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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
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
, United States. It is the
seat of government The seat of government is (as defined by ''Brewer's Politics'') "the building, complex of buildings or the city from which a government exercises its authority". In most countries, the nation's Capital city, capital is also seat of its governmen ...
of Albemarle County, which surrounds the city, though the two are separate legal entities. It is named after Queen Charlotte. At the 2020 census, the city's population was 46,553. The
Bureau of Economic Analysis The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) of the United States Department of Commerce is a U.S. government agency that provides official macroeconomic and industry statistics, most notably reports about the gross domestic product (GDP) of the United ...
combines the City of Charlottesville with Albemarle County for statistical purposes, bringing its population to approximately 160,000. Charlottesville is the heart of the Charlottesville metropolitan area, which includes Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene, and Nelson counties. Charlottesville was the home of two U.S. presidents,
Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...
and
James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American Founding Father of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. He was the last Founding Father to serve as presiden ...
. During their terms as Governors of Virginia, they lived in Charlottesville and traveled to and from Richmond, along the 71-mile historic Three Notch'd Road. Orange, located northeast of the city, was the hometown of President
James Madison James Madison (June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison was popularly acclaimed as the ...
. The
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...
, founded by Jefferson, straddles the city's southwestern border. Jefferson's home and primary
plantation Plantations are farms specializing in cash crops, usually mainly planting a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. Plantations, centered on a plantation house, grow crops including cotton, cannabis, tob ...
,
Monticello Monticello ( ) was the primary residence and plantation of Thomas Jefferson, a Founding Father, author of the Declaration of Independence, and the third president of the United States. Jefferson began designing Monticello after inheriting l ...
, located southeast of the city, is, along with the University of Virginia, a
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
, each attracting thousands of tourists from across the country 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 List of British royal consorts, Queen of Great Britain and Ireland as the wife of King George III from their marriage on 8 September 1761 until her ...
. 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 the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
, Congress imprisoned the
Convention Army The Convention Army (1777–1783) was an army of British and allied troops captured after the Battles of Saratoga in the American Revolutionary War. Convention of Saratoga On 17 October 1777, British General John Burgoyne surrendered his army ...
in Charlottesville at the Albemarle Barracks between 1779 and 1781. The Governor and legislators had to abandon the capitol temporarily and on June 4, 1781, Jack Jouett warned the Virginia Legislature meeting at
Monticello Monticello ( ) was the primary residence and plantation of Thomas Jefferson, a Founding Father, author of the Declaration of Independence, and the third president of the United States. Jefferson began designing Monticello after inheriting l ...
of a planned raid by Colonel Banastre Tarleton, 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, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
. 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 the United States Military Academy at West Point ...
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's 1865 raid through the Shenandoah Valley. However, 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.


Segregation and Jim Crow laws

After Reconstruction ended, Charlottesville's African American population suffered under
Jim Crow laws The Jim Crow laws were U.S. state, state and local laws introduced in the Southern United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that enforced Racial segregation in the United States, racial segregation, "Jim Crow (character), Ji ...
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 The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...
had chapters in the Charlottesville area beginning at least in the early twentieth century, and events such as lynchings and cross burnings 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 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. In 1947, Charlottesville organized a local
NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is an American civil rights organization formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. B. Du&nbs ...
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 The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all Federal tribunals in the United States, U.S. federal court cases, and over Stat ...
decision ''
Brown v. Board of Education ''Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka'', 347 U.S. 483 (1954), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that ruled that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the ...
''. 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-in A sit-in or sit-down is a form of direct action that involves one or more people occupying an area for a protest, often to promote political, social, or economic change. The protestors gather conspicuously in a space or building, refusing to mo ...
s, such as one that occurred at Buddy's Restaurant near the University of Virginia.


Destruction of Vinegar Hill

In 1965, the city government razed the downtown African American neighborhood Vinegar Hill as an
urban renewal Urban renewal (sometimes called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address real or perceived urban decay. Urban renewal involves the clearing ...
project, after the city council passed a law stating that "unsanitary and unsafe" properties could be taken over by a housing authority. Vinegar Hill had served the needs of the black community while the city remained segregated. 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", and 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 did and those who did not want Confederate symbols removed. ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'' 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 Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a general officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War, who was appointed the General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate ...
and
Stonewall Jackson Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Confederate general and military officer who served during the American Civil War. He played a prominent role in nearly all military engagements in the eastern the ...
from downtown parks have been the subject of extensive, unresolved litigation. In August 2017,
white supremacist White supremacy is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White supremacy has roots in the now-discredited doctrine ...
groups opposed to their removal organized the "
Unite the Right rally The Unite the Right rally was a White supremacy#United States, 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, whi ...
" 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 other counter-protesters.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
Meriwether Lewis Meriwether Lewis (August 18, 1774 – October 11, 1809) was an American explorer, soldier, politician, and public administrator, best known for his role as the leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery, with ...
, William Clark and Sacagawea of the
Lewis and Clark Expedition The Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery Expedition, was the United States expedition to cross the newly acquired western portion of the country after the Louisiana Purchase. The Corps of Discovery was a select gro ...
.


