Shockoe Slip in Richmond, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Bowers Brothers Coffee and Tea Building

104 Shockoe Slip

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, March 5, 2011

1. Bowers Brothers Coffee and Tea Building Marker

Inscription. Richmond’s flour, milled here in Shockoe Slip, was known all over the world for its high quality. On their return from delivering flour and the popular Virginia tobacco, ships were laden with coffee, tea, and exotic spices, which were then sold by commission merchants here in the Slip. The Bowers Brothers Building takes its name from a coffee and tea processing and brokerage firm that occupied it from 1912 until 1956. This straightforward commercial structure, which usually housed leaf tobacco dealers and manufacturers of fertilizer, is also interesting because of its own evolution. After the 1865 Evacuation Fire destroyed an earlier structure, the first three floors of the current building were erected in 1870. The top two floors were added in the early twentieth century, attesting to the commercial vitality of this neighborhood at that time. Adapted for present-day use, the building now contains apartments and retail stores on the ground floor.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Industry & Commerce. A significant historical year for this entry is 1912.

Location. 37° 32.103′ N, 77° 26.046′ W. Marker

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is in Richmond, Virginia. It is in Shockoe Slip. It is on Shockoe Slip south of East Cary Street (Virginia Route 147), on the right when traveling south. Marker is on the northeast corner of the building. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 104 Shockoe Slip, Richmond VA 23219, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Central Virginia.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it is in 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: Commercial Block (within shouting distance of this marker); Columbian Block (within shouting distance of this marker); 1300-1304 East Cary Street (within shouting distance of this marker); 1200 Block East Cary Street (within shouting distance of this marker); 1201 East Cary Street (about

Shockoe Espresso and Roastery image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, March 5, 2011

2. Shockoe Espresso and Roastery

300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Powers-Taylor Building (about 400 feet away); Gallego Mills (about 400 feet away); Inside A Flour Mill (about 400 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Richmond.

More about this marker. On top is an early 20th-century photograph of the building courtesy of the Valentine Museum.

Also see . . . Historic Shockoe Slip, Richmond. (Submitted on March 5, 2011.)

Shockoe Slip Fountain image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, March 5, 2011

3. Shockoe Slip Fountain

In memory of one who loved animals. Charles S. Morgan donated this fountain in 1905 to provide water for the horses that once traversed the Shockoe Slip area.

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, March 5, 2011

4. Shockoe Slip Fountain

Capt. Charles S. Morgan, C.S.A.
Inspector Gen’l Imboden’s Brigade, Cavalry Division
of Gen’l L.L. Lomax, Army of Northern Virginia

Credits. This page was last revised on February 1, 2023. It was originally submitted on March 5, 2011, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 3,578 times since then and 83 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on March 5, 2011, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.