 objects and special temporary exhibitions from sources nationwide. It is also home to the
Judge Advocate General's Legal Center and School The Judge Advocate General's Legal Center and School, also known as The JAG School or TJAGLCS, is a graduate-level division federal service academy located on the grounds of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia. The center is ...
where all U.S. Army military lawyers, known as "JAGs", take courses specific to military law.
The Corner ''The Corner'' is a 2000 HBO drama television miniseries based on the nonfiction book '' The Corner: A Year in the Life of an Inner-City Neighborhood'' (1997) by David Simon and Ed Burns, and adapted for television by David Simon and David Mi ...
is the
commercial district A commercial district or commercial zone is any part of a city or town in which the primary land use is commercial activities ( shops, offices, theaters, restaurants and so on), as opposed to a residential neighbourhood, an industrial zone, or ...
abutting the main grounds of the University of Virginia along University Avenue. This area is full of college bars, eateries, and University merchandise stores, and is busy with student activity during the school year. Pedestrian traffic peaks during the university's home football games and graduation ceremonies. Much of the university's Greek life is on the nearby Rugby Road, contributing to the nightlife and local bar scene. West Main Street, running from the Corner to the
Downtown Mall The Downtown Mall in Charlottesville, Virginia is one of the longest pedestrian malls in the United States. Located on Main Street, it runs from 6th St. N.E. to Old Preston Ave., where it extends to Water St., for total length of eight blocks. I ...
, is a commercial district of restaurants, bars, and other businesses. Charlottesville is host to the annual
Virginia Film Festival The Virginia Film Festival is a film festival hosted by the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. The festival is held annually, usually in late October or early November. History Cr ...
in October, the Charlottesville Festival of the Photograph in June, and the Virginia Festival of the Book in March. In addition, the Foxfield Races are steeplechase races held in April and September of each year. A
Fourth of July Independence Day (colloquially the Fourth of July) is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the Declaration of Independence, which was ratified by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing the United States ...
celebration, including a Naturalization Ceremony, is held annually at Monticello, and a First Night celebration has been held on the Downtown Mall since 1982.


