Nonesuch Place: A History of the Richmond Landscape

by T. Tyler Potterfield, Sarah Shields Driggs (Foreword)

Intentionally built on the fall line where the Piedmont uplands meet the Tidewater region, Richmond has always been a city defined by the land. From the time settlers built a city on rugged terrain overlooking the James River, the people have changed the land and been changed by it. Few know this better than T. Tyler Potterfield, a planner with the City of Richmond Department of Community Development. Whether considering the many roles of the "romantic, wild and beautiful" James River through the centuries, describing the rationale for the location of the Virginia State Capitol on Shockoe Hill or relating the struggle to reclaim green space as industrialization and urban growth threatened to remove nature from the city, Potterfield weaves a tale as ordered as the gridded streets of Richmond and just as rich in history.

160 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2009

Reviews

[Mac · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m rating based on my enjoyment of the book, not on its quality. It’s a great reference book about a very specific topic, but it is not a page-turner for a general audience.

When Potterfield says that his book is a history of the Richmond landscape, he means it literally, not figuratively. This book exclusively deals with land: parks, cemeteries, estates, roads, and city planning. There’s almost no discussion of anything more than two feet off the ground.

I didn’t enjoy that the book is organized by topic rather than chronologically. Again, great for a reference book, not great for a general reader.

Lastly, there was almost no human story involved. We don’t get much of a glimpse of any of the people involved in shaping Richmond’s landscape. The closest we get is Wilfred Cutshaw, Confederate veteran and oft-thwarted municipal champion of parks and trees.

Overall, I did learn a few interesting tidbits about Richmond history, but this is a dry piece of historical reference and not a book for someone interested in Richmond history from a human perspective.

[William Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A concise view of the settlement geography of Richmond. While short, it is not introductory and best to have some prior knowledge of neighborhoods and persons and of a general history of the city. A rare account of Richmond history divorced from biographical accounts or heavily revolved around the civil war. This establishes a history of the setting that could lead one to more appreciate those more personified histories. As a tour guide in the city I learned a bunch of facts I had not come across before - this book has helped me deliver a more enriching experience.

[Emily Spence · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some interesting tidbits about Richmond but this book is more for someone who’s a student or urban planning than someone who wants to learn about Richmond

[Susan Howson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sure learned a lot about my city, in a very specific way.