Table of Contents
A large contingent of Hanover County Sheriff’s deputies were near the Atlee Recreation Association building in Mechanicsville early Friday evening after authorities received a report that human remains were possibly found, police said.
The sheriff’s office received a call just after 5 p.m. from residents collecting trash near the recreation center at 9411 Staple Lane that they may have discovered human bones and clothing, said Hanover Sheriff’s Lt. James Cooper.
“Our investigators are on the scene now trying to make heads or tails of it,” Cooper said.
The discovery drew a large law enforcement presence to the area.
31 photos from the Times-Dispatch archives
Air Raid
In April 1956, a new air raid siren was installed atop a small tower (behind street sign) at the corner of Laburnum Avenue and Brook Road in Richmond. It was one of three new sirens being installed to broaden the city’s Civil Defense warning system. The other two were placed at John B. Cary School and at Engine Co. 20 on Forest Hill Avenue.
Air Scouts
In August 1946, leaders of the three flights in the Gamble’s Hill Community Center Air Scouts received their banners at the first review of the corps held in Gamble’s Hill Park. This was the only troop of Air Scouts organized in Richmond at that time; they wore the regulation National Air Scout uniform. Pictured (from left) were pilot leader Eddie Williams, sponsor Verna Walker, pilot leader William Massie, sponsor Barbara Chandler, pilot leader Everett Webb and sponsor Virginia Blackburn. The community center was financed by Second Presbyterian Church.
Bellwood
This March 1952 image shows a wagon, believed to have been Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant’s during the Civil War, as it was retired to the Army’s Richmond Quartermaster Depot at Bellwood. The wagon was among numerous items being transferred from Cameron Station in Alexandria; it can still be seen at the Army Quartermaster Museum at Fort Lee.
Bookmobile
In June 1939 at the state Capitol in Richmond, the first of a planned dozen Chevrolet bookmobiles of the Statewide Library Project was put into service. The project, which aimed to expand book availability in rural areas, was part of the Work Projects Administration, a New Deal employment program. At right, WPA official Ella Agnew turned over the key to C.W. Dickinson Jr. of the State Board of Education. With them were (from left) F.E. Gross of Chevrolet, Leslie Stevens of the Virginia State Library, project technical supervisor Mary Gaver and project administrative supervisor W.A. Moon Jr.
cannonballs001
This June 1952 image shows one of “Dr. Duval’s pills,” part of a trio of 30-inch granite Turkish cannonballs, in its new location at John Marshall High School at Eighth and Marshall streets in Richmond. After standing for many years on a pedestal in front of Grays’ Armory at Seventh and Marshall, this one was destined to join its two mates at the city Works Department trash heap at the old fairgrounds, where those two had lain missing since World War II until being rediscovered in January 1952. This one was instead saved with a move out of the way of downtown traffic.
Cloverleaf Mall 1975
When this photo of Cloverleaf Mall was taken in March 1975, the shopping center was just three years old.
Draft
In May 1946, the future of the military draft was in question, and David Burruss, 19, of Norfolk, got lots of attention when he was thought to be the last man selected at the Richmond Armed Forces Induction Station. He was among about a dozen inductees who then headed off to Fort Meade in Maryland. (The wartime selective service act was extended, though.)
Dumbarton
In December 1953, the new whirlaway, a merry-go-round type of gadget turned by the foot power of dozens of students, was popular at Dumbarton Elementary School in Henrico County. The attraction was part of a new set of playground equipment purchased with $750 donated by the Lakeside Lions Club. Watching the children (from left) were H.F. Taylor, Lions Club president; Joseph Rotella, school principal; and F.M. Armbrecht, chairman of the PTA recreation committee.
Falling Creek
This April 1955 image shows men dipping for herring in Falling Creek in Chesterfield County. Herring would arrive in rivers in the spring to spawn, and dipping was a popular activity that allowed men to socialize while stocking up on fish that could be salted and eaten throughout the year.
Floods
In May 1948, flooding from heavy rains in the Windsor Shades area of New Kent County washed out a Chesapeake & Ohio Railway bed, leaving unsupported rails spanning a chasm. The flooded U.S. Route 60 is in the foreground. As much as 8 feet of water was reported on Route 60 in the area.
Fort Lee
This August 1936 image shows the former headquarters of the Army’s 80th Division at Camp Lee near Petersburg. The building was constructed during World War I and later known as David House. In 1972, it was designated as a historical site; it is still standing today as the oldest building at Fort Lee and the only one left from WWI.
Henrico Schools
This October 1955 image shows Laurel Elementary School in Henrico County, which was a constant source of complaints. The building, dating to the early 1900s, was not being maintained to a high standard because the county planned to abandon it for a new school soon. Most of the broken windows seen were on the unused third and fourth floors. While Henrico hoped to have the new Maude Trevvett Elementary opened by September 1956, it did not open until January 1958.
John Marshall High
In October 1961, a crane swung a wrecking ball against the portico of the old John Marshall High School in downtown Richmond as a nostalgic crowd watched. The building was being razed to make way for development of the new Civic Center; the new high school opened in North Side the previous year.
Kings Dominion
In June 1975, the band Ice Water performed in the Flintstone Follies Theater at Kings Dominion in Doswell. The theme park fully opened the previous month with 15 attractions; its Lion Country Safari area had opened in 1974. Today, the park offers more than 60 rides, shows and attractions as well as a water park.
