By the Depression, most of the avenue was built up as far as Roseneath Road to the west, for a total length from Stuart Circle of a mile and a half, or fourteen blocks. The infill of a few buildings added after World War II for the most part followed earlier examples. Asphalt paving blocks still remain in portions of the avenue. Eventually Henrico County extended the avenue to the west, creating a boulevard of more than five miles. Monument Avenue incorporates many stories, but the main plot involves the statues and the various memories they impose upon the viewer.
Statues attempt to shape a collective memory, to give legitimacy to a point of view.
The initial statues on Monument Avenue attempted to convey the nobility of martial exploits and vindicate the Confederate cause. Symbolism and validation underlay the creation of Monument Avenue, for its location at the end of Franklin Street created an alignment with Capitol Square and two powerful statues there, Houdon's Washington inside the Capitol, and Crawford and Rogers's equestrian Washington on the Capitol grounds. Certainly political motives underlay the erection of these statues, and for Richmond's African American population, the statues symbolized decades of disenfranchisement. Many years later the political roles were reversed, and the decision to place the Arthur Ashe statue on Monument Avenue gave the street a new meaning. The controversy surrounding the Ashe statue is indicative of the still unfinished nature of the armed conflict that divided our nation some 120 years ago.