The Virginian Hotel

The Virginian Hotel originally opened in 1913 as the premier hotel in downtown Lynchburg. The building was designed by Verus T. Ritter and was built 5 stories tall at the corner of 8th and Church Streets. In 1927 the 6th floor was added and in 1929 the 6 story north wing was added. The Hotel is notable for its arched windows on the first floor, its ornate lobby including 30’ tall arched ceilings with decorative skylights, and grand marble stairs with wrought iron railings.

The hotel served many esteemed guests including Ronald Reagan during a political tour in 1957. The hotel struggled in the 1960’s and finally closed and converted to the Stewart Arms Hotel. In 1972 the building was used as the first dormitory for Liberty Baptist College, now Liberty University, until 1981. In 1983 the building was renovated into low income housing and the elegant first floor was enclosed and used for storage.

The project includes the complete historic renovation of the second through sixth floors into 115 hotel rooms. There will be a full restoration of the original grand lobby on the first floor into a ballroom for wedding and large public events of up to 500 people. Additionally an integrated conference center as well as a restaurant and coffee shop are planned.

A few elements of the original lobby are missing including the original chandeliers which were removed in a 1960’s renovation. Several of the wrought iron railings in the lobby appear to have been removed during the 1983 renovation. Additionally the original glass skylights have been removed. All of these features will be replaced if they can’t be found.