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 List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
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, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the city has a total area of , virtually all of which is land. Charlottesville is located in central Virginia along the Rivanna River—a tributary of the James—just west of the Southwest Mountains, a range which parallels the Blue Ridge about to the west. Charlottesville is from
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, and from Richmond. Charlottesville exists on rolling hills between the
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...
to its west and Rivanna River to its east.


Climate

Charlottesville has a four-season
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
''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


2010 Census

As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
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: Standing 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 geog ...
was . 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 chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 19.4%
Black American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.3% Native American, 6.4% Asian, 1.8% from other races, 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 Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
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 university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...
. 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 average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
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 ...
, 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. Federally, Charlottesville is part of Virginia's 5th congressional district, represented by Republican John McGuire, elected in 2024.


Crime

The city of Charlottesville has an overall
crime rate 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 ...
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, Dixieland, or simply the South) is List of regions of the United States, census regions defined by the United States Cens ...
. The total number of crimes reported in Charlottesville declined from 2009 to 2020, followed by a slight rebound continuing through 2023.


Economy

Charlottesville is the home of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory headquarters, the Leander McCormick Observatory and the
CFA Institute The CFA Institute is a global, not-for-profit professional organization that provides investment professionals with finance education. The institute aims to promote standards in ethics, education, and professional excellence in the global investme ...
. 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 (NGIC) is in the Charlottesville area. Other large employers include Crutchfield, Emerson Automation Solutions,
PepsiCo PepsiCo, Inc. is an American multinational corporation, multinational food, snack, and beverage corporation headquartered in Harrison, New York, in the hamlet of Purchase, New York, Purchase. PepsiCo's business encompasses all aspects of the f ...
and
S&P Global S&P Global Inc. (prior to 2016, McGraw Hill Financial, Inc., and prior to 2013, The McGraw–Hill Companies, Inc.) is an American publicly traded corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City. Its primary areas of business are financia ...
. 18% of people employed in Charlottesville live there, while 82% commute into the city. 42% of those commuting to Charlottesville live in Albemarle County. 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 2024 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report the largest employers in the city are as follows:


