The port shipped out tobacco and coal which was transported 13 miles overland from the Midlothian-area mines on the Midlothian Turnpike, first paved toll road in Virginia in 1807, and the Chesterfield Railroad, the state's first in 1831.

As a result of the Second Anglo-Powhatan War, in 1645 the Virginia Colony's House of Burgesses provided for Fort Charles to be built and garrisoned at the Falls of the James, to protect the frontier.

After two years, Fort Charles was relocated to the south side, to the high ground above the later Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Bridge, on a tract owned by Capt.

Manchester grew to become a major seaport in the 17th through 19th centuries, as did its neighbor Richmond on the north bank of the river.

For its final several miles, the line followed present-day Maury Street, which was the southern border of Manchester for many years.

County voters approved the move from Chesterfield Court House, Virginia, and the cornerstone of the new courthouse was laid on March 31, 1871.

The former courthouse complex on Hull Street is now the Manchester Division of the Richmond City courts.

However, when the question of a move came up once again on the 1876 ballot, voters approved, 1290 to 772, a return to Chesterfield Courthouse, which became effective on July 1 that year.

Two of the key features of the consolidation agreement were requirements that a free bridge across the James River be built and that the separate courthouse in Manchester be maintained indefinitely.

Though part of the city of Richmond, Manchester's industrial presence continued to flourish in the 20th century.

Cooperative The Manchester Residential and Commercial Historic District is located in the city of Richmond, Virginia, on the south side of the James River.