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Cultural Heritage Pocahontas Island

Homes on Pocahontas Island
  • Address
    224 Witten Street
    Petersburg, VA 23803
  • Phone
    804-861-8889
  • City
    Petersburg
    Locality
    Petersburg City
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  • Visit Site

Pocahontas Island, named after the legendary Native American princess, is probably Petersburg's earliest predominantly African-American neighborhood. It is a peninsula located on the north side of the Appomattox River within the limits of Petersburg. Some of Petersburg's first enslaved black were brought here in 1732 to work in John Bolling's tobacco warehouses. In 1750 the land was subdivided and named Wittontown. It was renamed Pocahontas Island when it became a town in 1752 and became a part of Petersburg in 1784. In 1797, free blacks and slaves from the Davenport parish in Prince George County established the Sandy Beach Baptist Church in Pocahontas. They worshipped there until 1818 when the congregation moved to Gillfield. By 1800, many of Petersburg's 310 free blacks were probably residing in this integrated neighborhood, including John Jarrett and John Updike who earned their living as boatmen, fishermen and watermen.

Richard A. Stewart, the unofficial "Mayor" of Pocahontas Island, was born on the 66-acre island in 1943. He purchased an 18th century house there in 2002 and began collecting and amassing artifacts related to Black history as well as Civil War history. By 2003, he had collected enough items to open the house as the Pocahontas Island Black History Museum.  Pocahontas Island is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

 

Amenities

  • Family Friendly

Region

Central Virginia

Last Updated: 08/25/2020

Related Listings

  • Pocahontas Island Black History Museum
    Pocahontas Island Black History Museum
    224 Witten Street
    Petersburg, VA 23803

What's Nearby

  • Pocahontas Island Black History Museum
    Pocahontas Island Black History Museum
    224 Witten Street
    Petersburg, VA 23803
    0 MI
  • Underground Railroad House
    Underground Railroad House
    213-215 Witten Street
    Petersburg, VA 23803
    0.01 MI
  • The Bucket Trade
    The Bucket Trade
    429 3rd St
    Chester, VA 23803
    0.26 MI

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