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 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 (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...
,
James Madison James Madison (June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison was popularly acclaimed as the ...
, and
James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American Founding Father of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. He was the last Founding Father to serve as presiden ...
.
Monticello Monticello ( ) was the primary residence and plantation of Thomas Jefferson, a Founding Father, author of the Declaration of Independence, and the third president of the United States. Jefferson began designing Monticello after inheriting l ...
, 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 Founding Father of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. He was the last Founding Father to serve as presiden ...
, Ash Lawn-Highland, is down the road from
Monticello Monticello ( ) was the primary residence and plantation of Thomas Jefferson, a Founding Father, author of the Declaration of Independence, and the third president of the United States. Jefferson began designing Monticello after inheriting l ...
. 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 b ...
, 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 a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States that encompasses part of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia. The park is long and narrow, with the Shenandoah River and its ...
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 at ...
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 National Scenic Byway, All-American Road in the United States, noted for its scenic beauty. The parkway, which is the longest linear park in the U.S., runs for through 29 counties in Virginia and ...
, a similar scenic drive that extends south to
Great Smoky Mountains National Park Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in the southeastern United States, southeast, with parts in North Carolina and Tennessee. The park straddles the ridgeline o ...
in
North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
, 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 ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in American and Canadian English to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political, and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ( ...
is a center of business for Albemarle County. It is home to the Downtown Mall, one of the longest outdoor pedestrian malls in the nation, with stores, restaurants, theaters 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. 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 university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...
(most of which is legally in Albemarle County). During the academic year, over 20,000 students enter Charlottesville to attend the university. Its main grounds are located on the west side of Charlottesville, with
Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...
's Academical Village, known as the Lawn, 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). 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 where all U.S. Army military lawyers, known as "JAGs", take courses specific to military law. The Corner is the
commercial district Commercial area, commercial district or commercial zone in a city is an area, district, or neighborhoods primarily composed of commercial buildings, such as a strip mall, office parks, downtown, central business district, financial district, " ...
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, is a commercial district of restaurants, bars, and other businesses. Charlottesville is host to the annual Virginia Film Festival 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, known colloquially as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States which commemorates the ratification of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing th ...
celebration, including a
Naturalization Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-national of a country acquires the nationality of that country after birth. The definition of naturalization by the International Organization for Migration of the ...
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 university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...
's athletic teams, the
Cavaliers The term ''Cavalier'' () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of Charles I of England and his son Charles II of England, Charles II during the English Civil War, the Interregnum (England), Int ...
, most notably the 2019 NCAA Men's National Basketball Champions. The Cavaliers have a wide fan base throughout the region and state. The Cavaliers field teams in sports from soccer to basketball, and have modern facilities that draw spectators throughout the year. Cavalier
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
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,
The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...
and U2. John Paul Jones Arena, 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 Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
teams, in addition to serving as a site for concerts and other entertainment 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 No. 3 in the AP poll before losing to Tom Izzo's
Spartans Sparta was a prominent city-state in Laconia in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (), while the name Sparta referred to its main settlement in the valley of Evrotas river in Laconia, in southeastern P ...
by two points in the Sweet Sixteen held in Brooklyn, New York. The Cavaliers' men's basketball team won the NCAA championship on April 8, 2019.
Lacrosse Lacrosse is a contact 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 w ...
has become a significant part of the Charlottesville sports scene. The Virginia Men's team won their first NCAA Championship 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 to its credit, with wins in 1991, 1993, and 2004. The team most recently lost i
2023 semi finals
to Notre Dame by a score of 13–12 in overtime on May 27, 2023. 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, 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 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...
and
2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...
under coach George Gelnovatch. Virginia's
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
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 Charlottesville High School is a public high school in the independent city of Charlottesville, Virginia, serving students from 9th to 12th grade. It is a part of Charlottesville City Public Schools. It is the second largest high school in the ...
, Western Albemarle High School and Albemarle High School. Charlottesville High School won the VHSL 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 The Charlottesville Tom Sox are a collegiate summer baseball team in Charlottesville, Virginia. They play in the southern division of the Valley Baseball League. The Tom Sox are the 2017, 2019 and 2022 Valley Baseball League Champions. They fini ...
of the
Valley Baseball League The Valley Baseball League is an National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA and Major League Baseball, MLB-sanctioned collegiate summer baseball, collegiate summer baseball league in the Shenandoah Valley region of Virginia. The league was s ...
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. Charlottesville city is overwhelmingly Democratic. 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. It has recently become one of the most Democratic out of all of Virginia's cities and counties, second only to Petersburg since 2016; in 2020 Joe Biden won the city with the highest percentage for a Democrat since 1912.


Education

The
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...
, one of the original Public Ivies, is located in the City of Charlottesville and the County of Albemarle. Piedmont Virginia Community College maintains several locations in Charlottesville. Charlottesville is served by the Charlottesville City Public Schools. The school system operates six elementary schools, Walker Upper Elementary School, Buford Middle School and
Charlottesville High School Charlottesville High School is a public high school in the independent city of Charlottesville, Virginia, serving students from 9th to 12th grade. It is a part of Charlottesville City Public Schools. It is the second largest high school in the ...
. 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 surrounding Albemarle County, has its headquarters in Charlottesville. Charlottesville also has the following private schools, some attended by students from Albemarle County and surrounding areas: * Charlottesville Day School * 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 schoolhouses, or One-room schools, have been commonplace throughout rural portions of various countries, including Prussia, Norway, Sweden, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Portugal, and Spa ...
* 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 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''. 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'',
CharlottesvilleFamily Magazine
' and ''Albemarle Magazine''. A daily newspaper, '' The Cavalier Daily'', 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 refers to practices that aim to achieve the healing effects of conventional medicine, but that typically lack biological plausibility, testability, repeatability, or supporting evidence of effectiveness. Such practices ...
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 19 (CBS/FOX), and WVAW-LD 16 (ABC). News-talk radio in Charlottesville can be heard on WINA 1070 and WCHV 1260. Sports radio can be heard on
WVAX WVAX (1450 AM) was a sports formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Charlottesville, Virginia, serving Charlottesville and Albemarle County, Virginia. WVAX was owned by Saga Communications, and operated as part of its Charlottesville Rad ...
1450. Country can be heard on WKAV 1400.
National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...
stations include WMRA 103.5 FM and
WVTF WVTF (89.1 FM broadcasting, FM) is a Non-commercial educational station, non-commercial educational Radio broadcasting, radio station licensed to serve Roanoke, Virginia, featuring a Public broadcasting, public radio format branded "Radio IQ". ...
89.7 FM. Commercial FM stations include WQMZ Lite Rock Z95.1 (AC), WWWV (3WV) (classic rock) 97.5, WCYK (country) 99.7, WHTE (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 ...
(The Corner) 106.1 and WCHV-FM 107.5. Charlottesville community broadcasters include WNRN-FM 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 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 and U.S. Route 29. I-64 heads east to
Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...
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 Interstate 40, I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee, Dandridge, Tennessee; its nort ...
in Staunton. US 29 heads southwest towards Lynchburg and northeast to
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
Other highways serving Charlottesville include U.S. Route 250 and Virginia State Route 20. 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 Greyhound Lines, Inc. is an American operator of Intercity bus service, intercity bus services. Greyhound operates the largest intercity bus network in the United States, and also operates charter and Amtrak Thruway services, as well as interci ...
intercity bus terminal. Direct bus service to
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
is also provided by the
Starlight Express '' Starlight Express'' is a 1984 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 locomotives of diesel and el ...
. Charlottesville Area Transit provides area bus service, augmented by JAUNT, a regional
paratransit Paratransit (also community transport in the United Kingdom, or intermediate public transport) is a type of public transport service that supplements fixed-route mass transit by providing individualized rides without fixed routes or timetables. P ...
van service. University Transit Service provides mass transit for students and residents in the vicinity of the University of Virginia and Charlottesville area.