Sports

Charlottesville has no professional sports teams, but is home to the
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...
's athletic teams, the Cavaliers, most notably the 2019 NCAA Men's National Basketball Champions. The Cavaliers have a wide fan base throughout the region. The Cavaliers field teams in sports from soccer to basketball, and have modern facilities that draw spectators throughout the year. Cavalier football season draws the largest crowds during the academic year, with football games played in Scott Stadium. The stadium hosted large musical events, including concerts by the
Dave Matthews Band Dave Matthews Band (also known by the initials DMB) is an American rock band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1991. The band's founding members were singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer and bac ...
,
The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...
and U2.
John Paul Jones Arena John Paul Jones Arena, or JPJ, is a multi-purpose arena owned by the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia. Since November 2006, it serves as the home to the Virginia Cavaliers men's and women's basketball teams, as well as for con ...
, which opened in 2006, is the home arena of the Cavalier
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
teams, in addition to serving as a site for concerts and other events. The arena seats 14,593 for basketball. In its first season in the new arena concluded in March 2007, the Virginia men's basketball team tied with UNC for 1st in the ACC. Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball won the ACC outright in the 2013–14 season, as well as the 2014 ACC tournament. The team finished the season ranked #3 in the AP poll before losing to
Tom Izzo Tom Izzo (, ); born January 30, 1955) is an American college basketball coach who has been the head coach at Michigan State University since 1995. On April 4, 2016, Izzo was elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. Izzo has led the Spart ...
's
Spartans Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referr ...
by two points in the Sweet Sixteen held in Brooklyn, New York. The Cavaliers' men's basketball team won the NCAA championship in April, 2019.
Lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensiv ...
has become a significant part of the Charlottesville sports scene. The Virginia Men's team won their first
NCAA Championship The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and ...
in 1972; in 2006, they won their fourth National Championship and were the first team to finish undefeated in 17 games (then a record for wins). The team won its seventh National Championship in 2021. Virginia's Women's team has three
NCAA Championships The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and ...
to its credit, with wins in 1991, 1993, and 2004. The soccer program is also strong; the Men's team shared a national title with Santa Clara in 1989 and won an unprecedented four consecutive NCAA Division I Championships (1991–1994). Their coach during that period was
Bruce Arena Bruce Arena (born September 21, 1951) is an American soccer coach who is the head coach and sporting director of the New England Revolution. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame and the NJCAA Lacrosse Hall of Fame. Arena has had ...
, who later won two MLS titles at D.C. United and coached the U.S. National Team during the 2002 and 2006 World Cups. The Virginia Men's soccer team won the NCAA Championship again in both 2009 and
2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
under coach
George Gelnovatch George Gelnovatch (born February 12, 1965) is the men's soccer coach at the University of Virginia. He played professionally in the MISL I, Major Indoor Soccer League and American Professional Soccer League. As head coach, he has led Virginia Cava ...
. Virginia's
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...
team, has enjoyed a resurgence in recent years, under Head Coach Brian O'Connor, after hosting several regionals and Super Regionals in the post-season, and playing in the 2009, 2011, and 2014 College World Series. They finished as runners-up in the 2014 edition, despite outscoring Vanderbilt 17–12 in the three-game series. The team then avenged this loss the following year, beating Vanderbilt in 2015 for its first NCAA baseball title. Charlottesville area high school sports have been prominent throughout the state. Charlottesville is a hotbed for lacrosse in the country, with teams such as St. Anne's-Belfield School, The Covenant School, Tandem Friends School, Charlottesville Catholic School, Charlottesville High School, Western Albemarle High School and Albemarle High School. Charlottesville High School won the
VHSL The Virginia High School League (VHSL) is the principal sanctioning organization for interscholastic athletic competition among public high schools in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The VHSL first sponsored debate and also continues to sponsor sta ...
Group AA boys' soccer championship in 2004. St. Anne's-Belfield School won its fourth state private-school championship in ten years in football in 2006. The Covenant School won the state private-school title in boys' cross country in the 2007–2008 school year, the second win in as many years, and that year the girls' cross country team won the state title. Monticello High School won the VHSL Group AA state football title in 2007. Charlottesville High School's boys' soccer team were state champs again in 2019, when it won the VHSL Class 4A Championship. Charlottesville is also home to the Charlottesville Tom Sox of the
Valley Baseball League The Valley Baseball League is an NCAA and MLB-sanctioned collegiate summer baseball league in the Shenandoah Valley region of Virginia. The league was started in 1923 and sanctioned by the NCAA in 1961. It has been a wooden bat league since 199 ...
who won the 2017 & 2019 league championships. Their home stadium is Crutchfield Park at Charlottesville High School. Charlottesville is also home to the Charlottesville Alliance FC, a soccer team who compete in the NPSL.


Government and politics

Voters elect a five-member council to serve as the legislative and governing body. Elected through at-large districts, the members serve four-year terms. Every two years, they select a councilor to serve as mayor. The mayor presides over meetings, calls special meetings, makes some appointments to advisory boards, and serves as the ceremonial head of government. The City Council appoints the City Manager, the Director of Finance, the City Assessor, the Clerk of the council, and members of major policy-making Boards and Commissions. The City Manager serves as the Chief Administrative Officer for the city. According to th
official page
the current city council are:


Voting

Charlottesville is one of the few Democratic bastions in heavily Republican central Virginia. It has swung particularly hard to the Democrats since the 1990s, in tandem with the growing Democratic trend in areas dominated by college towns.


