Our Own Backyard

I have always been more excited about history if I can see it or touch it.  Some part of me is still that towheaded little girl who would get excited digging around in the dirt back home in Oregon, looking for Indian arrowheads.

All four of us are having those same "itchy fingers" here, only this time we're eager to find musket balls, buttons and Virginia Halfpennies!  Knowing that there might be artifacts from the Revolutionary War or Civil War right beneath our feet makes it hard to resist the urge to grab a shovel, run out in the backyard and start digging a hole to look for historic treasures.

We are also not used to seeing historic buildings nestled like jewels in the 21st century urban landscape as we go whizzing by in our car, rubbernecking and wishing we had time to stop.

Thanks to a slight break in the weather several weekends ago, we decided it was high time to do a driving tour to check out some of these historic gems hidden right in our own backyard in historic Fairfax County, all within a 15 mile radius of the house.

The general area where we live actually dates back to pre-revolutionary times (around 1650), when Northern Virginia was first being settled through land grants made by the Virginia government at Jamestown to homesteaders and speculators.  Our neighborhood is part of a 24,000 acre tract that was originally a tobacco plantation, a common commodity crop in the mid- to late 17th century.

During the Revolutionary War, this area (still considered to be "frontier" territory) was in the process of being settled and farmed.  The nearest Revolutionary War battles in Virginia were fought in the Chesapeake, Petersburg and Yorktown areas, and the Capitol of the newly-emerging nation was still in Williamsburg.

It was during the Civil War that there were many, many large and small battles and skirmishes fought right on this very soil.  This area was generally considered to be "behind" Union lines and the protective ring of forts and fortifications that surrounded the nation's capital, but the Confederates, on occasion, would make inroads here, which put them a mere stone's throw away from taking Washington.

The following are just a few of the nearby structures we saw on our excursion that are testaments to some of this local history:

Wakefield Chapel (Annandale, VA), built in 1899.  One of the "newer" old structures around, a country "Gothic" chapel, just a mile or so from our house.

Annandale United Methodist Church (Annandale, VA--the "Historic White Church").  The original church was built in 1846.  Union troops took over and occupied the church during the Civil War.  It was eventually burned to the ground and rebuilt after the Civil War in 1870.  Loved the circular stained glass window!

The Falls Church (Falls Church, VA).  There has been a church on this site since 1734.  The present church dates back to 1768.  We thought it was especially cool that George Washington himself was a vestryman in this church.  It was used as a recruiting station during the Revolutionary War and as a stable during the Civil War.  As with many old churches, the church cemetery occupies the church grounds all surrounding the church, with graves dating back to the 18th century.

Cherry Hill Farm (Falls Church, VA), circa 1845.  During the Civil War, both Union and Confederate soldiers repeatedly raided this Greek Revival-style farm house.  It survived and was sold after the Civil War, eventually falling into the ownership of Joseph Riley, a key figure who incorporated the city of Falls Church and established a public school there.

The Blenheim House (Fairfax, VA), circa 1859.  During the Civil War, soldiers camped and convalesced there, turning it into a hospital.  The house wasn't open the day we drove around, but we'll be back to see the inside because it apparently has a large display of "Civil War Graffiti" (soldiers wrote their names and drew pictures on the wall, all of which has been preserved).  How cool is that?!?

St. Mary's Historic Catholic Church (Fairfax, VA), circa 1858.  Not long after this church was completed, it served as a hospital during the Civil War.  In 1862, Clara Barton, the founder of the American Red Cross, nursed wounded and dying soldiers in this church after the Second Battle of Manassas in nearby Chantilly.  There was also a Civil War skirmish fought right outside this church, where Col. John Mosby and his Confederate troops surprised some 60 Union troops who were resting at the church and quickly got the upper hand, chasing them all the way to the Fairfax County Courthouse, which is several miles away.

The Sully House (Chantilly, VA).  This historic house was built in 1794 by Richard Bland Lee, the uncle of Robert E. Lee, and Virginia's first Representative to Congress.  The Lees were well-to-do, and during the Civil War would often found themselves unwillingly playing host to either Union or Confederate troops, depending on who had control of the surrounding territory at the time.  

It's amazing what one can see and do around here in just one short afternoon!