Celebrating Our Regional Cryptids, Urban Legends, Folklore, and Mythology
Happy Halloween, Burke! This is not your typical BHS blog post about historical events and persons of note. Rather, it is to pose a question to you, Dear Reader: Shouldn’t your inner child be allowed to come out to play at least once a year?
Fairfax County Irish Residents
The early population of Fairfax County, Virginia was composed primarily of Northern Europeans, many of whom were holders of land grants or individuals designated to act as caretakers of land grants for their proper owners living in England. Over time, English paupers migrated to this country and served as laborers or overseers for the large […]
Changing Agriculture of the 19th Century in Fairfax County, Virginia
From the settlement of Jamestown, Virginia through the mid-19th century, the primary agricultural cash crop of the Commonwealth of Virginia was tobacco. The crop required large acreage (thousands of acres) and cheap labor. The labor was supplied by Africans.
History of Lake Accotink – Part Three
(In case you missed it, “A History of Lake Accotink- Part 1 and Part 2” can be found at https://burkehistoricalsociety.org/a-history-of-lake-accotink-part-1/ and https://burkehistoricalsociety.org/a-history-of-lake-accotink-part-2/ When we left Lake Accotink in Part 2 of the History of Lake Accotink it was the end of WWII. The lake, designed to be a reservoir for Fort Belvoir, and its surrounding […]
A History of Lake Accotink-Part 2
(In case you missed it, “A History of Lake Accotink- Part 1” can be found at https://burkehistoricalsociety.org/a-history-of-lake-accotink-part-1/) Where did we leave the story of Lake Accotink? Ah yes. In 1922 the first dam that created the first Lake Accotink was rendered unusable (that happens when you blow a big hole in it).
The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) – Roosevelt’s “Tree Army” – 1933-1942 – By Mary Lipsey
In 1933 the United States elected President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who promised to ease the pains of the Great Depression. In 1929, the nation had suffered the worst stock market crash in its history. By 1933, the unemployment rate had increased to thirty-three percent. Many businesses and banks had closed and thousands of Americans were […]
Clara Barton’s Career and Service at Saint Mary of Sorrows Catholic Church at Fairfax Station: by Mary Lipsey
In Baltimore, Maryland on April 19, 1861, Union soldiers of the 6th Massachusetts Infantry, who were traveling to defend Washington DC, were badly injured by Confederate sympathizers. Learning that the men were being cared for in the US Senate Chambers, Clara Barton, who grew up in Massachusetts. used her own supplies to minister to her […]
A History of Lake Accotink – Part 1
By Debra DeLoose Accotink Creek is around 25 miles in length. It begins north of Lake Accotink in the area of Fairfax City and ends at Accotink Bay where it empties into the Potomac west of Fort Belvoir. However, there has not always been a Lake Accotink.
Burke’s “Little Post Office”
The current post office for Burke opened in 1989 but the history of postal service and post offices in Burke goes back over 150 years beginning in 1852 with the appointment of John A. Marshall as postmaster of what was then Burke’s Station. The history continued through 1903 when the name was changed to Burke […]
Burke’s Famous Architect
By Brian Slawski One of the pleasures of studying Burke’s history is discovering how many notable and interesting individuals have lived in our ostensibly small and sleepy stretch of Fairfax County. Any list of these individuals would surely include Walter Macomber. Walter Mayo Macomber was born February 25, 1894, in Revere, Massachussetts, just outside Boston. […]