Nomination Form
The Chapel was built in 1904 as part of the Central State Hospital, which opened in 1885 in Dinwiddie County as a segregated facility for mentally ill African Americans. The building was used for social activities such as dances and concerts as well as daily and Sunday worship services. The Central State Hospital Chapel was a reminder of the state’s unequal treatment of African Americans during the era of segregation and the evolving history of mental health treatment facilities.
The Central State Hospital Chapel was listed at the statewide level of significance in the areas of Black Ethnic Heritage and Health/Medicine. After being vacant for a number of years, the state-owned building was compromised by deferred maintenance, leading to its eventual collapse in May of 2014.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Programs
DHR has secured permanent legal protection for over 700 historic places - including 15,000 acres of battlefield lands
DHR has erected 2,532 highway markers in every county and city across Virginia
DHR has registered more than 3,317 individual resources and 613 historic districts
DHR has engaged over 450 students in 3 highway marker contests
DHR has stimulated more than $4.2 billion dollars in private investments related to historic tax credit incentives, revitalizing communities of all sizes throughout Virginia
