Chatham in Pittsylvania County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Third County Courthouse

Pittsylvania Courthouse

— The Third Pittsylvania County Courthouse - 1783 —

Third County Courthouse Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, May 11, 2024

1. Third County Courthouse Marker

Inscription.
By 1783 the Cherrystone Meeting Courthouse was too small. Officials built a two story wood frame courthouse further up the hill at Higher Spring. The site also included a prison, stocks, and a pillory. The site today is approximately adjacent to the northwest corner of the Chatham Baptist Church. This frame structure was the second in the area that would become Chatham. (Above image from a sketch on the 1807 Competition survey. This courthouse was a “benchmark” for laying out the Town of Competition.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Architecture. A significant historical year for this entry is 1783.

Location. 36° 49.544′ N, 79° 23.917′ W. Marker is in Chatham, Virginia, in Pittsylvania County. It can be reached from the intersection of South Main Street and Pruden Street, on the left when traveling north. The marker is mounted at eye-level on the north side of Competition Alley, near the east end of the alley. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 16 South Main Street, Chatham VA 24531, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southern Virginia,

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specifically in the Piedmont,

and in Southside Virginia.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Fourth County Courthouse (here, next to this marker); Fifth County Courthouse (here, next to this marker); Competition Alley (a few steps from this marker); Second County Courthouse (a few steps from this marker); First County Courthouse (a few steps from this marker); Ex Parte Virginia (within shouting distance of this marker); Pittsylvania Court House (within shouting distance of this marker); Giles Gateway Park (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Chatham.

Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related

Photographed by C. Ryan Dodson, March 7, 2026

2. Third County Courthouse Marker

to this marker. Competition Alley

Also see . . . Pittsylvania County Historical Sites. Excerpt:

In 1783, the county courthouse was moved from Cherrystone Meeting House Spring off Whittle Street to higher ground at the present site of Chatham Baptist Church. Taverns and stores began popping up around the court building. Merchants left at the lower ravine location down the hill began to feel desperation at the thriving businesses surrounding the new courthouse. They petitioned the Virginia General Assembly in 1807 to move the courthouse back to Whittle Street. The General Assembly decided the courthouse should remain at the new location and this row brought about the town being called “Competition” until 1852.
The clerk’s office was built as an adjunct to the controversial courthouse. The courthouse of 1783 was later sold and torn down when the present courthouse was built on Main Street.

(Submitted on July 17, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, May 11, 2024

3. Third County Courthouse Marker

Looking northeast from the middle of Competition Alley; marker is the leftmost of 3 on the east end of the alley.

Competition Alley image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, May 11, 2024

4. Competition Alley

Looking west from South Main Street; marker is the 3rd of 5 markers mounted along the alley from west to east, and visible here as the 3rd back on the right/north wall of the alley.

Credits. This page was last revised on March 18, 2026. It was originally submitted on July 16, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 191 times since then and 20 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on July 17, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. 2. submitted on March 8, 2026, by C. Ryan Dodson of Danville, Virginia. 3, 4. submitted on July 17, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.