=Rail

=
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
, 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 busie ...
'' 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, but have different operating schedules on the weekdays and weekends. Charlottesville was once a major rail hub, served by both the
Chesapeake and Ohio Railway The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway was a Class I railroad formed in 1869 in Virginia from several smaller Virginia railroads begun in the 19th century. Led by industrialist Collis Potter Huntington, it reached from Virginia's capital city of Rich ...
(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 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, The C&O and 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, 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 CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Railroad classes, Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of trac ...
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 The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...
) 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 and northeast regional 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, Virginia. The eastbound Cardinal joins the northbound Norfolk Southern line at Orange, on its way to Washington, D.C. Charlottesville also had an electric streetcar line, the Charlottesville and Albemarle Railway (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 Virginia Railway Express (VRE) is a commuter rail service that connects outlying small cities of Northern Virginia to Washington Union Station in Washington, D.C. It operates two lines which run during weekday rush hour only: the Fredericksbur ...
, the
commuter rail Commuter rail or suburban rail is a Passenger train, passenger rail service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting Commuting, commuters to a Central business district, central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter town ...
line connecting
Northern Virginia Northern Virginia, locally referred to as NOVA or NoVA, comprises several County (United States), counties and independent city (United States), independent cities in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. ...
to
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, to Charlottesville. Also, the Transdominion Express 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 (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...
and
James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American Founding Father of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. He was the last Founding Father to serve as presiden ...
, to literary giants
Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic who is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales involving mystery and the macabre. He is widely re ...
and
William Faulkner William Cuthbert Faulkner (; September 25, 1897 – July 6, 1962) was an American writer. He is best known for William Faulkner bibliography, his novels and short stories set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi, a stand-in fo ...
, to NFL player Ralph Horween. 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 entertainment host. Following numerous television roles in the early 1980s, he came to prominence as a teen idol and member of the Brat Pack with starring roles in ...
, Sissy Spacek,
Jessica Lange Jessica Phyllis Lange (; born April 20, 1949) is an American actress. With a career spanning over five decades, she is known for her roles Jessica Lange on screen and stage, on stage and screen. She has received List of awards and nominati ...
and
Sam Shepard Samuel Shepard Rogers III (November 5, 1943 – July 27, 2017) was an American playwright, actor, director, screenwriter, and author whose career spanned half a century. He wrote 58 plays as well as several books of short stories, essays, ...
, novelist
John Grisham John Ray Grisham Jr. (; born February 8, 1955) is an American novelist, lawyer, and former politician, known for his best-selling legal thrillers. According to the Academy of Achievement, American Academy of Achievement, Grisham has written 37 ...
, Raymond Austin, television director, writer and novelist, the poet Rita Dove, the Dave Matthews Band, and the pop band
Parachute A parachute is a device designed to slow an object's descent through an atmosphere by creating Drag (physics), drag or aerodynamic Lift (force), lift. It is primarily used to safely support people exiting aircraft at height, but also serves va ...
, as well as multi-billionaires John Kluge and Edgar Bronfman Sr. Between 1968 and 1984, Charlottesville was also the home of Anna Anderson, best known for her false claims to be Grand Duchess Anastasia 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.


Sister cities

Charlottesville has four
sister cities A sister city or a twin town relationship is International relations, 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 ar ...
: *
Besançon Besançon (, ; , ; archaic ; ) is the capital of the Departments of France, 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 Switzerland. Capi ...
,
Doubs Doubs (, ; ; ) 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,
Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...
, Italy * Winneba, Ghana


See also

* Mayors of Charlottesville, Virginia * National Register of Historic Places listings in Charlottesville, Virginia * 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 the Colony of Virginia Western Virginia