Appomattox, VA

Appomattox is the county-seat town of Appomattox County, in the Lynchburg region of central Virginia. The town took shape around a railroad station after the county moved its seat here in 1892, following the burning of the older courthouse village a few miles north. That split still matters: modern town streets hold county offices, schools, shops, and courthouse-square museums, while Appomattox Court House National Historical Park preserves the village where Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant in 1865.

Court Street leads to the Appomattox County Historical Society's Old Jail Museum and Library, and Clover Hill Village adds a six-acre collection of relocated historic buildings and demonstrations. The town's historic district follows the railroad-era county-seat center, with current civic routines layered over the same map. Appomattox County Public Schools includes Appomattox County High School, and the park, museums, and annual local events keep the area's Civil War history connected to present-day life. Appomattox is the town associated with the surrender, while the actual town center and the preserved courthouse village remain two distinct places.