News

A new set of signs will celebrate famed local land surveyor George Washington and one of his most notable accomplishments: the creation of the Patowmack Canal.

The new signs will be unveiled at a ceremony on Saturday, July 5 at Seneca Regional Park (201 Seneca Road) in Great Falls.


Around Town

Juneteenth is tomorrow (Thursday), marking the 160th anniversary of the day Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation in the state.

While some festivities took place last weekend, including Vienna’s Liberty Amendments Month kick-off and Fairfax City’s celebration, Fairfax County will still play host to a number of events commemorating the end of slavery in the U.S. and showcasing the historical and cultural contributions of African Americans.


News

Arguably the most famous of all Fairfax County residents turned up Tuesday (June 10), as the local Board of Supervisors ramped up planning for the nation’s 250th birthday bash.

Escorted by a procession that included fife-and-drum accompaniment, George Washington himself strode into the Fairfax County Government Center’s Board auditorium in the person of Daniel Cross.


Around Town

At the center of a new exhibit in the National Museum of the United States Army at Fort Belvoir is a wax replica of Revolutionary War soldier William Seymour.

Around Seymour are soldiers charging into battle, including formerly enslaved man Cato Varnum who won a Badge of Military Merit for his actions at Yorktown. Just behind Seymour are Anna and John Lane, a couple who fought together at Germantown.


News

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors recently marked the 50th anniversary of the fall of Saigon and saluted the Vietnamese American community’s vital role in the local area and nation.

“We honor all the contributions that the Vietnamese American community makes to Fairfax County on an everyday basis,” Board Chairman Jeff McKay said when presenting a resolution at an April 22 meeting. “Anywhere you go in Fairfax County, you can see this.”


Around Town

The first shots of the American Revolutionary War were fired in Concord, Massachusetts, 250 years ago this Saturday (April 19).

To commemorate the war’s 250th anniversary, there will be a variety of events around Fairfax County over the next few weeks, continuing a year-long, statewide VA 250 initiative.


News

Wistful remembrances mingled with excitement for the future, as local elected officials, library staff and community members gave Patrick Henry Library in Vienna an early send-off over the weekend.

The 13,800-square-foot library building, which has stood at 101 Maple Avenue East since 1971, is set to be replaced this summer. When the branch reopens in about two years, it’ll feature not only expanded and upgraded facilities, but also an entirely new name — the Vienna-Carter Library.


News

As a designated national historic place, Sully Historic Site’s backstory likely doesn’t qualify as obscure, but it may be incomplete, the Fairfax County Park Authority says.

The agency hopes to fill in some of those gaps with a new “Reimagining Sully” project expected to kick off this spring. The initiative will aim to tell “more complete and accurate and authentic stories” about the former plantation, according to FCPA Resource Management and Interpretation Division Director Laura Grape.


Countywide

What do a Fairfax County public library, bowling alley and the Dulles family home have in common?

They’re all examples of modernism, an architectural style that exploded onto the scene in Fairfax County after World War II, according to a new survey that could help preserve some key remnants of the movement.


News

Fairfax County is seeking community input to help preserve the Peake Family Cemetery, a historically significant burial site in Hybla Valley’s Gum Springs neighborhood.

The Fairfax County Park Authority (FCPA) will begin restoration efforts this spring as part of its initiative to protect historic cemeteries across the county.


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