A historical background document, the Slave Trade as a Commercial Enterprise in Richmond MPD adds no specific buildings or sites to the Virginia Landmarks Register or National Register; it does, however, provide an overarching and thematic historical context on which to peg future listings of specialized individual historic resources that are associated with Richmond’s significant role in the slave trade from the late 18th century through the Civil War. That trade concentrated mostly in the city’s oldest commercial areas along the James River, much of which is located today within the existing Shockoe Valley and Tobacco Row, and Shockoe Slip historic districts. Among the specialized buildings, structures, and sites associated with the city’s slave trade were jails, offices, auction houses, and residences of slave dealers—most of which have now vanished, except as archaeological sites covered by later construction. This documentation will facilitate adding vitally important but under-represented parts of Richmond’s history to the state and national registers.