Chatham is a town in and county seat of Pittsylvania County, Virginia, United States. Chatham's population was 1,232 at the 2020 census.
Chatham is home to Chatham High School, Hargrave Military Academy, and Chatham Hall, an all-female boarding high school.
History
thumb|left|North Main Street, Chatham, circa 1909
It is the home to the oldest continually used building in Pittsylvania County, once an 18th-century tavern, since turned into a house and now occupied by Chatham Hall faculty.
Chatham is the county seat for Pittsylvania County and has held that status since 1777. There is a large U.S. Department of Agriculture office to support farmers in the area and a small branch office of the U.S. Forest Service. Virginia has built a new state prison at the site of an old work-release camp; this led to infrastructure upgrades in fire and water services to support the increased population.
Chatham did not see any battle action during the Civil War although it is between Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy, and Danville, which contained Confederate prisons for captured Union soldiers. On Confederate Memorial Day each year, the local chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy places flowers at the statue of a Confederate soldier which is prominent in the front of the historic Pittsylvania County Court House. There is a walking tour of this downtown historic district and a brochure for this is available at the Town Hall, or at the Historical Society building next to Town Hall. There are several bed & breakfast establishments located on Main Street in historic Greek Revival homes.
thumb|Lower Main Street, Chatham, February 1911
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, Chatham has a total area of 2.0 square miles (5.3 km<sup>2</sup>), all land.
Demographics
thumb|left|The [[Pittsylvania County Courthouse is one of eight sites in Chatham listed on the National Register of Historic Places.]]
As of the census
Climate
The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen climate classification system, Chatham has a humid subtropical climate, Cfa on climate maps.
Notable people
Charles Hurt