Linden is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

in Fauquier and

Warren A warren is a network of wild rodent or lagomorph, typically rabbit burrows. Domestic warrens are artificial, enclosed establishment of animal husbandry dedicated to the raising of rabbits for meat and fur. The term evolved from the medieval Angl ...

counties in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. It is located west of

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

at exit 13 off of

Interstate 66 Interstate 66 (I-66) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the eastern United States. It runs from an interchange with I-81 near Middletown, Virginia, on its western end to an interchange with U.S. Route 29 (US 29) in Washingt ...

History

In 1669 the "official" discovery of the Shenandoah Valley was credited to John Lederer and John Catlett at the present day site of Linden. The discovery and mapping of the area helped to open the area for further settlement. A marker at the intersection of VA 55 and SR 638 in Linden help commemorate this event.Bicentennial souvenir history of Warren County
From the mid-18th century to the 1950s, the Linden area was home to 25 apple orchards. The Linden Methodist Church was built in 1842 and numerous buildings still exist dating from the 19th century. In November 1954, tragedy struck the Linden church. A fire thought to be the caused by a faulty pipe in the wood-burning stove, destroyed the beautiful 62-year-old wooden structure. Its towering steeple and bell had long been an iconic landmark in the community. The Front Royal Fire Department courageously fought the blaze for four hours before it was squelched. Several heroic men in the Linden community, including Rev. B. L. Lock entered the burning building to salvage the church's antique pulpit, pews and bible. All were relics from a church building that had previously served the congregation. The fire revealed several graves beneath the church's stone foundation making it very difficult to rebuild at the same site. Therefore, the congregation decided to relocate the Linden church next to the parsonage, on the opposite side of Highway 55. In December 1955, the ground breaking ceremony for the new Linden church at its current location took place. When completed, the new church was furnished with the pulpit and pews that had been rescued from the flames.

Civil War

The relative ease settlers of crossing the Blue Ridge at the gap also allowed Linden to serve as a point of transit for the armies of both the Union and Confederate States during the

United States 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 ...

. Linden was part of "Mosby's Confederacy" and served as rallying and rest points for the Confederate Rangers

Mosby's Rangers The 43rd Virginia Cavalry Battalion, also known as Mosby's Rangers, Mosby's Raiders, or Mosby's Men, was a battalion of partisan cavalry in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War. Noted for their lightning strike raids on Union tar ...

under Colonel

John S. Mosby John Singleton Mosby (December 6, 1833 – May 30, 1916), also known by his nickname "Gray Ghost", was a Confederate army cavalry battalion commander in the American Civil War. His command, the 43rd Battalion, Virginia Cavalry, known as Mosb ...

.Mosby

Numerous locations illustrating the daring and tenacity of the band are a short drive from Linden.Mosby Heritage Area

Battle of Manassas Gap

A small battle and postscript to the Confederate Gettysburg campaign, the

Battle of Manassas Gap The Battle of Manassas Gap, also known as the Battle of Wapping Heights, took place on July 23, 1863, in Warren County, Virginia, at the conclusion of General Robert E. Lee's retreat back to Virginia in the final days of the Gettysburg Campaig ...

occurred a half mile from Linden on July 23, 1863. After retreating across the

Potomac River The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map. Retrieved Augus ...

Williamsport, Maryland Williamsport is a town in Washington County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,868 at the 2000 census and 2,137 as of 2010. Geography Williamsport is located at (39.598496, −77.818464). According to the United States Census Bu ...

, Lee's

Army of Northern Virginia The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most oft ...

withdrew up the

Shenandoah Valley The Shenandoah Valley () is a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. The valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridge- ...

George G. Meade George Gordon Meade (December 31, 1815 – November 6, 1872) was a United States Army officer and civil engineer best known for decisively defeating Confederate General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Gettysburg in the American Civil War. He ...

Army of the Potomac The Army of the Potomac was the principal Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the surrender of the Confedera ...

crossed the river east of the

Blue Ridge Mountains The Blue Ridge Mountains are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains range. The mountain range is located in the Eastern United States, and extends 550 miles southwest from southern Pennsylvania through Maryland, West Virgin ...

and followed Lee into Virginia. On July 23, Meade ordered the

III Corps 3rd Corps, Third Corps, III Corps, or 3rd Army Corps may refer to: France * 3rd Army Corps (France) * III Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * III Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of th ...

, under Maj.Gen. William H. French, to cut off the retreating

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

columns at

Front Royal, Virginia Front Royal is the only incorporated town in Warren County, Virginia, United States. The population was 15,011 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Warren County. History The entire Shenandoah Valley including the area to become F ...

, by forcing passage through Manassas Gap. At first light, French began slowly pushing Brig. Gen.

James A. Walker James Alexander Walker (August 27, 1832 – October 21, 1901) was a Virginia lawyer, politician, and Confederate general during the American Civil War, later serving as a United States Congressman for two terms. He earned the nickname "Stone ...

