Montross is the county seat of Westmoreland County. Located in the historic Northern Neck of Virginia, Montross is near the George Washington Birthplace National Monument and the Stratford Hall Plantation (the birthplace of Robert E. Lee and Founding Fathers and signers of the Declaration of Independence, Richard Henry Lee and Francis Lightfoot Lee). The towns slogan is return to the village. The town is considered the mural capital of the Northern Neck as it has fourteen beautiful murals located on or inside different buildings within the town quarters. The town has recentlygone through a revitalization program that has turned it into a destination for art lovers as wellas antiquers.
When Westmoreland County was formed in 1653 from part of Northumberland County, the
first courthouse was erected on the property of the newly appointed sheriff, at an area now
called Currioman, overlooking Currioman Bay. A new high sheriff, John Lord, was appointed in
1658, and in 1667 he directed that a new courthouse be built on property he owned near the
center of the County, at a site that is now Montross. A town began to grow around this new
courthouse. As was customary, the town was named after the County, and so Montross was
called Westmoreland Courthouse until 1752.
In 1751, an Irish merchant, William Black, purchased 110 acres of land surrounding the
Courthouse and began to operate a store on the property. Black owned a ship that he used to
bring goods from England. The ship was called the Montross, after Black’s native town of
Montross, Ireland.
Shortly after Black began his business, references to the Town of Montross, Virginia, began to
appear, and at some later time the Town was officially given that name. Since then, the Town
has continued to play an official role as the Westmoreland County seat. Montross also serves as a commercial center for the County.
A charming and historic riverfront community in Tidewater Virginia
3,000
20K-30K
8,000
The Town of Tappahannock (est. pop 3,000) is a charming and historic riverfront community in Tidewater Virginia. Located on the Rappahannock River, Tappahannock features an abundance of natural beauty and is the ‘seat’ of Essex County. Tappahannock is less than an hour’s drive to Richmond and Fredericksburg. Depending on the time of year, the daily traffic count can vary between 20,000 and 30,000 cars traveling to Tappahannock, serving as the region’s center for commerce with an 8,000 estimated daytime population.
The community offers various outdoor recreational activities such as fishing, boating, canoeing, kayaking, paddleboarding, and waterfowl hunting. Tappahannock features numerous local restaurants offering cuisines that serve breakfast, Italian, Mexican, fine dining, and a local brewery.
Tappahannock is older than Richmond, Fredericksburg, and even Williamsburg
1660
1680
1705