History of Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Virginia|Commonwealth of Virginia. Like all Virginia municipalities incorporated as cities, it is an independent city, not part of any county (Richmond County, Virginia|Richmond County is unrelated, and located more than 53 miles (85 kilometers) distant in a different region of the U.S. state|state). Richmond is at the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) and the Richmond-Petersburg|Greater Richmond Area. It is surrounded by Henrico County, Virginia|Henrico County and Chesterfield County, Virginia|Chesterfield County. The city is located at the intersections of Interstate 95 and Interstate 64 in central Virginia. The city itself has an estimated population of 195,251 and the Greater Richmond area has a population of over 1.2 million. Along with Hampton Roads and Northern Virginia, the Richmond area is one of the most populated areas of the state.
Although the site of Richmond, at the fall line of the James River (Virginia)|James River in the Piedmont (United States)|Piedmont region of Virginia, was briefly settled by English from Jamestown, Virginia|Jamestown in 1607, near the site of a significant native settlement, the present City of Richmond was founded in 1737. It became the capital of the Colony and Dominion of Virginia in 1780. During the American Revolution|Revolutionary War period, several notable events occurred in the city, including Patrick Henry's "Give me liberty or give me death" speech in 1775, and the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom in 1779, which was written by Thomas Jefferson in the city. During the American Civil War, Richmond served as the capital of the Confederate States of America, and many important civil war landmarks remain in the city today.
Richmond's economy is primarily driven by law, finance, and government with several notable legal and banking firms and federal, state, and local governmental agenices located in the downtown area. There are nine Fortune 500 companies with corporate headquarters in the city, including Circuit City, CarMax, Philip Morris USA, and Dominion Resources, among others. Only five metro areas in the country have more Fortune 500 headquarters than the Richmond area. There are also thirteen Fortune 1000 companies in the city. Richmond is also home to smaller companies which contribute to its small town, friendly, southern atmosphere, such as Ukrop's Super Market, a regional, family-owned chain of supermarkets.
Residents of the city are commonly referred to as Richmonders, and they may refer to their city in everyday language as, RVA, RIC, (its IATA airport code|airport code), Cap City, Rich-City or The 804 (its Telephone numbering plan|area code).
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