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[[File:2022-Court Square GIS view.JPG|right|thumb|300px|Vicinity map of Court Square, ca. 2022]]
[[File:1828-Court Square.JPG|right|thumb| Court Square (1828), Charlottesville, Virginia, created by Floyd Johnson c. 1940 for "Early Charlottesville: Recollections of James Alexander, 1828-1874" edited by Mary Rawlings (1942) (Courtesy of Alb. Co. Hist. Soc.)]]
'''Court Square''' is the area in downtown Charlottesville surrounding the [[Albemarle County Circuit Court|Albemarle County Courthouse]], several 19th-century brick offices and a park once named [[Jackson Park]] (1919-2018).
{{current}}
In the wake of General Assembly legislation <ref>https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+sum+HB1537</ref> passed on [[February 11]], [[2020]] which allowed local governments the authority to remove or relocate Confederate monuments in their public spaces, ending a state law prohibiting cities and counties from doing so, [[Albemarle County]] began to review the Court Square area. <ref>{{cite-progress|title=Participate in conversation on Court Square as important public space|url=https://www.cbs19news.com/story/42243470/participate-in-conversation-on-court-square-as-important-public-space|author=News Staff|pageno=|printdate=June 13, 2020|publishdate=June 13, 2020|accessdate=June 13, 2020}}</ref>


==Enslaved persons marker==
{{current}}
[[File:02252020-1635.JPG|right|thumb|300px|Installment of temporary marker by local artist on February 25, 2020]]
People were sold as slaves outside 0 Court Square. {{fact}} The commemoration of that horrible practice of legalized human trafficking is a topic of conversation in the third decade of the 21st century, especially after a historical marker on the pavement was removed by [[Albemarle County]] resident [[Richard H. Allan, III]] in early 2020. The marker was set in the sidewalk read "Slave Auction Block" and stated "On this site slaves were bought and sold." [[Charlottesville City Council (2020-2021)]] supported construction of a temporary marker on [[February 18]], [[2020]]. <ref>{{cite-progress|title=City committee to recommend temporary slave auction marker|url=https://www.dailyprogress.com/news/local/city-committee-to-recommend-temporary-slave-auction-marker/article_56be16a7-b8c0-5609-b178-851c1a1a173b.html|author=Nolan Stout|pageno=A3|printdate=February 20, 2020|publishdate=February 20, 2020|accessdate=February 23, 2020}}</ref>
==Courts Complex Project==
In [[2018]], Albemarle County and the City of Charlottesville began work to redevelop the [[Levy Opera House]] and site located at [[350 Park Street]]. In the first phase of this work, a 3-story building will be constructed and connected to the Opera House. This renovation and construction will encompass approximately 32,034 square feet; anticipated completion of all construction and renovations by [[2025]].<ref>https://www.albemarle.org/government/facilities-environmental-services/capital-improvements-program/capital-improvements-program</ref>
==2004-2006 renovation==
Court Square was renovated in the mid 2000's by replacing existing streets and sidewalks surfacing with brick, improving lighting, and replacement of overhead utilities with underground cables (undergrounding).
