NOVA Parks (formerly named Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority) is an inter-jurisdictional

organization An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose. The word is derived from ...

that owns and operates more than 10,000

acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imp ...

s of

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

stream A stream is a continuous body of water, body of surface water Current (stream), flowing within the stream bed, bed and bank (geography), banks of a channel (geography), channel. Depending on its location or certain characteristics, a stream ...

park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. Th ...

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

countryside In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, ...

and

historic site A historic site or heritage site is an official location where pieces of political, military, cultural, or social history have been preserved due to their cultural heritage value. Historic sites are usually protected by law, and many have been rec ...

s in

Northern Virginia Northern Virginia, locally referred to as NOVA or NoVA, comprises several counties and independent cities in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. It is a widespread region radiating westward and southward from Washington, D.C. Wit ...

in the

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 ...

. The Authority was organized in 1959. NOVA Parks presently operates 33

regional park A regional park is an area of land preserved on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, recreational use or other reason, and under the administration of a form of local government. Definition A regional park can be a special park distri ...

s. A 12-member policy-making

Board Board or Boards may refer to: Flat surface * Lumber, or other rigid material, milled or sawn flat ** Plank (wood) ** Cutting board ** Sounding board, of a musical instrument * Cardboard (paper product) * Paperboard * Fiberboard ** Hardboard, a ty ...

governs NOVA Parks. The

city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

or county board of each member

jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels. Jur ...

appoints two representatives to the Board. Three counties ( Arlington, Fairfax, and

Loudoun Loudoun ( gd, Lughdan) is a parish in East Ayrshire, Scotland and lies between five and ten miles east of Kilmarnock. The parish roughly encompasses the northern half of the Upper-Irvine Valley and borders Galston Parish (which encompasses the ...

) and three cities (

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

Falls Church Falls Church is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,658. Falls Church is included in the Washington metropolitan area. Taking its name from The Falls Church, an 18th-century Churc ...

and Fairfax) currently have representation on the Board.

History

NOVA Parks was founded in 1959, when Arlington and Fairfax Counties and the City of Falls Church decided to create an agency to protect the drinking water sources of the area, as well to provide passive recreation. NOVA Parks purchased its first parkland shortly thereafter in

Centreville, VA Centreville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States and a suburb of Washington, D.C. The population was 73,518 as of the 2020 census. Centreville is approximately west of Washington, D.C. History Colonia ...

from

Gardiner Means Gardiner Coit Means (June 8, 1896 in Windham, Connecticut – February 15, 1988 in Vienna, Virginia) was an American economist who worked at Harvard University, where he met lawyer-diplomat Adolf A. Berle. Together they wrote the seminal work of ...

and his wife Caroline F. Ware, in what would become

Bull Run Regional Park Bull Run Regional Park is a multi-use facility located in Centreville, Virginia, owned and operated by the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority. The park is situated near Interstate 66, in the Bull Run / Occoquan Stream valley. It features ...

. The pair later donated their farm home in

Vienna, VA Vienna () is a town in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, Vienna has a population of 16,473. Significantly more people live in ZIP codes with the Vienna postal addresses (22180, 22181, and 22182), bordered appr ...

, which would eventually become

Meadowlark Botanical Gardens Meadowlark Botanical Gardens (95 acres) are botanical gardens and an event venue located at 9750 Meadowlark Gardens Court, in Vienna, Virginia. They are open daily except for major holidays and ice; an admission fee is charged. Garden admissions ...

. Within its first decade of existence, NOVA Parks conserved over . In the ten years that followed, that number was increased to approximately . NOVA Parks then added sites in

Clifton, VA Clifton is an incorporated town located in southwestern Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, with a population of 282 at the time of the 2010 census, up from 185 at the 2000 census. Incorporated by the General Assembly on March 9, 19 ...

, the

City of Fairfax, VA The City of Fairfax ( ), colloquially known as Fairfax City, Downtown Fairfax, Old Town Fairfax, Fairfax Courthouse, FFX, or simply Fairfax, is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. At the 2010 census the p ...

