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Center for Local History Blog

Dedicated to collecting, preserving and sharing the history of the community.

Summer Reading Fever, circa 1961

Published: July 17, 2007

In May 1961, the then-new Central Library opened for business on Quincy Street, near the intersection with Fairfax Drive (the two and two-tenths acres had several previous owners such as Horatio Ball).

The library could hold 100,000 volumes, although, at the time of opening, the library could only fill one-third of the shelves. Central staff for the financial year 1961-1962 was 23.

old-Central-desk

The headline project for the Children's section of Central Library was the Summer Reading Club. The theme for the summer of 1961, when the photograph above was taken, was "Diving for Books". Four branches, including Central, participated in the program and signed up 607 children who collectively read 1,792 books. According to the 1961-1962 Annual Report, 234 participants received achievement cards for reading six or more books. This program was augmented by film programs and storytimes for preschoolers, and an initial visit from a group of physically disabled children from the Edison School. This visit to Central reaffirmed the library's commitment to serve all Arlingtonians. There were even spontaneous carpools organized by parents and teachers to bring children to the library throughout the summer.

Many of the children's library activities from 1961 are mirrored in today's programs. The Get Caught Reading program has been in place for several summers and has been expanded to include adults as well. For the summer of 2007, there has been a spotlight on the upcoming release of the last Harry Potter novel. There are special programs beyond just storytime for all children such as magicians and science programs, and all libraries participate. For over 45 years, Arlington libraries have helped spread summer reading fever!!!

 

What about you?

Did you participate in a library summer reading program as a child? What about the old Central Library? Let us know what you remember!

 

July 17, 2007 by Web Editor Filed Under: News Archive, Our Back Pages, Unboxed

Arlington Rocks, Part 1: The Cherry People

Published: July 2, 2007

Cherry People

After the Beatles launched the “British Invasion” of the 1960s, it seemed like every town in America soon had any number of aspiring rockers forming their own garage bands and Arlington was no exception.

Although usually regarded as a Washington D.C. band, local heroes The Cherry People had very strong connections to Arlington. The core of the band was the Grimes brothers, Chris and Doug, and Edwin Lionel “Punky” Meadows, who formed the Intruders in 1964 in Washington, D.C. A year later they moved to Arlington and became The English Setters and released three 45s. By the summer of ’67 they changed their name again, to The Cherry People, and began to play regularly in area nightclubs and WPGC-sponsored dances at Washington-Lee High School.

After a trip to New York, the band landed a contract with the Heritage Records label, and spent the entire fall of 1967 recording an album in New York City. The band soon found their songs were compromised by their record label, which added strings and horns in an attempt to promote a more pop sound. A devastating live band known for explosive guitar playing reminiscent of Jimi Hendrix, the album was released in May 1968, but its bubblegum-pop sound failed to represent what the Cherry People were really all about.

Though the band soldiered on, they never regained the focus and momentum of their early days, finally calling it quits in 1975. Guitarist “Punky” Meadows later achieved a degree of fame with the 70s hard rock band, Angel. The Cherry People’s album has recently been reissued on CD by the Collectibles label.

What about you?

Do you remember the Cherry People? Let us know what you remember!

 

July 2, 2007 by Web Editor Filed Under: News Archive, Our Back Pages, Unboxed

Milling Around

Published: June 19, 2007

The Barcroft Mill not only provided wheat and corn meal to local residents, but also helped to shape and define what would eventually become the residential Barcroft community.

The origins of Barcroft Mill date back to 1836, when G.W.P. Custis built a water grist mill along Four Mile Run and Columbia Pike on land bequeathed to him by George Washington. After being inherited by G.W.P. Custis Lee, the mill was severely damaged by Federal troops returning from the Second Battle of Bull Run and was subsequently rebuilt around 1880 by Dr. John Woolverton Barcroft. By 1905 it had become a vital part of the community now known as Barcroft. In addition to the mill, the business center of Barcroft boasted a general store, a blacksmith shop and a railway shop. After fire destroyed the mill in the early 1920s, the property was purchased in 1925 by a company which built an ice plant on the foundations.

Trivia note: In a 1996 County Board election, John Woolverton Barcroft garnered 443 write-in votes in Barcroft Precinct, despite having been dead for over 100 years. This was done as an act of protest by Barcroft residents angered by a County Board decision to permit a rehabilitation house for drug-addicted mothers and their children to be built in the neighborhood.

