Midlothian, VA

Midlothian is a Chesterfield County community west of Richmond with roots that go deeper than its modern suburban feel suggests. The area grew around coal mining, and local coal pits once supplied the cannon factory on the James River. Its location about 20 miles above the head of navigation at Richmond helped tie it to early regional industry. Today Midlothian is better known as a residential and commercial suburb, but its mining history gives the place a more distinctive backstory than many Richmond-area communities.