Education

The
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...
, one of the original
Public Ivies "Public Ivy" is a term that refers to prestigious public colleges and universities in the United States that provide a collegiate experience similar to those in the Ivy League.Richard Moll in his book ''Public Ivys: A Guide to America's best pub ...
, is located in the City of Charlottesville and the County of Albemarle.
Piedmont Virginia Community College Piedmont Virginia Community College (PVCC) is a public community college in Charlottesville, Virginia. It offers associate degrees, one-year certificates, continuing education, and workforce training. The campus is located in Albemarle County, V ...
maintains several locations in Charlottesville. Charlottesville is served by the
Charlottesville City Public Schools Charlottesville City Schools, also known as Charlottesville City Public Schools, is the school division that administers public education in the United States city of Charlottesville, Virginia. The current superintendent is Dr. Royal A. Gurley, Jr ...
. The school system operates six elementary schools, Walker Upper Elementary School, Buford Middle School and Charlottesville High School. It operated Lane High School jointly with Albemarle County from 1940 to 1974, when it was replaced by Charlottesville High School. Jackson P. Burley High School, a segregated school for African American students, was in operation from 1951 to 1967 and served students from both the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County. Burley High School was purchased by Albemarle County soon after it closed, and reopened in 1974 as Jackson P. Burley Middle School. Albemarle County Public Schools, which serves nearby
Albemarle County Albemarle County is a county located in the Piedmont region of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Its county seat is Charlottesville, which is an independent city and enclave entirely surrounded by the county. Albemarle County is part of the Char ...
, has its headquarters in Charlottesville. Charlottesville also has the following private schools, some attended by students from Albemarle County and surrounding areas: * Charlottesville Waldorf School * The Covenant School (Lower campus) * Regents School of Charlottesville * Renaissance School
The International School of Charlottesville
* St. Anne's-Belfield School (Greenway Rise campus) *
Village School One-room schools, or schoolhouses, were commonplace throughout rural portions of various countries, including Prussia, Norway, Sweden, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Spain. In most rural and s ...
* The Virginia Institute of Autism * Peabody School City children also attend several private schools in the surrounding county. Those with Charlottesville postal addresses include: * Charlottesville Catholic School * The Covenant School (Hickory campus) * Tandem Friends School
Jefferson-Madison Regional Library Jefferson-Madison Regional Library system serves Albemarle, Greene, Louisa, and Nelson counties and City of Charlottesville. The library system is within Region 6 of Virginia Library Association (VLA) regions. Service area According to the F ...
is the regional library system that provides services to the citizens of Charlottesville.


Media


Print Publications

Charlottesville has a main daily newspaper, ''
The Daily Progress ''The Daily Progress'' is the sole daily newspaper in the vicinity of Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It has been published daily, since September 14, 1892. The paper was founded by James Hubert Lindsay and his brother Frank Lindsay. T ...
''. Weekly publications include ''C-Ville Weekly,'' which also publishes quarterly, bi-annual, and yearly glossies such as ''Abode'' (home, garden, architecture), ''Knife & Fork'' (food, drink, restaurants), ''Unbound,'' (outdoor sports and recreation, environmental issues), ''Best of C-VILLE'' (readers' favorite restaurants, bars, shops, etc.), ''CBIZ'' (local business), and ''Weddings.'' Other magazines published locally include ''Blue Ridge Outdoors'', ''Charlottesville Family Living'' and ''Albemarle Magazine''. A daily newspaper, ''
The Cavalier Daily ''The Cavalier Daily'' is an independent, student-run daily news organization at the University of Virginia. Founded in 1890, under the name ''College Topics'', ''The Cavalier Daily'' is Virginia's oldest collegiate daily and the oldest daily new ...
'', is published by an independent student group at UVa. Additionally, the alternative newsmagazine of UVa, ''The Declaration'', is printed every other week with new online content every week. The monthly newspaper ''Echo'' covers
holistic health Alternative medicine is any practice that aims to achieve the healing effects of medicine despite lacking biological plausibility, testability, repeatability, or evidence from clinical trials. Complementary medicine (CM), complementary and alt ...
and related topics. ''Charlottesville Tomorrow'', an online nonprofit news organization, covers land use, transportation, business and education. Other lifestyle publications include ''The Charlottesville Welcome Book'', CharlottesvilleFamily's ''Bloom! Magazine'', ''Wine & Country Life'' and ''Wine & Country Weddings''.