What about you?
What do you know about the Barcroft neighborhood? Have you seen the remains of the mill? Let us know what you remember!

June 19, 2007 by Web Editor Filed Under: Our Back Pages

At the Movies

Published: June 5, 2007

The Buckingham Theatre

A far cry from the multiplex theaters of today, the Buckingham Theatre greeted its customers with a façade that more closely resembled a Colonial-style mansion.

Built by the developers of the Buckingham Community in 1939, The Buckingham, as it was known, was the central part of a small shopping center located at the intersection of Glebe Road and Pershing Drive. The building itself was considered to be quite a creative endeavor due to the classic front design which eschewed the usual marquee, neon lighting, and signs that were common to other theaters of its time.

The Buckingham played a role in the desegregation movement in Arlington when it was the site of demonstrations against Virginia's Massive Resistance policies in July 1962. Those arrested were eventually acquitted of all charges.

After a successful run of 47 years, the theater closed in 1986 and was converted to a post office in 1990, which it remains to this day.

What about you?

Do you have any memories of the Buckingham Theatre? Let us know what you remember!

June 5, 2007 by Web Editor Filed Under: Our Back Pages, Unboxed

Look Out for Spy Hill

Published: May 22, 2007

Spy Hill

The area known as Spy Hill may not be the largest neighborhood in Arlington, but it certainly can claim to have had a unique history.

Spy Hill was originally comprised of two land grants, the Thomas Pearson grant of 1707 (660 acres), and the John Ball grant in 1742 (166 acres). The Pearson property was leased in 1740 for clearing and cultivation while the Ball property, which included the log cabin erected by John Ball known as the Ball-Sellers house, was sold as small lots around 1835. Together, these two areas became known as Boulevard Manor.

In 1851, New York farmer Timothy Bishop Munson and his family moved to Fairfax County. Munson started a nursery and raised sheep on the land known as Munson’s Hill, now part of present day Arlington, which included the greater portion of Boulevard Manor. During the Civil War, Confederate forces established an outpost on Upton’s Hill where the regional park is now located, from which they could observe troop movements across the Potomac. When the Confederate army withdrew from this area, the Federal army established Fort Upton on Upton’s Hill as part of the defense of Washington owing to the ability to see the Washington Monument and the Capitol from this vantage point. The areas of Boulevard Manor and Fort Upton received the name Spy Hill as a result of these activities. The image above is a Harper’s Weekly sketch of Union troops on Spy Hill.

In the 1860s, William A. Torreyson purchased land from the Carlin and Munson estates, including a sizeable portion of Munson’s Hill, and established a dairy farm. Torreyson’s daughter Lucy married George Reeves in 1894 and they took over the dairy farm in 1902, the last to operate in Arlington, until closing in 1955 under the ownership of George Reeves’ son, Nelson. After its sale in the late 1970s, Spy Hill was a popular gathering place for teenagers until its eventual development in 1990.

What about you?
Do you have any memories of the Spy Hill neighborhood? Let us know what you remember!

May 22, 2007 by Web Editor Filed Under: News Archive, Our Back Pages

When Cows Were Local

Published: May 8, 2007

Reeves House

Dairy farming in Arlington? Why yes, Virginia, there once was such a thing. In fact, Arlington was home to a number of dairy farms in years past, with one of the best known being the Reeves farm. Purchased in 1866 as a 160-acre farm by William H. Torreyson, the property stretched west of Four Mile Run and south of Wilson Boulevard, extending beyond Route 50 to Glen Carlyn Road. The farm was later operated by Torreyson’s daughter, Lucy, and her husband George Reeves from 1898-1949; their son Nelson Reeves was made a partner in 1924. Nelson and his wife, Louise, kept the farm in operation until its final shipment of milk in July 1955 marked the end of dairy farming in Arlington.

The Reeves family continued to reside on the property, gradually selling off land as the county’s population grew. After Nelson Reeves passed away in 2000 at the age of 90, ten members of his family sought to have the farmhouse preserved, eventually resulting in its designation as a historic district. Shown in the photograph above, Reevesland, as it is now known, provides a unique link to Arlington’s agricultural heritage, and preserves a valuable family legacy for present day residents to enjoy and appreciate

What About You?
Do you have any recollections regarding the Reeves farm or other dairies in Arlington? Let us know what you remember!

