Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 06/18/2015
NRHP Listing Date 09/29/2015
NRHP Reference Number 15000680
The Trailways Bus Station in downtown Petersburg was the site of civil rights protests and sit-ins that occurred during 1960 and 1961. As one of the stops on the historic Freedom Ride civil rights campaign, the bus station witnessed events that were a critical part of the Civil Rights Movement in Petersburg and the Commonwealth of Virginia. Constructed in 1946 and to date the only mid-20th-century, unaltered Trailways bus station in the Streamlined Moderne style documented by DHR, the building retains the architectural features that marked racial segregation. With separate bathrooms, water fountains, and waiting areas, it was specifically designed to convey and enforce the requirement that there be strict separation of whites and African Americans to the extent possible as then set forth under Virginia law. Privately owned at the time of its listing, the building will be repurposed as a retail or restaurant space while retaining the building’s historic plan and design. The Petersburg Trailways Bus Station also contributes to the Halifax Triangle and Downtown Commercial 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: July 1, 2021