, Fairfax County, Arlington and

Alexandria, VA Alexandria is an independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of downtown Washington, D.C. In 2020, the population was 159,467. T ...

in the 1960s. The agency welcomed

Loudoun County, VA Loudoun County () is in the northern part of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. In 2020, the census returned a population of 420,959, making it Virginia's third-most populous county. Loudoun County's seat is Leesburg. Loudoun ...

in the 1970s. The latter arrangement would lead to the addition of several key sites, including what would become

Algonkian Regional Park Algonkian Regional Park is located on the Potomac River in Sterling, Virginia at Cascades, Virginia. The 838-acre park is owned and operated by the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority (NOVA Parks) and contains open fields, picnic shelters, ...

on 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 ...

, as well as

Red Rock Overlook Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondar ...

, Temple Hall Farm and Ball's Bluff Battlefield and National Cemetery. NOVA Parks continued their growth through the 1990s, adding

Brambleton Golf Course Brambleton is a census-designated place (CDP) in Loudoun County, Virginia, Loudoun County, Virginia, United States, south of the Dulles Greenway. The population as of the 2010 United States Census was 9,845. In 2017, Brambleton had an estimated po ...

in Ashburn, VA, and then later, in 2006, adding Aldie Mill Historic Park. The agency recently added a new facility at Occoquan Regional Park, named after former board member and Fairfax County leader

Jean Packard Jean Rogers Packard (April 15, 1923 – October 21, 2014) was an environmentalist, civic activist and chairwoman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors from 1972 – 1975. Jean N. Rogers grew up in Cincinnati and originally attended Ohio Stat ...

Historic sites

NOVA Parks manages a number of parks that have historical significance, including an 18th-century mansion, a Civil War battlefield, a 19th-century grist mill, a 200-year-old working farm, a

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

era church, and many more. Major venues include

Carlyle House Carlyle House is a historic mansion in Alexandria, Virginia, United States, built by Scottish merchant John Carlyle in 1751 to 1752 in the Georgian style. It is situated in the city's Old Town at 121 North Fairfax Street between Cameron and K ...

, the former

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 ...

home of British merchant

John Carlyle John Carlyle may refer to: *John Carlyle (merchant) (1720–1780), Scottish merchant in Virginia *John Aitken Carlyle (1801–1879), Scottish doctor and brother of Thomas Carlyle * Johnny Carlyle (1929–2017), British ice hockey player and coach ...

; Ball's Bluff Battlefield and National Cemetery, a park in

Leesburg, VA Leesburg is a town in the state of Virginia, and the county seat of Loudoun County. Settlement in the area began around 1740, which is named for the Lee family, early leaders of the town and ancestors of Robert E. Lee. Located in the far northea ...

that was the site of a Civil War conflict in 1861; Mt. Zion Church and the adjacent Gilbert's Corner Regional Park, in

Aldie, VA Aldie is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located between Chantilly and Middleburg in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States. The historic village of Aldie is located on the John Mosby Highway ( U.S. Route 50) in a g ...

which were used as a

military rendezvous site, prison, barracks, battleground and hospital; and Aldie Mill Historic Park, a restored mill, with a four-story brick structure with tandem metal

Water wheel A water wheel is a machine for converting the energy of flowing or falling water into useful forms of power, often in a watermill. A water wheel consists of a wheel (usually constructed from wood or metal), with a number of blades or buckets ...

s. Other venues include a kiln used by female prisoners from the

Lorton Reformatory The Lorton Reformatory, also known as the Lorton Correctional Complex, is a former prison complex in Lorton, Virginia, established in 1910 for the District of Columbia, United States. The complex began as a prison farm called the Occoquan Work ...

during the

Women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

Movement, as well Temple Hall Farm and White’s Ford Regional Park, located on the farm formerly owned by

Elijah V. White Elijah Viers "Lige" White (August 29, 1832 – January 11, 1907) was commander of the partisan 35th Battalion of Virginia Cavalry during the American Civil War. His men became commonly known as "White's Comanches" for their war cries and ...

. During 2018, NOVA Parks also added property near Middleburg, VA, henceforth known as the

Battle of Upperville The Battle of Upperville took place in Loudoun County, Virginia on June 21, 1863 during the Gettysburg Campaign of the American Civil War. Background The Union cavalry made a determined effort to pierce Confederate Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart' ...

, Goose Creek Regional Park. The roughly 20-acre space features hiking trails and interpretive information, as well as

Goose Creek Stone Bridge The Goose Creek Stone Bridge crosses Goose Creek in Loudoun County, Virginia. The long stone arch bridge spans the creek in four arches. Built about 1810, it is the largest stone turnpike bridge in northern Virginia, designed to carry the Ashby' ...

that was constructed prior to the Civil War.