May 8, 2007 by Web Editor Filed Under: News Archive, Our Back Pages

Wartime Housing

Published: May 1, 2007

J.E.B. Stuart Homes

The J.E.B. Stuart homes were one of several federally funded projects that built low-cost WWII housing with a minimum of amenities.

Built in the southern part of the county, they were constructed without regard to Arlington County building and zoning regulations. Segregated according to race, as was the custom at that time, the George Pickett, Shirley, J.E.B. Stuart and Jubal Early homes were for whites. The George Washington Carver and Paul Dunbar home were for blacks. The homes were built on concrete slabs without basements and heated by coal stoves. Tenants were selected on the basis of need. Residents of the Stuart homes, pictured above, and the other developments were for people employed by the rapidly-growing federal government during the war years; Arlington County in general had a significant upsurge in population during the 1930s and 1940s.

After the war, those who could afford to moved out of the homes and the properties gradually deteriorated. The federal government wanted to dispose of the projects and offered them to the County to be used for low income families living in sub-standard housing. However, the County decided against the offer as acceptance would have entailed the establishment of a local Housing Authority, a proposal which was very controversial at the time. As a result, the homes that had been built to a higher, more permanent standard were sold to tenants and the others were razed.

 

What About You?

Do you remember the J.E.B. Stuart homes and similar housing? What were the war years like in Arlington? Let us know what you remember!

 

May 1, 2007 by Web Editor Filed Under: News Archive, Our Back Pages, Unboxed

Arlington’s Hoover Airport

Published: April 17, 2007

Whenever the subject of air travel or airports in Arlington is raised, it is perhaps inevitable that talk of National Airport will dominate any discussion. A glance through decades past, however, reveals the interesting story of Hoover Airport, Arlington’s first airfield.

Located in a pasture at the south end of the 14th Street Bridge on land now chiefly occupied by the Pentagon, Hoover Airport opened in 1926. Curiously enough, the following year saw another airport, Washington Airport, open virtually next door to Hoover on grounds previously housing a race track and horse show. After four years, the two combined services and became a single enterprise operating under the name Hoover Airport.

Diminutive even by 1930 standards, Hoover Airport had a single 2,400 foot runway which was intersected at mid-point by a road which had to be chained off by guards when the aircraft were landing or taking off. As advances were rapidly being made in the field of aviation, the shortcomings of Hoover Airport soon became apparent. In 1938, ground was broken at Gravelly Point, located at the Potomac’s edge where the Abingdon estate had been, and by 1941, Washington National Airport was open for business and Hoover Airport was no more.

 

What About You?

What are your memories regarding air travel from and to Arlington? Let us know what you remember!

 

April 17, 2007 by Web Editor Filed Under: News Archive, Our Back Pages, Unboxed

Mystery Door

Published: April 10, 2007

Do you recognize this scene?

Mystery door

This photograph was taken by Eleanor Lee Templeman, author of “Northern Virginia Heritage” and “Arlington Heritage,” which tell the story of our area’s development through the 1950s.

This photo was not used in either book, but was part of her donation of photographs to the Community Archives. It may be the door to a springhouse or cold food storage area.

What About You?

Do you recognize this door, or this area? The Virginia Room could use your help. Let us know what you remember!

 

April 10, 2007 by Web Editor Filed Under: News Archive, Our Back Pages, Unboxed Tagged With: local history news

Everyone’s National Pastime

Published: March 27, 2007

Around this time each year, the cry of “Play Ball!” heralds the start of another season of baseball.

While the Washington Senators, Baltimore Orioles, and now the Washington Nationals dominate most local discussions concerning America’s Pastime, there is a fascinating, if unheralded, aspect of baseball that took root decades ago in Arlington’s African-American community. The earliest team, dating back to 1910, the Old Virginia Blues, played each Sunday on a field in East Arlington near Arlington Junction.

The two best known teams, the Virginia White Sox and the Green Valley Black Sox, started playing ball in the 1930’s and helped to provide a gathering place for local residents and families to socialize. Starting around May 30th of each year, weekends would see teams competing at a ball field situated near High View Park, on land which is now occupied by the Virginia Hospital Center, near George Mason Drive and Lee Highway. After the land was purchased for development, the teams folded, lacking a place to play.

 

What About You?

Did you have a family member, or, perhaps know anyone that played for the Virginia White Sox or the Green Valley Black Sox? Let us know what you remember!

 

March 27, 2007 by Web Editor Filed Under: News Archive, Our Back Pages, Unboxed

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