Publications

Main Photo: Sacred Heart Cathedral. Taken from the archives of Historic Richmond Foundation (photo by Richard C. Cheek)

Historic Richmond Foundation believes that publishing books on architectural history is one of the most effective methods of empowering the future with the knowledge of the past. The Foundation is dedicated to publishing accounts of our city’s greatest Historic Districts using compelling photography and finely detailed architectural descriptions.

The Foundation has several publications available for sale, including:

The Church Hill Old & Historic Districts

John G. Zehmer, Photography by Richard Cheek

The Church Hill Old & Historic Districts captures the people and buildings that tells the stories of Richmond's oldest neighborhoods. The book not only includes the original book, Church Hill: The St. John's Church Historic District, 1991, but also Chimborazo Park, Church Hill North and Shockoe Valley. Jack Zehmer captures much of the building stock of the four old and historic districts with his black & white photography. From time to time, he weaves ownership history in the architectural text. Richard Cheek, a phenomenal photographer, highlights the beauty of the architectural details of the building stock with his color photography that nearly jumps of the page.

Richmond's Fan District

Drew St. J. Carneal, Photography by Richard Cheek

This book traces the development of the Fan District, a residential neighborhood made up of late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century houses located several miles to the west of downtown Richmond. Focusing mainly on the physical and architectural development of the Fan District, this book only hints at the social history of the people who lived in its houses.

Old Richmond Today

John G. Zehmer, Photography by Richard Cheek

This book is celebration of a communal heritage. It is less of a guidebook than a testament to a century of achievements in historic preservation, collected for the first time in full color in a single volume. The city’s major landmarks and museums are shown along with other efforts, not only those of organizations and institutions, but also those of generations of Richmonders who have successively lived, worked and played in the city’s buildings, neighborhoods and parks.

Saving Grace: Resurrecting American History

Historic Richmond Foundation, Made Possible by a Generous Grant from the Robins Foundation

Completed in 1814, Monumental Church was designed by Robert Mills, the only architectural pupil of Thomas Jefferson and architect of the Washington Monument. Nearly two centuries after its construction, environmental degradation from car exhaust and nearby tobacco factories caused the marble sculpture on the structure’s front portico to experience structural failure. Following a thorough conservation assessment, it was determined that the sculpture was too weak to withstand conventional restoration. Instead, HRF pursued reconstruction and, as a result, initiated a technological breakthrough for the preservation of outdoor sculptures worldwide.

SAVING GRACE, Historic Richmond Foundation’s award-winning historical documentary, follows an expert team of historians, scientists and stone cutters from the front portico of Monumental Church to the hills of Ireland as they recreate a 195-year-old marble sculpture designed by America’s first native-born architect.

The documentary SAVING GRACE and its accompanying lesson plans meet many of the State of Virginia Standards of Learning as well as National Standards for several areas of instruction. Additionally, the documentary utilizes many visual thinking strategies and Howard Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligence. The Foundation encourages individuals to utilize as much of this content as needed to fulfill teaching requirements.

Should an individual like to arrange a visit to Monumental Church, please call the Historic Richmond Foundation office at 804.643.7407.

Download Saving Grace Auxiliary Resources

To purchase one of these books and/or DVD, please call the Foundation headquarters at 804.643.7407.