's Confederate brigade (the

Stonewall Brigade The Stonewall Brigade of the Confederate Army during the American Civil War, was a famous combat unit in United States military history. It was trained and first led by General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson, a professor from Virginia Military In ...

, part of Maj. Gen.

Richard H. Anderson Richard Anderson (1926–2017) was an American actor. Richard, Rich, Richie, or Dick Anderson may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * Richard Dean Anderson (born 1950), American actor * Richard L. Anderson (sound effects editor) (1977–2013) ...

's division) back into the gap. About 4:30 p.m., a strong

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

attack drove Walker's men until they were reinforced by

Robert E. Rodes Robert Emmett (or Emmet) Rodes (March 29, 1829 – September 19, 1864) was a Confederate general in the American Civil War, and the first of Robert E. Lee's divisional commanders not trained at West Point. His division led Stonewall Jackso ...

's division and artillery. By dusk, the poorly coordinated Union attacks were abandoned. During the night, Confederate forces withdrew into the Luray Valley. On July 24, the Union army occupied Front Royal, but Lee's army was safely beyond pursuit.

Today

Linden is mostly a bedroom community with subdivisions known as Apple Mountain Lake and Blue Mountain. It has two gas stations, three stores, a restaurant, and a post office with zip code 22642.Linden Post Office
Linden is home to the Saint Dominic's Monastery,Saint Dominics Monastery

Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail (also called the A.T.), is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tr ...

access points, and the G. Richard Thompson Wildlife Management Area. A primary Applachian Trail Access is on Tuckers lane off of Route 55 the John Marshall Highway. Turn onto Tuckers Lane from John Marshall Highway and go under I-66 to the parking area on your right.

Geography

Linden sits astride the Warren and Fauquier county lines, SR 55 (the John Marshall Highway) and Interstate Highway 66. At above sea level, it sits at the top of the

Manassas Gap Manassas Gap is a wind gap of the Blue Ridge Mountains on the border of Fauquier County and Warren County in Virginia. At an elevation of 887 feet above sea level, it is the lowest crossing of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the state. "The origins o ...

in the

making it a gateway into the

today, as it was for early settlers in the area. The

Manassas Gap Railroad The Manassas Gap Railroad (MGRR) ran from Mount Jackson, Virginia, to the Orange and Alexandria Railroad's Manassas Junction, which later became the city of Manassas, Virginia. Chartered by the Virginia General Assembly in 1850, the MGRR was a n ...

was completed in 1854, it ran through Linden from Mount Jackson to Manassas Junction giving the town of Manassas its name. Today the tracks form a part of the

Norfolk Southern The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Railroad classes, Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway (U.S.), Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the ...

rail system. The popular north-south

crosses Hwy 55 (John Marshall Hwy) and under

I-66 Interstate 66 (I-66) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the eastern United States. It runs from an interchange with I-81 near Middletown, Virginia, on its western end to an interchange with U.S. Route 29 (US 29) in Washingt ...

in Linden at County Rd 725 (Tuckers Ln.) as it follows its way along the east side of the Blue Ridge. While the "village" of Linden sets at above sea level many of the surrounding attractions and activity areas with road access climb above making for a diverse natural experience.

Geology

The soils in Linden are developed from granite,

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

gneiss Gneiss ( ) is a common and widely distributed type of metamorphic rock. It is formed by high-temperature and high-pressure metamorphic processes acting on formations composed of igneous or sedimentary rocks. Gneiss forms at higher temperatures an ...

, greenstone and chloritic

schist Schist ( ) is a medium-grained metamorphic rock showing pronounced schistosity. This means that the rock is composed of mineral grains easily seen with a low-power hand lens, oriented in such a way that the rock is easily split into thin flakes o ...

. The terrain ranges from rolling to steep landscapes that are dissected by Goose Creek and its tributaries that feed from runs and springs from the east side of the

. The rolling uplands contain soils that are loamy to silty and can be shallow to bedrock. On the steeper upland sections the soils are loamy with stones and rock outcrops evident on the surface.

Schools

Schools K–12, operated by the Warren County School Board,Warren County Schools
are located in Front Royal for students who live on the Warren County side of town. High Schoolers attend Warren County High School. Mountain Laurel Montessori School is in nearby Front Royal. Students who live in Fauquier CountyFauquier County Schools
attend primary and Middle Schools in the Marshall area while High School students attend Fauquier High School in Warrenton, VA.

Flora and fauna

Here is a list of commonly seen local

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. E ...

and

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. Zoo ...

in and around Linden. * Plants * Reptiles **Snakes, venomous *** Northern copperhead (''

Agkistrodon contortrix mokasen ''Agkistrodon contortrix mokasen'' was formerly a venomous pit viper subspecies found in the eastern United States. However, recent taxonomic changes do not recognize the northern copperhead (''A. c. mokasen'') as a valid taxon. New taxonomy The ...

'') *** Timber rattlesnake ('' Crotalus horridus horridus'') **Snakes, non-venomous *** Black snake (''

Pantherophis obsoletus ''Pantherophis obsoletus'', also known commonly as the western rat snake, black rat snake, pilot black snake, or simply black snake, is a nonvenomous species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to central North America. Ther ...

