The Falls Church

Falls Church’s history dates back to the late 1600s when it was an early Colonial settlement that co-existed with Native Americans. The community grew around The Anglican Church now theFalls Church Episcopal, which was the established religion of the Colony of Virginia, with a second location here “near the falls” of the Potomac (1734), built of wood, likely by enslaved workers. In 1748, George Mason was made a vestryman of this church. George Washington and George William Fairfax were appointed wardens in 1763 to construct a new building.

The brick Falls Church (1769) standing today was designed by James Wren and also likely built by enslaved people. The church provided our place name, was the center of local life, and was key to the area’s growth and many historical events. The Declaration of Independence was read on the church steps in 1776 and served as a Fairfax Militia recruiting station at the beginning of the Revolutionary War.

View and download a timeline of significant events at The Falls Church.