Broadcast Media

Charlottesville is served by major television networks through stations WVIR/ WVIR-CD 29 (NBC/CW on DT2), WHTJ 41 (PBS),
WCAV WCAV (channel 19) is a television station in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, affiliated with CBS and Fox. It is owned by Lockwood Broadcast Group alongside low-power ABC affiliate WVAW-LD (channel 16). Both stations share studios o ...
19 (CBS/FOX), and WVAW-LD 16 (ABC). News-talk radio in Charlottesville can be heard on
WINA WINA (1070 AM broadcasting, AM) is a News radio, news/Talk radio, talk/Sports Radio, sports formatted Broadcasting, broadcast radio station licensed to Charlottesville, Virginia, serving Charlottesville, Virginia, Charlottesville and Albemarle Co ...
1070 and WCHV 1260. Sports radio can be heard on WVAX 1450. Country can be heard on WKAV 1400.
National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...
stations include
WMRA WMRA is a public-radio formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Harrisonburg, Virginia. It is the NPR member station for the central Shenandoah Valley. Combined with its full-power repeaters and low-power translators, it serves much of wes ...
103.5 FM and
WVTF WVTF is the National Public Radio affiliate serving most of southwestern Virginia. The station is licensed to Roanoke, Virginia, and owned by Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) through its fundraising arm, the ...
89.7 FM. Commercial FM stations include WQMZ Lite Rock Z95.1 (AC), WWWV (3WV) (classic rock) 97.5, WCYK (country) 99.7,
WHTE WHTE-FM is a contemporary hit radio formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Ruckersville, Virginia, serving Charlottesville and Central Virginia. WHTE-FM is owned and operated by Monticello Media. History Ridge Broadcasting Corporation o ...
(CHR) 101.9, WZGN (Generations) 102.3,
WCNR WCNR (106.1 FM broadcasting, FM) is an adult album alternative formatted Broadcasting, broadcast radio station licensed to Keswick, Virginia, serving Charlottesville, Virginia, Charlottesville, Albemarle County, Virginia, Albemarle and Western F ...
(The Corner) 106.1 and WCHV-FM 107.5. Charlottesville community broadcasters include
WNRN WNRN (91.9 FM) is a Public Radio, Adult album alternative, and formatted radio station licensed to Charlottesville, Virginia, serving Central and Western Virginia. WNRN is owned and operated by Stu-Comm, Inc. History In 1993, Mike Friend, a for ...
91.9 and WTJU 91.1 (owned by the University of Virginia) radio and CPA-TV and Charlottesville's Own TV10 television stations.


Municipal Open Data

The city hosts the
Charlottesville Open Data Portal The Charlottesville Open Data Portal is the open data portal for the city of Charlottesville, Virginia in the United States. Establishment The portal opened in 2017. Its establishment was the outcome of community planning. Organizers of the portal ...
for sharing municipal data as well as community information which local businesses and nonprofit organizations provide.


Infrastructure


Transportation


Roads and highways

The most significant highways passing through Charlottesville are
Interstate 64 Interstate 64 (I-64) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Eastern United States. Its western terminus is at I-70, U.S. Route 40 (US 40), and US 61 in Wentzville, Missouri. Its eastern terminus is at an interchang ...
,
U.S. Route 29 U.S. Route 29 (US 29) is a north–south United States highway that runs for from Pensacola, Florida to the western suburbs of Baltimore, Maryland in the Southern United States, connecting the Florida Panhandle to the Baltimore-Washington me ...
and U.S. Route 39. I-64 heads east to Interstate 95 in Richmond and west to
Interstate 81 Interstate 81 (I-81) is a north–south (physically northeast–southwest) Interstate Highway in the eastern part of the United States. Its southern terminus is at I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee; its northern terminus is on Wellesley Isla ...
in Staunton. US 29 heads southwest towards Lynchburg and northeast to
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
Other highways serving Charlottesville include U.S. Route 250 and
Virginia State Route 20 State Route 20 (SR 20) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. The state highway runs from U.S. Route 15 (US 15) in Dillwyn north to SR 3 in Wilderness. SR 20 is a C-shaped route that connects Charlottesville with Farmvil ...
. US 29 and US 250 are served locally by bypasses around downtown, with business routes passing directly through downtown.


Public transportation

Charlottesville is served by Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport, the Charlottesville Amtrak Station, and a Greyhound Lines intercity bus terminal. Direct bus service to
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
is also provided by the
Starlight Express ''Starlight Express'' is a 1984 British musical, with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Richard Stilgoe. It tells the story of a young but obsolete steam engine, Rusty, who races in a championship against modern engines in the hope o ...
.
Charlottesville Area Transit Charlottesville Area Transit (formerly Charlottesville Transit Service) is the provider of mass transportation in Charlottesville, Virginia. The organization was formed in 1975 when the city bought out Yellow Transit Company, which held a private ...
provides area bus service, augmented by JAUNT, a regional
paratransit Paratransit is the term used in North America, also known by other names such as community transport ( UK) for transportation services that supplement fixed-route mass transit by providing individualized rides without fixed routes or timetables. ...
van service.
University Transit Service University Transit Service (UTS) is a fare-free transit system providing service to the University of Virginia's students, faculty, and staff. UTS serves more than 3 million passengers per year and traverses the University of Virginia Central Grou ...
provides mass transit for students and residents in the vicinity of the University of Virginia.