Waterparks

NOVA Parks operates a total of five waterparks with differing sizes and features. These include Atlantis Waterpark at

(Centreville), Great Waves Waterpark at

Cameron Run Regional Park Cameron Run Regional Park is a regional park located on Eisenhower Avenue, near Cameron Run, in Alexandria, northern Virginia. It is protected and operated by the NOVA Parks agency of Northern Virginia, formerly the Northern Virginia Regional P ...

(Alexandria), Pirate’s Cove Waterpark at

Pohick Bay Regional Park Pohick Bay Regional Park is a regional park on Pohick Bay of the Potomac River, in Fairfax County, northern Virginia. Geography The park is located on State Route 242, north of Mason Neck State Park. It is protected and operated by the NOVA Pa ...

(

Lorton, VA Lorton is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. The population was 18,610 as of the 2010 census. History Lorton is named for a village in the Lake District National Park, Cumbria, in England. Joseph Plasket ...

), Ocean Dunes Waterpark at

Upton Hill Regional Park Upton Hill Regional Park is a regional park located in Arlington, Virginia, Arlington, Northern Virginia. The park contains a waterpark, batting cages and a miniature golf course. The batting cages include nine baseball and softball cages. It is own ...

(Arlington) and Volcano Island Waterpark at

(

Sterling, VA Sterling, Virginia, refers most specifically to a census-designated place (CDP) in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States. The population of the CDP as of the 2010 United States Census was 27,822. The CDP boundaries are confined to a relatively s ...

Golf courses

NOVA Parks owns three 18-hole golf courses, including Algonkian, Brambleton and Pohick Bay. Each has a different layout and is

Audubon International Audubon International is a not for profit 501(c)(3) environmental education organization based in Troy, New York. Established in 1987, the organization works with communities, developments, resorts, and golf courses in 36 countries to plan and i ...

certified.

Constituent parks

The

s and other features administered by NOVA Parks include: #

Ball's Bluff Battlefield and National Cemetery # Hemlock Overlook Regional Park # Bull Run Marina # Fountainhead Regional Park #

Sandy Run Regional Park Sandy may refer to: People and fictional characters *Sandy (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Sandy (surname), a list of people *Sandy (singer), Brazilian singer and actress Sandy Leah Lima (born 1983) * (Sandy) ...

# Occoquan Regional Park #

Gateway Regional Park Gateway often refers to: *A gate or portal Gateway or The Gateway may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Films * ''Gateway'' (film), a 1938 drama * ''The Gateway'' (2015 film), a horror film * ''The Gateway'' (2017 film), a science-fict ...

Carlyle House Historic Park Carlyle may refer to: Places * Carlyle, Illinois, a US city * Carlyle, Kansas, an unincorporated place in the US * Carlyle, Montana, a ghost town in the US * Carlyle, Saskatchewan, a Canadian town ** Carlyle Airport ** Carlyle station * Carlyle L ...

Potomac Overlook Regional Park Potomac () may refer to: Places in the United States Washington, D.C. area: *The Potomac River, which flows through West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. **The Potomac Highlands, a region of the Potomac River's watershed in West ...

Washington & Old Dominion Railroad Regional Park The Washington and Old Dominion Railroad Regional Park is a linear regional park in Northern Virginia. The park's primary feature is the Washington and Old Dominion Railroad Trail (abbreviated as W&OD Trail), an asphalt-surfaced paved rail trail ...

# Brambleton Regional Park #

Red Rock Wilderness Overlook Regional Park Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondary ...

Ball's Bluff Battlefield Regional Park Ball's Bluff Battlefield Regional Park and National Cemetery is a battlefield area and a United States National Cemetery, located northeast of Leesburg, Virginia. The cemetery is the third smallest national cemetery in the United States. Fifty ...

# Temple Hall Farm Regional Park # Seneca Regional Park

References

External links

NOVA Parks websiteNova.org: Quantico Orienteering ClubNova.org: Hemlock Overlook Regional Park
{{Authority control Northern Virginia Virginia municipal and county parks Parks in Arlington County, Virginia Parks in Fairfax County, Virginia Parks in Loudoun County, Virginia Parks in Alexandria, Virginia Parks in Falls Church, Virginia Fairfax, Virginia Government agencies established in 1959 1959 establishments in Virginia