Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 02/21/1978
NRHP Listing Date 05/31/1979
NRHP Reference Number 79003288
Philadelphia architect Thomas U. Walter gave Virginia a powerful interpretation of the Grecian mode with his 1843 Tabb Street Presbyterian Church in the city of Richmond. Walter, who is remembered chiefly for designing the dome of the U.S. Capitol, was perhaps most adept with the Greek orders, as evidenced in the church’s Doric portico and its interior apse. The hexastyle portico is based on the Theseion, an ancient Greek temple in Athens. The apse is fronted by a colonnade in a freely adapted Tower of the Winds order, creating one of the more dramatic spaces of its type in the country. The building was constructed by master builder Dabney Cosby, who had worked at the University of Virginia. An original square belfry with a tapered spire was removed in 1938. The present church is the third to serve the congregation since its organization in 1813. The church is located in the Petersburg Courthouse Historic District.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Updated: May 26, 2021