'') **Turtles and tortoises *** Eastern box turtle ('' Terrapene carolina carolina'') * Amphibians ** American toad (''

Bufo americanus The American toad (''Anaxyrus americanus'') is a common species of toad found throughout Canada and the eastern United States. It is divided into three subspecies: the eastern American toad (''A. a. americanus''), the dwarf American toad (''A. a ...

'') * Fish *Birds ** Eastern bluebird ('' Sialia sialis'') ** American robin (''

Turdus migratorius The American robin (''Turdus migratorius'') is a migratory bird of the true thrush genus and Turdidae, the wider thrush family. It is named after the European robin because of its reddish-orange breast, though the two species are not closely ...

'') ** Grey catbird ('' Dumetella carolinensis'') ** Black vulture (''

Coragyps atratus The black vulture (''Coragyps atratus''), also known as the American black vulture, Mexican vulture, zopilote, urubu, or gallinazo, is a bird in the New World vulture family whose range extends from the northeastern United States to Peru, Ce ...

'') * Mammals ** White-tailed deer (''

Odocoileus virginianus The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...

'') ** Black bear (''

Ursus americanus Ursus is Latin for bear. It may also refer to: Animals *Ursus (mammal), ''Ursus'' (mammal), a genus of bears People * Ursus of Aosta, 6th-century evangelist * Ursus of Auxerre, 6th-century bishop * Ursus of Solothurn, 3rd-century martyr * Ursus ...

'') ** Grey fox (''

Urocyon cinereoargenteus The gray fox (''Urocyon cinereoargenteus''), or grey fox, is an omnivorous mammal of the family Canidae, widespread throughout North America and Central America. This species and its only congener, the diminutive island fox (''Urocyon littora ...

'') ** Eastern grey squirrel (''

Sciurus carolinensis The eastern gray squirrel (''Sciurus carolinensis''), also known, particularly outside of North America, as simply the grey squirrel, is a tree squirrel in the genus ''Sciurus''. It is native to eastern North America, where it is the most prodi ...

'') ** Eastern chipmunk (''

Tamias striatus The eastern chipmunk (''Tamias striatus'') is a chipmunk species found in eastern North America. It is the only living member of the chipmunk genus ''Tamias''. Etymology The name "chipmunk" comes from the Ojibwe word ''ajidamoo'' (or possibl ...

'') ** Eastern cottontail (''

Sylvilagus floridanus The eastern cottontail (''Sylvilagus floridanus'') is a New World cottontail rabbit, a member of the family Leporidae. It is the most common rabbit species in North America. Distribution The eastern cottontail can be found in meadows and shrubby ...

'') ** Groundhog ('' Marmota monax'') * Invertebrates ** Crustaceans *** Common crayfish (''

Cambarus bartonii ''Cambarus bartonii'' is a species of crayfish native to eastern North America, where it is called the common crayfish or Appalachian brook crayfish. ''C. bartonii'' was the first crayfish to be described from North America, when Johan Christian ...

'') **

Cnidaria Cnidaria () is a phylum under kingdom Animalia containing over 11,000 species of aquatic animals found both in freshwater and marine environments, predominantly the latter. Their distinguishing feature is cnidocytes, specialized cells that th ...

e *** Freshwater jellyfish (''

Craspedacusta sowerbyi ''Craspedacusta sowerbii'' or peach blossom jellyfish is a species of freshwater hydrozoan jellyfish, or hydromedusa cnidarian. Hydromedusan jellyfish differ from scyphozoan jellyfish because they have a muscular, shelf-like structure called a ...

'') ** Arachnids *** Northern black widow (''

Latrodectus variolus ''Latrodectus variolus'', the northern black widow spider or northern widow, is a venomous species of spider in the genus ''Latrodectus'' of the family Theridiidae. The population is closely related to the southern black widow, ''Latrodectus mact ...

'') *** Wolf spiders (

Lycosidae Wolf spiders are members of the family Lycosidae (). They are robust and agile hunters with excellent eyesight. They live mostly in solitude, hunt alone, and do not spin webs. Some are opportunistic hunters, pouncing upon prey as they find it or ...

)

References

External links

Mosby
(

)
Company D of the 43rd Battalion Virginia Cavalry
(

43rd Battalion Virginia Cavalry The 43rd Virginia Cavalry Battalion, also known as Mosby's Rangers, Mosby's Raiders, or Mosby's Men, was a battalion of partisan cavalry in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War. Noted for their lightning strike raids on Union target ...

)
Mosby Heritage AreaSaint Dominics Monastery
*, ''Virginia Happy Trails Running Club''
Linden Volunteer Fire DepartmentWarren County SchoolsFauquier County Schools
*
Thompson Wildlife Management Area
{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Fauquier County, Virginia Unincorporated communities in Warren County, Virginia Unincorporated communities in Virginia