Shockoe Slip and Shockoe Bottom are the two halves of Richmond's historic waterfront district, flanking the rail corridor and the old canal. Shockoe Slip, the northern section, is a short but handsome stretch of cobblestone street lined with restored tobacco warehouses that now house restaurants, bars, and offices. Shockoe Bottom, below the railroad bridge, was the site of the largest slave-trading market in North America — a history that is now marked with the Shockoe Bottom African Burial Ground and the ongoing debate over how best to memorialise it.
The area is most alive in the evenings: Shockoe Slip draws after-work crowds to its bars and restaurants, while Shockoe Bottom's live-music venues and dive bars serve a younger audience until late.