With spring break just a week away I’m feeling a little homesick, so this week I’m going to tell you about my hometown and maybe you’ll be interested in traveling there! I am from Culpeper, a small town in Northern Virginia.
During the Civil War (1861-1865), Culpeper was a crossroads for a number of armies marching through central Virginia, with both Union and Confederate forces occupying the town by turn. In the heart of downtown, the childhood home of Confederate General A.P. Hill stands at the corner of Main and Davis streets. One block north on Main Street (present location of Piedmont Realty) was the frame house where “The Gallant Major” John Pelham died after sustaining a wound at the Battle at Kelley’s Ford.
Kelley’s Ford 1863
Kelley’s Ford 2017
Culpeper began to grow dramatically in the 1980s, becoming a community of more densely populated Northern VA and Washington D.C. suburbs. A growing number of residents of the town and county of Culpeper commute to and from those areas every day.
The heart of Culpeper is East Davis Street in downtown Culpeper. In 2011, East Davis Street was named as a 2011 America’s Great Place by the American Planning Association.
Davis Street in the late 80’s
Davis Street 2018
With a rich history dating back to the Civil War, Culpeper is a popularly visited town in Virginia. Just 30 miles North of the University of Virginia and 45 miles south of Washington D.C., it is a prime location to book a hotel and take trips to other popular cities in towns across Northern Virginia. Personally, my favorite places to go in Culpeper are right downtown on Davis Street.
Davis Street consists of multiple shops containing everything from gifts and jewelry to antiques and thrift stores! Here are a couple of my favorite shops to visit when I’m walking around downtown.
Pepperberries- Now I may be a bit biased considering I have worked here for the past 4 years but this shop is my all time favorite. At Pepperberries we sell gifts, jewelry, and souvenirs unique to Culpeper. We carry brands you may know of such as Brighton, Pandora, Kate Spade, Kendra Scott, Kate Luxton, and Scout, but we also carry items that are locally made like soaps, perfumes, and bath products alike!
The Green Roost- My next favorite shop is 100% eco-friendly! Everything they sell is made with the Earth in mind! They sell organic candles, recycled clothing, bags made out of repurposed leather, and more! Some of their most popular brands include TOMS, Alex and Ani, Love Your Melon, Swell, and Yala!
Harriets General- What I love most about this store is that there is no rhyme or reason for this store, the only thing each item has in common is that everything is made in the U.S.! They have the best collection of vintage clothing and the funniest little knick knacks! The store is literally filled with something different around every corner.
Poppy & Chalk- Poppy chalk sells all repurposed furniture! They even have a service where you can bring in something old and they will turn it into something new! Two years ago I wanted to change the look of my bedroom dresser and they helped me pick out the chalk paint and new dresser knobs from their store to do the DIY project myself! I took my brown glossy dresser to a matter white in just three days with the help of this unique store!
People also travel from across the state to go to our restaurants in downtown Culpeper! A few of my favorites are Fotis, Copperfish, Flavor on Main, and the Frost Cafe!
There are just too many things I love about Culpeper but I hope this gave you an idea of our quaint little town and whether you’d like to visit someday! Surrounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains, countless vineyards, lakes, and history, Culpeper makes for a perfect weekend getaway. Hopefully you’ll love it as much as I do!
I somehow never realized that you are an out-of-stater too, and a Southern girl at that! 🙂 Me too! I’m always so happy when I find someone here that is from the South, whether they were born there or just spent a few years there, like me, because there are so many references and jokes that people around here just don’t get!
I understand you so much about homesickness starting to set in the closer we get to break. It seems like the closer we get, the more antsy I am to get home again. I can’t wait to see my family and my pets again! I have 10 baby goats that need to be named and snuggled when I get home! Of course, it will be good to see my high school classmates again too, as none of them ever left SC, so I’m curious to see what has happened to them since I left at Christmas. I know several are getting married soon, which is such a strange thought, but that’s typical of a small Southern town.
Anyway, I’m pretty sure that I’ve heard of Culpeper before, though I’ve never been there. Perhaps I’ll get there one of these days! My brother and his wife live near Newport News, if you know where that is, so perhaps one of these days I’ll find my way to Culpeper and explore some of these places you’ve written about! Pepperberries looks like the most adorable shop! And there’s, of course, the food, and you can’t go to the South and miss out on some good fish fry or fried chicken or really anything fried up with plenty of butter! Honestly, I can’t wait to go home and have Zaxby’s fried chicken again, and then there’s a restaurant in my hometown called Mi Fiesta that’s run by a Mexican family and they have the most amazing food!
Anyway, have a safe trip home next weekend!
I love the history that Virginia has to offer. Just two summers ago, my family and I visited to see different colleges, and even though I didn’t end up attending any we saw, I’d love to go again just for purposes of vacation! The pictures you posted were really great and made me want to visit! Great job!