By the beginning of the 20th century the city's population had reached 85,050 in 5 square miles (13 km²), making it the most densely populated city in the Southern United States.
In 1900 the Census Bureau reported Richmond's population as 62.1% white and 37.9% black.
Freed slaves and their descendants created a thriving African-American business community, and the city's historic Jackson Ward became known as the "Wall Street of Black America".
In 1903 African-American businesswoman and financier Maggie L. Walker chartered St. Luke Penny Savings Bank and served as its first president.
She was the first female bank president in the United States.
Today the bank is called the Consolidated Bank and Trust Company and is the country's oldest surviving African-American bank.
Other figures from this time included John Mitchell Jr. In 1910 the former city of Manchester consolidated with Richmond, and in 1914 the city annexed Barton Heights, Ginter Park, and Highland Park in Henrico County.
In May 1914 Richmond became the headquarters of the Fifth District of the Federal Reserve Bank.

Several major performing arts venues were constructed during the 1920s, including what are now the Landmark Theatre, Byrd Theatre, and Carpenter Theatre.
The city's first radio station, WRVA, began broadcasting in 1925.
WTVR-TV (CBS 6), Richmond's first television station, was the first TV station south of Washington, D.C.
Between 1963 and 1965 there was a "downtown boom" that led to the construction of more than 700 buildings.
In 1968 Virginia Commonwealth University was created by the merger of the Medical College of Virginia with the Richmond Professional Institute.
In 1970 Richmond's borders expanded by an additional 27 square miles (70 km²) on the south.
After several years of court cases in which Chesterfield County fought annexation, more than 47,000 former Chesterfield County residents found themselves within the city's perimeters on January 1, 1970.
In 1996 still-sore tensions arose amid controversy involved in adding a statue of African American Richmond native and tennis star Arthur Ashe to the series of statues of Confederate generals on Monument Avenue.
After several months of controversy Ashe's bronze statue was finally completed, facing the opposite direction from the Confederate generals, on July 10, 1996.

A multimillion-dollar flood wall was completed in 1995 to protect low-lying areas of city from the oft-rising James River.
As a result, the River District businesses grew rapidly, and today the area is home to much of Richmond's entertainment, dining and nightlife activity, bolstered by the creation of a Canal Walk along the city's former industrial canals.
By the beginning of the 20th century the city's population had reached 85,050 in 5 square miles (13 km²), making it the most densely populated city in the Southern United States. In 1900 the Census Bureau reported Richmond's population as 62.1% white and 37.9% black. Freed slaves and their descendants created a thriving African-American business community, and the city's historic Jackson Ward became known as the "Wall Street of Black America". In 1903 African-American businesswoman and financier Maggie L. Walker chartered St. Luke Penny Savings Bank and served as its first president. She was the first female bank president in the United States. Today the bank is called the Consolidated Bank and Trust Company and is the country's oldest surviving African-American bank. Other figures from this time included John Mitchell Jr. In 1910 the former city of Manchester consolidated with Richmond, and in 1914 the city annexed Barton Heights, Ginter Park, and Highland Park in Henrico County. In May 1914 Richmond became the headquarters of the Fifth District of the Federal Reserve Bank.
Several major performing arts venues were constructed during the 1920s, including what are now the Landmark Theatre, Byrd Theatre, and Carpenter Theatre. The city's first radio station, WRVA, began broadcasting in 1925. WTVR-TV (CBS 6), Richmond's first television station, was the first TV station south of Washington, D.C.
Between 1963 and 1965 there was a "downtown boom" that led to the construction of more than 700 buildings. In 1968 Virginia Commonwealth University was created by the merger of the Medical College of Virginia with the Richmond Professional Institute. In 1970 Richmond's borders expanded by an additional 27 square miles (70 km²) on the south. After several years of court cases in which Chesterfield County fought annexation, more than 47,000 former Chesterfield County residents found themselves within the city's perimeters on January 1, 1970. In 1996 still-sore tensions arose amid controversy involved in adding a statue of African American Richmond native and tennis star Arthur Ashe to the series of statues of Confederate generals on Monument Avenue. After several months of controversy Ashe's bronze statue was finally completed, facing the opposite direction from the Confederate generals, on July 10, 1996.
A multimillion-dollar flood wall was completed in 1995 to protect low-lying areas of city from the oft-rising James River. As a result, the River District businesses grew rapidly, and today the area is home to much of Richmond's entertainment, dining and nightlife activity, bolstered by the creation of a Canal Walk along the city's former industrial canals.
Richmond, Virginia