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Powhatan VAPhoto: Mojo Hand · CC BY-SA 4.0
–Not graded
History · Powhatan

Powhatan dates to 1777, and 3 of its places are on the National Register

3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 4 buildings. Most of Powhatan was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2003. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1943 on, and old-book passages.

1777founded
3on the National Register
3%homes built before 1940
5old photos & papers
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Powhatan’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Powhatan began

When was Powhatan founded?

1777

Powhatan dates its founding to 1777 (Wikipedia’s history). Its post office opened in 1794.

2020 census: 402249 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1794.

What stands out about Powhatan’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Powhatan.Deep rootsEstablished in 1777: 249 years of Powhatan.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Powhattan Courthouse
1794–1893
Scottsville
1817–1847
Powhattan
1893–today
17901910today

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Timeline

Powhatan, 1777 to 1947

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 18th century
  2. 1777
    FoundingPowhatan is established
  3. 1794Post officeThe Powhattan Courthouse post office opens
  4. 19th century
  5. 1817Post officeThe Scottsville post office opens
  6. 1847Post officeThe Scottsville post office closes
  7. 1853In the archiveThe Powatan [i.e. Powhatan] Valley of the Powatan Virginia from the church yard of the ch…
  8. 1893Post officeThe Powhattan Courthouse post office closes
  9. 1893Post officeThe Powhattan post office opens
  10. 1897Born hereTom Miller is born here
  11. 20th century
  12. 1918Born hereMarvin Banks Perry Jr. is born here
  13. 1943On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  14. 1947Born hereDemetrius Venable is born here
The story so far

Powhatan, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Powhatan yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Powhatan is a census-designated place in and the county seat of Powhatan County, Virginia, United States. It was initially known as Scottville (after Revolutionary war hero General Charles Scott), and has historically also been known as Powhatan Court House and Powhatan Courthouse, named after Chief Powhatan, father of Matoaka (Pocahontas). The community had a population of 402 at the 2020 census. The first official court of Powhatan was held at Mosby Tavern, the home of Benjamin Mosby and his son, Littleberry Mosby. Powhatan was established as a community in May 1777, but there were several buildings already in existence at that time. One of these locations is the Powhatan Plantation which…

Powhatan was established in 1777.

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Powhatan in 1860

Passages that mention Powhatan, cut from the printed page as they were published.

To which Captain Newport’s profuse presents to Powhatan were added, and gave the finishing blow to their trade. They served indeed to entertain and keep up the high idea of Newport's greatness* which Smith had raised in Powhatan, and made him very desirous to see him.
The life and adventures of Captain John Smith1860 · page 92Read the page →
Read the text

To which Captain Newport’s profuse presents to Powhatan were added, and gave the finishing blow to their trade. They served indeed to entertain and keep up the high idea of Newport's greatness* which Smith had raised in Powhatan, and made him very desirous to see him.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

By decade

Powhatan, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1850s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1850s1 item
The Powatan [i.e. Powhatan] Valley of the Powatan Virginia from the church yard of the church Philip Henry [sic] addres…1853The Powatan [i.e. Powhatan] Valley of the Powatan Vir…
Date unknown4 to date
Norwood, State Route 711 vicinityDate?Norwood, State Route 711 vicinityOld Tavern, State Route 30Date?Old Tavern, State Route 30Belnemus, U.S. Route 60 vicinityDate?Belnemus, U.S. Route 60 vicinityWoodberry Mill (Numbers One & Two), State Route 614 vicinityDate?Woodberry Mill (Numbers One & Two), State Route 614 v…
Today2 recent
Powhatan VA2018Powhatan VAFollowing chief powhatan into the new year2016Following chief powhatan into the new year
On the map

Powhatan on the map, 1943 to 1987

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Powhatan. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Powhatan on the 1943 USGS mapPowhatan on the 1966 USGS mapPowhatan on the 1974 USGS mapPowhatan on the 1987 USGS map1943Powhatan sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Powhatan.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

The Powatan [i.e. Powhatan] Valley of the Powatan Virginia from the church yard of the church Philip Henry [sic] addres…
Retake this viewThe Powatan [i.e. Powhatan] Valley of the Powatan Virginia from the church yard of the church Philip Henry [sic] addres…, 1853

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Powhatan’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

3 historic places in Powhatan

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
6
each building in a district counts
first listed
1970
Powhatan Courthouse Historic District
Powhatan Courthouse Historic District
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival1
Gothic Revival1
Powhatan Courthouse Historic DistrictGreek Revival
Emmanuel Episcopal ChurchGothic Revival
Fighting Creek PlantationBuilding

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Powhatan

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Tom MillerAmerican baseball player, born 1897 · b. 1897
D
Demetrius VenableAmerican physicist · b. 1947
M
Marvin Banks Perry Jr.American college administrator · b. 1918
Help out

Start Powhatan’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Powhatan’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo4 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewThe Powatan [i.e. Powhatan] Valley of t…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Powhatan’s history

What year was Powhatan founded?

In 1777, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Powhatan’s post office opened in 1794.

What is on the National Register in Powhatan?

Three places: the Powhatan Courthouse Historic District (listed 1970), the Emmanuel Episcopal Church (1990) and the Fighting Creek Plantation (2013).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (2), the Library of Congress (5), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.