The Charlottesville City Council allocated $1,520,000 to the project at its meeting on May 5, 2003. Funding from the federal government in the form of a Transportation Enhancement Fund (TEA) grant of $1,270,000 as well as a contribution of $250,000 from Albemarle County<ref>{{minutes-citycouncil|when=5 May 2003|id=195917}}</ref>
==History==
Court Square's history dates back to [[1761]], when Dr. [[Thomas Walker]] offered a 50-acre parcel to build a courthouse for [[Albemarle County]].  The first courthouse was completed in [[1763]] and stood in front of the current courthouse building. This prompted economic development in the area, such as the opening of the [[Eagle Tavern]] and the [[Swan Tavern]]. The square was bounded in [[1792]]. <ref name="study">{{cite web|title=Courts Master Plan Study|url=http://s3.amazonaws.com/cville/cm%2Fmutlimedia%2F2012-albemarle-court-study.pdf|author=Dewberry, FPW Architects, NCSC|work=Courts Master Plan Study|publisher=Albemarle County|location=|publishdate=September 2012|accessdate=August 4, 2014}}</ref>
===Slave Trade===
==Shrines, statues, monuments and historical artifacts==
''See also: [[List of statues, monuments, and war memorials]]''
===Confederate monument===
[[File:1909-Confederate Monument on Court Square.JPG|right|thumb|300px|Life-size bronze statue of an unnamed Confederate soldier, nicknamed "At Ready." Dedicated on May 5, 1909 to commemorate Civil War dead of Albemarle County and City of Charlottesville. (removed on September 12, 2020)]]
Location: South courtyard, 5th Street (''old "Court Street"'') & Jefferson Street (dedicated in 1909; removed in 2020)
:Life-size bronze statue of an unnamed Confederate soldier leaning on musket facing south, nicknamed "'''At Ready'''"; pedestal made of gray granite quarried at Venue, Vermont; bottom base being one solid piece eight feet square; inscriptions; sculptor is unknown; flanked by two bronze smoothbore 12-pounder Napoleons, and cannonballs. Unveiled on [[May 5]], [[1909]] in [[Court Square]] to commemorate Charlottesville's Civil War dead. The dedication, as reported by [[The Daily Progress]], "was afforded all the pomp and pageantry that the city could muster".
===Cannons and cannonballs===
Location: South courtyard, 5th Street (Court Street) and Jefferson Street (installed: unknown; removed: 2020)
:Two bronze smoothbore 12-pounder Napoleons, and and a tetrahedron of solid iron balls (solid shot) flanked the "At Ready" Confederate monument in front of the [[Albemarle County Circuit Court|Albemarle County Courthouse]].
::On New Years Eve in [[1909]] at about 7 o'clock, J. S. Goodwin, a veteran Civil War artilleryman who had a store on Court Square, dry fired one of the cannons in front of the [[Albemarle County Circuit Court|Courthouse]]. While there was no cannon ball, the amount of gunpowder used was sufficient to cause significant damage and alarm in the area.<ref>Maurer, David A. "New Year 2010 rang in with a mighty bang in Charlottesville." Daily Progress [Charlottesville] 3 Jan. 2010: C1-C2. Charlottesville Daily Progress. 3 Jan. 2010. Web. 3 Jan. 2010.</ref><ref>http://www2.dailyprogress.com/cdp/lifestyles/columnists/yesteryears/article/new_year_2010_rang_in_with_a_mighty_bang_in_charlottesville/50559</ref>
====Historical context====
The Tredegar Iron Works in [[Richmond]] supplied about half the artillery used by the Confederate States Army (CSA). Tredegar was the biggest ironworks in the Confederacy during the Civil War, and a significant factor in the decision to relocate the capital of the Confederacy from Montgomery to Richmond.  Located in downtown Richmond along the [[James River]], the Historic Tredegar site is home to an award-winning 30,000 sq. ft. Museum surrounding the industrial ruins of Tredegar Ironworks. The building contains two galleries for exhibits (one permanent, two rotating) and has over 500 artifacts on display.<ref>https://acwm.org/historic-tredegar/</ref>
==Buildings on "The Square"==
===Town Hall===
350 Park Street: At the corner of Park and East High Streets stands a large red brick building. It was erected in 1851 “for the purpose of a town Hall.” Up to that time the lot had served as a playground for men and boys, and was known as the Battery. Later, the hall became the [[Levy Opera House]], but with the coming of the movies its public functions declined; in the 1950's it was known as the Park View Apartment.
===Swan Tavern===
The exact date of the tavern’s building is not known; the lot was bought in 1773. The building was a wooden structure with its painted sign of a swan hanging over the door. It was the home of the Jouett family. Jack Jouett, hero of the famous ride, lived here, and here the refugeeing members of the Virginia Legislature convened in 1781. In 1812 the tavern became known as the War Office, as military matters connected with that war were handled here. Following this, it gradually fell into decay and in 1832 collapsed. The present brick building was then erected.
===No. 0 "Number Nothing" Court Square===
[[File:Court-square2.gif|right|thumb|300px|0 Court Square]]
[[Number Nothing]] is the original house on this lot. Structure built in the 1820's consisting of a double store, separately owned and handled. The name comes from the fact that at first the lot was intended for a horse lot. When the land was later sold, the other lots had been numbered in rotation - a numbered sequence was impossible, so ''Number Nothing'' was chosen.
