Dixie

Monday morning we hit the road and drove to Richmond, Virginia. We are visiting our cousins Arnie and Celeste who live here half the year. We have never been to this capital city and want to see some of the historic sights.

It is a three hour drive from Chapel Hill and the day is sunny and mild. On the way we stopped at the Petersburg Battlefield. We had passed here many times on I-95 and this is the first time we visited and saw the excellent movie.

This Civil War area had a nine month siege and 70,000 soldiers were killed or wounded. Finally the Union broke the supply lines of the Confederacy and that ended the war. Another time we will see more of the sites here.

 Arnie and Celeste live in a suburb near the city and immediately took us to see Hollywood Cemetery. This is a gorgeous place set on several hills overlooking the city and the James River. Many Confederate soldiers are buried here along with their families. This 90' pyramid was dedicated in 1869 for the 18,000 Confederate soldiers buried here.

Also six Virginia governors, historical figures and newer graves.

The Iron Dog guards a child's grave adorned with toys left by visitors.

We saw the resting places of President's John Tyler and James Monroe.

This grave with a weeping statue atop is particularly moving.

Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederacy, has an impressive circle site where he and his family are buried with a great view of the river.

At home we had some cheese and wine and then headed out to dinner at a local Italian restaurant.