=Rail

=
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...
, the national passenger rail service, provides service to Charlottesville with three routes: The ''Cardinal'' (service between Chicago and New York City via central Virginia and Washington, D.C.), select ''
Northeast Regional The ''Northeast Regional'' is an intercity rail service operated by Amtrak in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic United States. In the past it has been known as the ''NortheastDirect'', ''Acela Regional'', or ''Regional''. It is Amtrak's busi ...
'' trains (service between Boston and Roanoke) and the ''Crescent'' (service between New York City and New Orleans). The ''Cardinal'' operates three times a week, while the ''Crescent'' and ''Northeast Regional'' both run daily in both directions. Charlottesville was once a major rail hub, served by both the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O) and the Southern Railway. The first train service to Charlottesville began in the early 1850s by the Louisa Railroad Company, which became the
Virginia Central Railroad The Virginia Central Railroad was an early railroad in the U.S. state of Virginia that operated between 1850 and 1868 from Richmond westward for to Covington. Chartered in 1836 as the Louisa Railroad by the Virginia General Assembly, the railr ...
before becoming the C&O. The Southern Railway started service to Charlottesville around the mid-1860s with a north–south route crossing the C&O east-west tracks. The new depot that sprang up at the crossing of the two tracks was called Union Station. In addition to the new rail line, Southern located a major repair shop that produced competition between the two rail companies and bolstered the local economy. The Queen Charlotte Hotel went up on West Main street along with restaurants for the many new railroad workers. The former C&O station on East Water Street was turned into offices in the mid-1990s.
Charlottesville Union Station The Charlottesville Union Station, located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, is served by Amtrak's '' Cardinal,'' ''Crescent,'' and daily ''Northeast Regional'' passenger trains. It is Amtrak's third-busiest station in Virginia, asid ...
, still a functional depot for Amtrak, is located on West Main street between 7th and 9th streets where the tracks of the former C&O Railway (leased by C&O successor CSX to
Buckingham Branch Railroad Buckingham Branch Railroad is a Class III short-line railroad operating over 275 miles (443 km) of historic and strategic trackage in Central Virginia. Sharing overhead traffic with CSX and Amtrak, the company's headquarters are in Dill ...
) and Southern (now Norfolk Southern Railway) lines cross. Amtrak and the city of Charlottesville finished refurbishing the station just after 2000, upgrading the depot and adding a full-service restaurant. The Amtrak Crescent travels on Norfolk Southern's dual north–south tracks. The Amtrak Cardinal runs on the Buckingham Branch east-west single track, which follows U.S. Route 250 from Staunton to a point east of Charlottesville near Cismont. The eastbound Cardinal joins the northbound Norfolk Southern line at
Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...
, on its way to Washington, D.C. Charlottesville also had an electric streetcar line, the
Charlottesville and Albemarle Railway The Charlottesville and Albemarle Railway (C&A) was a short electric street railroad operating within the city of Charlottesville, Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, during the early 20th century. The line was preceded by several ...
(C&A), that operated during the early twentieth century. Streetcar lines existed in Charlottesville since the late 1880s under various names until organized as the C&A in 1903. The C&A operated streetcars until 1935, when the line shut down due to rising costs and decreased ridership. There are proposals to extend Virginia Railway Express, the
commuter rail Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting Commuting, commuters to a Downtown, central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter r ...
line connecting
Northern Virginia Northern Virginia, locally referred to as NOVA or NoVA, comprises several counties and independent cities in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. It is a widespread region radiating westward and southward from Washington, D.C. Wit ...
to
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, to Charlottesville. Also, the
Transdominion Express Transportation in the Commonwealth of Virginia is by land, sea and air. Virginia's extensive network of highways and railroads were developed and built over a period almost 400 years, beginning almost immediately after the founding of Jamestown i ...
steering committee has suggested making Charlottesville a stop on the proposed statewide passenger rail line.