Kings Dominion
In May 1975, Gov. Mills E. Godwin Jr. greeted a porpoise on the opening day of Kings Dominion in Doswell. The theme park opened with 15 attractions; its Lion Country Safari area had opened a year before. Today, the park offers more than 60 rides, shows and attractions as well as a water park.
Laurel Elementary School in Henrico, 1955
This October 1955 image shows Laurel Elementary School in Henrico County, which was a constant source of complaints. The building, dating to the early 1900s, was not being maintained to a high standard because the county planned to abandon it for a new school soon. Most of the broken windows seen were on the unused third and fourth floors. While Henrico hoped to have the new Maude Trevvett Elementary opened by September 1956, it did not open until January 1958.
Maggie Walker
This April 1946 image shows members of the Girl Reserve Club at Maggie Walker High School in Richmond. Club activities included drama, knitting, glass painting, embroidery and sewing. From left were Laura Belle Manning, Marie Spurlock, Eloise Taylor and Gladys Claxton.
Miller & Rhoads
In February 1951, this window display, using Richmond Times-Dispatch and Richmond News-Leader pages for a background, was set up in a Grace Street window of Miller & Rhoads in connection with the approach of Easter and new spring finery. Addison Lewis was director of window displays at the department store for 52 years, a span in which the scenes became extremely popular.
Mules
The June 10, 1961, edition of The Richmond News Leader included a photo essay titled “Contrasts.” The photos depicted old and new around the city — such as a mule and a truck, which were both relied on for hauling duties.
Paper drive to benefit Dumbarton Elementary library
In April 1947, about 20,000 pounds of paper was collected in a drive at Dumbarton Elementary School in Henrico County, with Edward O’Brien (from left), Leroy Foster and Thomas Riggan in charge. The paper was sold, with proceeds used to purchase library books and other materials for students. The previous year, paper-drive money purchased a mimeographing machine for teacher use.
Patterson Avenue construction, 1959.
This May 1959 image shows construction along Patterson Avenue between Libbie and Maple avenues in Richmond. This block had just reopened to traffic, but ongoing work continued to block passage to the east of the shopping center.
r0716_Brown1
In August 1970, a student peered out of a Richmond Public Schools bus on a rainy morning as cross-town busing began in the city. Amid controversy, about 13,000 students in Richmond were bused to different schools under a federal court order to help achieve integration.
Railroads
In March 1930, the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway’s new luxury train, the Sportsman, stopped at Main Street Station in Richmond on the last leg of an exhibition tour ahead of service beginning on a new route from Norfolk to Detroit and Cleveland. In its day on exhibit in Richmond, the train was visited by about 10,000 people, including Gov. John Pollard, Lt. Gov. James Price, Mayor J. Fulmer Bright and numerous other local and state dignitaries.
Red Cross
In August 1942, members of the canteen class, sponsored by the Richmond chapter of the American Red Cross, finished their course with a demonstration of mass feeding at the Sauer Co. Among those serving were (from left) Mrs. T.V. Adamson, Mrs. Thomas Cook, Mrs. Keeling Sisson and Mrs. Irving Matthews.
Restaurants
In March 1943, teenagers visited the newly reopened Main Street Station Dining Room in Richmond, which was closed for a month to allow for remodeling required by the city. During that period, the Red Cross stepped in to supply food to World War II servicemen passing through the terminal.
rvaskyline001
This August 1963 aerial image shows the area between the Hotel Richmond and Interstate 95. In the distance is the Centennial Dome, which was constructed as a visitor center for the 1961 Civil War Centennial. It then served for decades as the Jonah L. Larrick Student Center at the Medical College of Virginia.
Trolley
In November 1949, Richmond’s electric streetcars, which began service in 1888, were retired from service. Here, a crowd waited to board cars as they took ceremonial final trips through the city, with car signs touting the city’s new bus service. The Virginia Transit Co. spent $2.2 million on 166 buses for the new system.
Trolley
In November 1934, a reproduction of a mule-drawn trolley was the first vehicle to cross the newly restored Marshall Street Viaduct in Richmond. Horse- or mule-drawn trolleys were a preferred mode of transportation here starting in about 1860. They began to be replaced by electric trolleys in the late 1880s, and they were all retired by 1901.
Westwood Circle in 1950
This June 1950 image shows the former Westwood Circle in Richmond, a traffic circle at the intersection of North Boulevard, Hermitage Road and Westwood Avenue. In November 1961, a $150,000 project removed the circle, added islands and traffic signals, and diverted some traffic around the busy intersection. City safety official John Hanna called the intersection the “most complicated we have had to redesign and signalize in the past 14 years.”
Wilder
In January 1988, Lt. Gov. L. Douglas Wilder (left) shared a laugh with tennis star and humanitarian Arthur Ashe at a birthday celebration for Wilder in Richmond. The gala raised money for Wilder’s upcoming race for governor; his victory made him the first African-American elected governor in the nation.
YMCA
This January 1955 image shows businessmen using the Health Club at the downtown Richmond YMCA. The Health Club, which featured massages, ultraviolet and infrared lamps, and steam rooms, promoted its services as the busy businessman’s alternative to exercise. The local Y had been celebrating its 100th anniversary, having been formed in 1854 — just 10 years after the international association was established.
(804) 649-6450