Ash Grove is an 18th-century

plantation house A plantation house is the main house of a plantation, often a substantial farmhouse, which often serves as a symbol for the plantation as a whole. Plantation houses in the Southern United States and in other areas are known as quite grand and e ...

Fairfax County, Virginia Fairfax County, officially the County of Fairfax, is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is part of Northern Virginia and borders both the city of Alexandria and Arlington County and forms part of the suburban ring of Washington, D.C. ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. In 1790,

Bryan Fairfax Lancelot Beresford Bryan Fairfax (8 February 192511 January 2014) was an Australian conductor based in the United Kingdom, who was known for his championing of little known or neglected works.Leesburg Pike Virginia State Route 7 (VA 7) is a major primary state highway and busy commuter route in northern Virginia, United States. It travels southeast from downtown Winchester to SR 400 (Washington Street) in downtown Alexandria. Its ...

, two miles west of present-day

Tysons Corner Tysons, also known as Tysons Corner, is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, developed from the corner of Chain Bridge Road ( SR 123) and the Leesburg Pike ( SR 7). Located in Northern Virginia between the c ...

, for his son

Thomas Fairfax Thomas Fairfax, 3rd Lord Fairfax of Cameron (17 January 161212 November 1671), also known as Sir Thomas Fairfax, was an English politician, general and Parliamentary commander-in-chief during the English Civil War. An adept and talented command ...

. Ash Grove is said to have been named for an older Fairfax family house in England. In his later years, Thomas bought Vaucluse Plantation, near

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Downto ...

, and bestowed Ash Grove upon his second son, Henry. He married Caroline Herbert of Maryland, and they had several children, and operated a boarding school for young ladies. Captain Henry Fairfax died during the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

, at

Saltillo, Mexico Saltillo () is the capital and largest city of the northeastern Mexican state of Coahuila and is also the municipal seat of the municipality of the same name. Mexico City, Monterrey, and Saltillo are all connected by a major railroad and highwa ...

, on August 14, 1847. The property was purchased by James Sherman on June 20, 1851. Descendants on occasion relate some interesting family lore of

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

events when the neighborhood was a "no man's land." James Sherman died in spring 1865, and left the property to his son, Franklin Sherman (February 11, 1843 - April 9, 1915), Lieutenant in the 10th Michigan Cavalry. He returned after the Civil War to farm, was Sheriff, member of the

Board of Supervisors A board of supervisors is a governmental body that oversees the operation of county government in the U.S. states of Arizona, California, Iowa, Mississippi, Virginia, and Wisconsin, as well as 16 counties in New York. There are equivalent agenc ...

, and School Board. (A Fairfax County Elementary School is named for him.) The property passed to Wells Alvord Sherman, and then Wilson C Sherman. The house was purchased from the Sherman family in 1997, and dedicated as a

, park.GENERAL MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR ASH GROVE HISTORIC SITE

References

External links

''GENERAL MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR ASH GROVE HISTORIC SITE'', Fairfax County Park Authority
{{Fairfax family Houses in Fairfax County, Virginia Fairfax family residences Plantation houses in Virginia Georgian architecture in Virginia Parks in Fairfax County, Virginia Houses completed in 1790

See also

References

External links