 Life of Virginia was founded by two dozen Petersburg investors in March 1871, when the Virginia General Assembly passed an act of incorporation for the “Life Insurance Company of Virginia.” With A.G. McIlwaine as the company’s first president, and D’Arcy Paul and D.B.Tennant serving as vice presidents, the company began offering its first policies to local customers.The Life Insurance Company of Virginia then expanded to Richmond, and with general agent F.W.