Peter Evans and I, went on an amazing tour of the Monumental Church.  Our tour guide, Jennifer Joyce, was the best, and provided us with so much historical data on what happened at this location that resulted in the creation of the Monumental Church.  Here is a little bit about the history, but to get the real experience, visit this location and book a tour at https://historicrichmond.com/tour/

In 1806, as the Richmond area population grew, and big theater was built, and constructed of brick.  On December 26, 1811, over 600 people packed into the Richmond Theatre, designed to hold 500. Families, neighbors, and visitors were full of Christmas cheer and the holiday spirit as they enjoyed what was to be the last theatrical production of the season. The play that was being presented that night, was “The Bleeding Nun”, and a chandelier ablaze with candles knocked into the scenery and set the stage on fire.

When the initial sparks fell on the stage, the audience thought it was lighting effects. However, the scenery quickly began to burn and the fire spread rapidly. An actor yelled “the house is on fire!” and panic began. Everyone rushed to get out of the burning building as the fire intensified and the theater filled with thick black smoke. Those on the stage and in the gallery had their own exits. Those sitting in the boxes had a single exit through narrow passages and a single stairway, that quickly collapsed under the weight of the evacuating people.

Official records identified 72 people who perished in the chaos and conflagration. Men, women, children, Black, white, free and enslaved were there. It was a catastrophic event that affected almost everyone in Richmond and it was the deadliest urban disaster in the United States to have occurred at that time in history.

The next day, on December 27, 1811, the city purchased the site of the old theater to create a perpetual memorial to the victims.  This was the creation of the Monumental Church.

The front porch of the church has a monument, comprised of marble, with the names of the victims are carved into the base walls of the monument.  The name of each and every fire victim is engraved on the monument. The names of the male victims are on the south side (facing Broad Street). The names of the female victims and children are on the remaining three sides. The names of the enslaved victims appear below the name of the white victims.  In the basement of the church is a brick crypt, that has the ashes and remains of the 71 of the 72 people that died in the December 26th Richmond Theatre fire.

This is truly an amazing memorial for these victims and for their families.  When you get in this area, don’t miss out on visiting the Monumental Church, and get the great tour that we did.