History Panels
The Falls Church History Panels: The panels feature the history of Falls Church in “chronological order.” The eight periods shown on the panels stretch from the 1600s to the present day. (Each panel is available to read here. Check out this YouTube video to see more.)
Panel 1: The first historical period centers on the native peoples and their land before 1700. The panel states how two native tribes occupied Falls Church before European colonists disrupted them. The panel also shows a photo of “Big Chimneys,” the first known European structure in the area.
Panel 2: The next panel displays the Settlement from 1700 to 1815. In 1734, a church was built near the Potomac River Falls, soon known as “The Falls Church.” This church, which gave the City of Falls Church its name, was the “center of local life” and served as a Revolutionary War recruiting station.
Panel 3: The Virginia Village panel features the area’s turnpikes and tolls. Covering the period from 1815 to 1861, the panel describes how the city was an “essential” stop along the route from Alexandria’s port on the Potomac River to Leesburg and the western mountains. This caused the creation of the Leesburg Turnpike, now known as State Route 7 and Broad Street.
Panel 4: The next panel on the Civil War era focuses on the years between 1861 and 1865 and how a “village was divided” due to many locals not supporting the Confederacy despite the state joining it. The panel features a story about Harriet Foote Turner, a local free woman of color who led 12 enslaved people to freedom.
Panel 5: The Rebuilding Era panel features the historical period when railroads began to spread from 1865 to 1890. The panel states that this was the time when the Falls Church Library Association created the town’s first public library under the leadership of Mary Riley Styles.
Panel 6: The Turn of the 20th Century panel highlights several historical events from 1890 to 1920 and how they are associated with the City of Falls Church. Local black citizens formed what would soon become the nation’s first rural branch of the NAACP. By World War I began, women in the area had taken on new roles by joining the women’s suffrage movement, leading to the 1921 election of Mary Smyth and Mattie Gundry in the town’s council.
Panel 7: The Emerging City panel describes the growth of local roads and how Falls Church flourished despite the two World Wars and the Great Depression. From 1920 to 1950, schools, a water system, and the air-conditioned State Theatre were built.
Panel 8: The 1950 to Beyond panel highlights how the City of Falls Church became a small, independent city. In 1961, a diverse coalition of City activists successfully ended segregation in Falls Church schools, becoming only the second Virginia community to do so. The panel states how the City’s cultural diversity broadened as immigrants from Asia, Central America and South America joined the community.
