Fairfax County, Virginia: History
Prior to European settlement, present-day Fairfax County was initially inhabited by the Algonquian-speaking Doeg tribe.
In 1608, Captain John Smith documented the Doeg tribe's villages, which included Namassingakent and Nemaroughquand on the south bank of the Potomac River in present-day Fairfax County. By 1670, Virginian colonists from the Northern Neck region drove the Doeg Tribe out of present-day Fairfax County and into Maryland.
Fairfax County was formed in 1742 from the northern part of Prince William County, and was named after Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron, proprietor of the Northern Neck. The county's logo, seal and flag were adopted from the arms of Lord Fairfax of Cameron.
The county's initial settlements were along the Potomac River. George Washington settled in Fairfax County and built his home, Mount Vernon, facing the Potomac. Gunston Hall, the home of George Mason, is nearby. Fort Belvoir is partly on the estate of Belvoir Manor, built along the Potomac by William Fairfax in 1741.
Thomas Fairfax, the only member of the British nobility ever to reside in the colonies, lived at Belvoir before moving to the Shenandoah Valley. The Belvoir mansion and several of its outbuildings were destroyed by fire immediately after the Revolutionary War in 1783, and George Washington noted the plantation complex deteriorated into ruins.
In 1757, the northwestern two-thirds of Fairfax County became Loudoun County. In 1789, part of Fairfax County was ceded to the federal government to form Alexandria County, then part of the District of Columbia.
Alexandria County was returned to Virginia in 1846, reduced in size by the secession of the independent city of Alexandria in 1870, and renamed Arlington County in 1920.
During the American Civil War the Battle of Chantilly, also known as Ox Hill, part of the Second Battle of Bull Run, was fought within Fairfax County. Other areas of Civil War conflict in the county included Minor's Hill, Munson's Hill, and Upton's Hill.
The Fairfax County town of Falls Church became an independent city in 1948. The Fairfax County town of Fairfax was named an independent city in 1961.
The federal government's growth during and after World War II spurred rapid growth in the county and transformed it from a rural to suburban region. Large businesses began settling in the county, and the opening of Tysons Corner Center spurred the rise of Tysons, Virginia. The technology boom and a steady government-driven economy created rapid growth and an increasingly large and diverse population. The economy has also made Fairfax County one of the nation's wealthiest counties.
A general aviation airport along U.S. Route 50 west of Seven Corners, Falls Church Airpark, operated in the county from 1948 to 1960. The facility's 2,650-foot unpaved runway was used extensively by private pilots and civil defense officials. Residential development, multiple accidents, and the demand for retail space led to its closure in 1960.