Originally named Clover Street, Boulevard was once a small road running through Channing Robinson’s farmland. In 1884 Robinson’s land became the site of the Robert E. Lee Camp No. 1, a home for Confederate veterans that included a hospital, chapel and cottages. Robinson’s house and the chapel (below) still stand on the property that now belongs to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. In 1890 the street was widened and renamed the “Boulevard.” It provided access to Resevoir Park, now called Byrd Park, by the Main Street trolley line. Boulevard is lined with fashionable apartment houses that were popular in the early decades of the twentieth century. The apartment houses are mixed with town houses of varying styles. Many of these buildings have recently undergone extensive renovation.
Corner of Boulevard & Grove Avenue Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
Classical Revival. Architects: Peebles and Ferguson. One of the largest art museums in the South, it houses a collection of fine art: from Faberge eggs, Asian, African, Egyptian and medieval art to French Impressionists, pop art, sculpture and prints. Open to the public.
Confederate Chapel
Behind the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, c1887