Existing comment:
Old House Chamber:
This large chamber was used by the House of Delegates from 1788 until 1904. Various Virginia conventions also met here between 1829 and 1956 to amend the U.S. Constitution and create four new state constitutions for the Commonwealth. In April 1861, Virginia voted in this room to secede from the Union and Robert E. Lee accepted command of Virginia state forces from the governor. Virginia's first elected African American Delegates began meeting here in the late 1860s. |