During your visit to this Petersburg, Virginia attraction, watch Echoes Still Remain to learn about the city’s involvement in the Civil War. In the Museum’s permanent exhibition discover what day-to-day life would have been like for the residents during the 10-month Siege of Petersburg.
The Exchange Building
Petersburg, Virginia’s Exchange Building, also known as Merchant’s Exchange Building or The Exchange, was built between 1839 and 1841 for a group of merchants who wanted to create a trading center where graded and certified samples of agricultural products could be shown to prospective buyers. While the Siege Museum within the building is what attracts most visitors, the Exchange Building itself offers a great deal of insight into Petersburg. The two-story, five bay by five bay building is an excellent example of Greek Revival architecture with a hipped roof. It features a three bay Doric order portico and its principle interior feature is a central circular domed room.
The Echoes Still Remain
Start your visit to this Petersburg museum with Echoes Still Remain. This 18-minute film, narrated by the late film star and Petersburg native Joseph Cotton, tells of the significance of Petersburg prior to the Civil War and captures beautifully the historic importance of Petersburg during the Civil War.
Permanent Exhibition
See how the Siege greatly affected the lives of Petersburg residents. Through artifacts, documents and photographs, the story of how the people of Petersburg lived prior, present and post the ten-month Siege of Petersburg, the longest period of time that an American city has been under military siege, is eloquently told in the Siege Museum’s Permanent Exhibition. Learn about how the lavish lifestyles prior to the Civil War gave way to a bitter struggle for survival during the Siege of Petersburg. Men were gone, some never to return, and food was in short supply. Corn became “coffee” and blackberry leaves “tea.” For just one chicken, Petersburg civilians were forced to pay around 50 Confederate dollars.
The Siege Museum’s Photograph Collection
A collection of 42 photographs captures the essence of the Civil War. While many images featured in the Museum’s exhibition include portraits of men in uniform, a handful of photographs capture battlefields, towns and the effects of war on both military and civilian life. Works by Alexander Gardner and Timothy O’Sullivan, both of whom were members of Mathew Brady’s studio during the first years of the Civil War, document a number of buildings that were converted for military use, several of which still stand in Petersburg to this day as well as many photographs that capture daily military life of Federal and Confederate troops positioned in forts around the outskirts of Petersburg.
- The Echoes Still Remain is shown regularly throughout the day. Ask museum staff for specific film times.
- Be sure to stop by the Siege Museum Gift Shop. Located in the Siege Museum, the Gift Shop offers gifts and keepsakes unique to the Siege Museum and Petersburg, Virginia.