Notable people

Since the city's early formation, it has been home to numerous notable individuals, from historic figures
Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...
and
James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American statesman, lawyer, diplomat, and Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. A member of the Democratic-Republican Party, Monroe was ...
, to literary giants
Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wid ...
and
William Faulkner William Cuthbert Faulkner (; September 25, 1897 – July 6, 1962) was an American writer known for his novels and short stories set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, based on Lafayette County, Mississippi, where Faulkner spent most o ...
, to NFL player
Ralph Horween Ralph Horween (born Ralph Horwitz; also known as Ralph McMahon or B. McMahon; August 3, 1896 – May 26, 1997) was an American football player and coach. He played Fullback (American football), fullback and Halfback (American football), halfback ...
. In the present day, Charlottesville's Albemarle County is or has been the home of movie stars
Rob Lowe Robert Hepler Lowe (born March 17, 1964) is an American actor, filmmaker, and podcast host. He made his acting debut at the age of 15 with ABC's short-lived sitcom ''A New Kind of Family'' (1979–1980). Following numerous television roles in ...
,
Sissy Spacek Mary Elizabeth Spacek (; born December 25, 1949) is an American actress and singer. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, three Golden Globe Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and nominations for four Britis ...
,
Jessica Lange Jessica Phyllis Lange (; born April 20, 1949) is an American actress. She is the 13th actress to achieve the Triple Crown of Acting, having won two Academy Awards, three Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Tony Award, along with a Screen Actors ...
and
Sam Shepard Samuel Shepard Rogers III (November 5, 1943 – July 27, 2017) was an American actor, playwright, author, screenwriter, and director whose career spanned half a century. He won 10 Obie Awards for writing and directing, the most by any write ...
, novelist
John Grisham John Ray Grisham Jr. (; born February 8, 1955 in Jonesboro, Arkansas) is an American novelist, lawyer and former member of the 7th district of the Mississippi House of Representatives, known for his popular legal thrillers. According to the Ame ...
, Raymond Austin, television director, writer and novelist, the poet
Rita Dove Rita Frances Dove (born August 28, 1952) is an American poet and essayist. From 1993 to 1995, she served as Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress. She is the first African American to have been appointed since the positi ...
, the
Dave Matthews Band Dave Matthews Band (also known by the initials DMB) is an American rock band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1991. The band's founding members were singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer and bac ...
, and the pop band Parachute, as well as multi-billionaires John Kluge and Edgar Bronfman Sr. Between 1968 and 1984, Charlottesville was also the home of
Anna Anderson Anna Anderson (born Franziska Schanzkowska, 16 December 1896 – 12 February 1984) was an impostor who claimed to be Grand Duchess Anastasia of Russia. Anastasia, the youngest daughter of the last Tsar and Tsarina of Russia, Nicholas II an ...
, best known for her false claims to be
Grand Duchess Anastasia Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and co ...
and lone survivor of the 1918 massacre of Nicholas II's royal family. The city was also home of the Tibetan lama Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, but he and his family have since moved to California. His Ligmincha Institute headquarters, Serenity Ridge, is in nearby
Shipman, Virginia Shipman is a census-designated place (CDP) in Nelson County, Virginia, United States. The population as of the 2010 Census was 507. Bon Aire and the Oak Ridge Railroad Overpass are listed on the National Register of Historic Places The Na ...
.


Sister cities

Charlottesville has four
sister cities A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...
: *
Besançon Besançon (, , , ; archaic german: Bisanz; la, Vesontio) is the prefecture of the department of Doubs in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. The city is located in Eastern France, close to the Jura Mountains and the border with Switzer ...
,
Doubs Doubs (, ; ; frp, Dubs) is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in Eastern France. Named after the river Doubs, it had a population of 543,974 in 2019.Pleven, Bulgaria *
Poggio a Caiano Poggio a Caiano is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Prato, Tuscany region Italy. The town, birthplace of Philip Mazzei, lies south of the provincial capital of Prato. Sister towns Poggio a Caiano has two sister cities: * Charlottesvi ...
,
Tuscany it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Citizenship , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = Italian , demogra ...
, Italy *
Winneba Winneba is a town and the capital of Effutu Municipal District in Central Region of South Ghana. Winneba has a population of 55,331. Winneba, traditionally known as ''Simpa'', is a historic fishing port in south Ghana, lying on the south co ...
, Ghana


See also

* Mayors of Charlottesville, Virginia *
National Register of Historic Places listings in Charlottesville, Virginia __NOTOC__ This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Charlottesville, Virginia. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in the independent cit ...
* People from Charlottesville, Virginia * Topics related to Charlottesville, Virginia


References


External links

*
Charlottesville During the Civil War in ''Encyclopedia Virginia''




{{Coord, display=title, 38.02990, -78.4790 Cities in Virginia County seats in Virginia Cities in the Charlottesville, Virginia metropolitan area 1762 establishments in Virginia Western Virginia