===Village Library===
===Swiss Watch-Maker===
===Eagle Tavern===
==="Satan's Thumb"===
===No. 220 Court Square===
[[File:1906-Yeargan_House_Court_Square.JPG|right|thumb|300px|Vicinity Map of Court Square, ca. 2022]]
Located on North East Sixth Street and included in the Charlottesville Historic District. Built sometime before the Civil War, Over the years No. 220 has been used for offices by prominent lawyers and businessmen.
About 1800, John Jouett, a prominent land owner, conveyed a lot north and east of the original town to two land developers John T. Hawkins and Thomas W. Lewis. In [[1803]] Hawkins and Lewis conveyed to John Yeargain for the sum of $1,000 cash, "the lot, messuage and tenement on the east side of the Square."  Yeargean, a saddlemaker and whiskey salesman, lived here until he died in [[1837]]. In 1900, the same property was conveyed to [[Thomas S. Martin]], U.S. Senator from Virginia. The [[Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society|Albemarle County Historical Society]] received title to no. 220 from Frances Long Hodges and Bernard Hodges, her husband for $9,000 on October 2, [[1967]]. The Historical Society sold the property in [[1997]] for $127,500.
::John “Johnny” Yeargean came to Charlottesville in [[1796]]. Known for selling high quality whiskey and being notoriously frugal, Yeargean horded the money he earned from his business and buried his riches in the basement of his home for safe keeping. Old and discolored coins became known as “Johnny Yeargean’s” around Charlottesville. Johnny died a suspicious death in 1837. His body was found in his home, along with a curious scene that included  a trail of coins through his back yard. A rumor circulated that thieves broke in and killed Yeargean, making off with some of his money. Given the famousness of Yeargean’s fortune, the executor of Yeargean’s estate, William Lee of New Kent, oversaw an excavation of Yeargean's basement to find any buried money. Legend has it that the search turned up $13,000, several gallons of whiskey, and tally stick with 14 notches, leading to speculation that $1,000 is still buried somewhere on the property. The property was eventually sold to Senator Tom Martin, who used it as his law office. <ref>http://juel.iath.virginia.edu/node/745</ref>
==Video==
{|
|<youtube>mI0lpRCAbNI</youtube>
|-
| '''VIDEO CREDITS''': Narrated by [[Dave Norris]];<br> Graphic design: Jen Fleischer; Project Manager: Kristin Rourke.
|}
The original frame of the court building was erected in 1762, and has been continually used as a courthouse for 200 years. When the British attacked Richmond in the summer of 1781, the Virginia General Assembly made Charlottesville its emergency capital and met in the courthouse for deliberations. The second brick building was built in 1803 in place of the original wooden structure.<ref>{{cite web|title=Historic Court Square|url=http://www.charlottesville.org/Index.aspx?page=1982|author=|work=|publisher=City of Charlottesville|location=|publishdate=|accessdate=29 Dec. 2010}}</ref>
David Maurer quotes the following from the January 1, 1910 Daily Progress:
:"[I]t only knocked out half the windows out of Mr. Flannagan's residence and the front of Cloud & Andwreson's looked like it had been shelled with shrapnel."
==Map==
{{map
|lat=38.031635
|lng=-78.477509
|zoom=18
}}{{clear}}
==Businesses and Attractions==
* [[500 Court Square]], home to
** [[MichieHamlett]]
** [[Terra Concepts]]
*[[Court Square Tavern]]
*[[Historic Albemarle County Jail No. 5]]
==Surrounding area==
{{Geographic location
|Center=Court Square
|South=[[Monticello Hotel]]
|North=
|West=[[Jackson Park|Justice Park|Market Street Park]]
|Northeast=[[Park Street]]
|East=
}}
==References==
{{reflist}}
==External Links==
[http://audiotourcville.org/about/ Audiotour website: Source of video]
[[Category: Public spaces]]
[[Category:North Downtown]]
[[Category:History]]

Revision as of 21:10, 4 July 2022

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