This map and accompanying four page pamphlet showcases 33 sites of historical interest within the Franconia neighborhood along with brief descriptions on their historic importance and location. Some of the featured sites include:
EVERGREEN -- A part of the Burgundy Plantation, this house was built by George D. Fowle about 1850 in the Italianate Villa style with a flat, overhanging roof. In 1884-1885 it was occupied by General Fitzhugh Lee and his family during his campaign for Governor of Virginia. When a subdivision was built on the tract in 1969 the house was relocated from 4050 Franconia Road to its present site at 5719 Cannon Lane. [Private residence]
OLIVET CHURCH -- the third of four structures to house its Episcopal congregation. The first, a log structure, was built on land given by Virginia Gunnell Scott of Bush Hill in 1853. A larger chapel, in the Gothic style, was dedicated in 1861. Both buildings were destroyed in the Civil War. In 1872 a new church was built at the corner of Bush Hill Drive and Franconia Road and may have been moved in 1892 to its present site. The new brick sanctuary was constructed in 1957. The steeple bell is from a steam locomotive, given by a parishioner when the engines were changed from steam to diesel fuel. Franconia Road at Beulah Street.
MOUNT ERIN -- Alexandria merchant James Irwin established a ropewalk on this tract by 1803, for rope was an essential commodity in a seaport town. In 1815 Dr. Thomas Tracy, a native of Ireland and Revolutionary War veteran acquired the property. His heirs sold a portion of the farm in 1841, for the Old Mount Vernon Race Course. The Pulman family lived there during the Civil War. Two of their children were killed and a third wounded when a stray shell exploded on the front lawn. Located at 6403 Hillview Avenue. [Private residence]
OAK GROVE -- Where the Sunrise Assisted Living facility now stands at Franconia Road and Frontier Drive was formerly the 19th century brick house occupied by the Broders family. Built c. 1825 by John H. Broders, a wing was added on c.1877 for a post office. Broders’ son-in-law William G. Moore was appointed postmaster and the office was given his name. The house was demolished in 1996 but the family cemetery still exists off nearby Elder Avenue.
ASHLAND -- Home of William W. Triplett, brother of the owner of nearby Flagg Hill. The earliest log portion of the house was built c.1820. The 195 acre farm was sold after the Civil War to former congressman W.W. Boyce of South Carolina, whose family, “with their old southern hospitality drew about them many warm friends and acquaintances.”
RETIREMENT -- This plantation was given its name by Commodore Walter Brooke of the Virginia navy after he resigned in 1781. The 400 acre farm retained this name until the mid-1940s, when new owners enlarged the dwelling and encased it in ston. The Cohens then named it for themselves Ben-Mae Manor. Owned by the Fairfax County Park Authority, the house is now used as a community center for the Stoneybrooke subdivision. Located at 6715 Stoneybrooke Lane.
HUNTLEY -- Thompson F. Mason, grandson of George Mason of Gunston Hall, built this Federal villa c. 1825 as a summer retreat from his residence in Alexandria. Mason, a prominent lawyer, served four terms as mayor and was President of the Alexandria Canal Company and of the Middle Turnpike Company. The house, architecturally unique in the county, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is the center of an Historic District. It has been mothballed for future restoration by the Fairfax County Park Authority. Located at 6918 Harrison Lane.
BELVALE -- Country home of George Johnston (1700-1766), prominent lawyer, a Trustee of the town of Alexandria and member of the Virginia Assembly. He was the author of certain resolutions presented by Patrick Henry in 1775 opposing the Stamp Act. The house remained in the family until 1925. Situated at 7101 Telegraph Road. [Private residence]
MILLAN'S TAVERN -- James Millan and his wife Susanna are buried on their farm (Dairy Lodge), high on the hillside above the tavern site, which was located on Telegraph Road at Dogue Creek, just north of the Tartan Village subdivision. In 1822 the tavern was advertised as being on the Stage Road five miles from Alexandria formerly occupied by Hendley Nelson. The tavern was later used as a polling place for that precinct.
HAYFIELD -- Home of Lund Washington, cousin of George Washington and manager of his estate during the Revolution. A late 19th century feature of the farm was its sixteen sided barn, a copy of one previously at Mount Vernon. The original house burned in 1916, but the barn and outbuildings remained until the Hayfield Farm subdivision was built. The barn burned in 1967. Located on Hayfield Road east of Telegraph Road.
LAUREL GROVE BAPTIST CHURCH -- The church and the adjacent schoolhouse have served the African American community since their beginnings c. 1884. Many descendents of the Jasper and Carroll families still attend the church, while the school building has been restored by the Fried Company and will soon become a museum. Located at 6834 Beulah St.
BUSH HILL -- Constructed before 1795 by Alexandrian Josiah Watson, Bush Hill was next acquired by Richard Marshall Scott. He was serving in the House of Delegates when his first wife perished in the Richmond theatre fire in 1811. During the Civil War Gen. O.O. Howard, later the founder of Howard University had his headquarters on the grounds. In World War II the house was used for two years as a detention center for Hitler’s advisor Ernst “Putzi” Hanfstaengl. The brick house, later used as a nursery school, remained in the hands of descendents until it burned in 1977. Extensive archaeology was done on the site before townhouses were built. Formerly located inside the Beltway at the end of Bush Hill Road.
CLERMONT -- Owned in the 18th century by the French and Dulany families, Clermont was later owned by Gen. John Mason, youngest son of George Mason of Gunston. After his death the plantation was purchased by Capt. French Forrest, USN, who became a Commodore in the Confederate Navy. The farm was confiscated as enemy property in the Civil War, and the dwelling used as a small pox hospital. It burned in 1865 while Union troops were decontaminating the structure. Formerly located just inside the Beltway on Clermont Drive.
SHARON CHAPEL -- A chapel was built in 1849 on land donated by John J. Frobel of Wilton Hill. One of its early seminarians was Phillips Brooks, later the Bishop of Massachusetts and author of the hymn O Little Town of Bethlehem. Burned in 1864 by Union soldiers, the church was rebuilt using lumber from Fort Lyon and stood until 1903, when it was replaced by a third building. That chapel was demolished in 1971 after the present church was built. Located at 3421 Franconia Road.
FORT LYON -- Built in 1861, this was the second largest fort in the defenses of Washington, commanding the valleys of Hunting Creek and Telegraph Road. Its position on the plateau now occupied by the Huntington Metro Station afforded protection for the railroad, the Little River Turnpike and the city of Alexandria. In June 1863 the powder magazine exploded. The damage was so great President Lincoln came to inspect the aftermath. Until 1931 the fort was one of the best preserved around the Capitol, but suburban growth has left few traces.