Warrenton is a town in Fauquier County,

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 are ...

, of which it is the

seat of government The seat of government is (as defined by ''Brewer's Politics'') "the building, complex of buildings or the city from which a government exercises its authority". In most countries, the nation’s capital is also seat of its government, thus that ...

. The population was 9,611 at the 2010 census, up from 6,670 at the 2000 census. The estimated population in 2019 was 10,027. It is at the junction of U.S. Route 15, U.S. Route 17, U.S. Route 29, and

U.S. Route 211 U.S. Route 211 (US 211) is a spur of US 11 in the U.S. state of Virginia. Known for most of its length as Lee Highway, the U.S. Highway runs from Interstate 81 (I-81) and Virginia State Route 211 (SR 211) in New Market east to US 15 Business, ...

. The town is in the

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

region of Virginia just 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 Virg ...

. The well-known Airlie Conference Center is north of Warrenton, and the historic

Vint Hill Farms Vint Hill Farms Station (VHFS) was a United States Army and National Security Agency (NSA) signals intelligence and electronic warfare facility located in Fauquier County, Virginia, near Warrenton. VHFS was closed in 1997 and the land was sold o ...

military facility is east. Fauquier Hospital is located in the town. Surrounded by

Virginia wine Virginia wine refers to wine made primarily from grapes grown in the commonwealth of Virginia. Wine has been produced in the area since the early days of European colonization in the 17th century. Virginia has hot humid summers that can be challe ...

and horse country, Warrenton is a popular destination outside Washington, D.C. Warrenton shares some services with the county, such as schools and the county landfill. The area was home to

Bethel Military Academy Bethel Military Academy was a school near Warrenton, Virginia in Fauquier County. It operated from 1867 until 1911 and had several prominent alumni. The Virginia General Assembly passed a bill in 1901 incorporating the school. The bill included a ...

History

The settlement which would grow into the town of Warrenton began as a crossroads at the junction of the Falmouth-Winchester and Alexandria-Culpeper roads, where a

trading post A trading post, trading station, or trading house, also known as a factory, is an establishment or settlement where goods and services could be traded. Typically the location of the trading post would allow people from one geographic area to tr ...

called the Red Store was located. In the 1790s, a courthouse was built in the area, and the location was known as "Fauquier Courthouse"."What you should know about Fauquier History: Town of Warrenton"
Fauquier Historical Society. Accessed April 17, 2010. The Town of Warrenton was incorporated on January 5, 1810,"Warrenton Historic District Design Guidelines"
Town of Warrenton. Accessed April 17, 2010. and named for General

Joseph Warren Joseph Warren (June 11, 1741 – June 17, 1775), a Founding Father of the United States, was an American physician who was one of the most important figures in the Patriot movement in Boston during the early days of the American Revolution, ...

, a Revolutionary War hero.

Richard Henry Lee Richard Henry Lee (January 20, 1732June 19, 1794) was an American statesman and Founding Father from Virginia, best known for the June 1776 Lee Resolution, the motion in the Second Continental Congress calling for the colonies' independence from ...

donated the land for the county seat.

John S. Horner John Scott Horner (December 5, 1802 – February 3, 1883) was a U.S. politician, Secretary and acting Governor of Michigan Territory, 1835–1836 and Secretary of Wisconsin Territory, 1836–1837. Early life Horner was born in what is now ...

, Secretary of Wisconsin Territory and Acting Governor of

Michigan Territory The Territory of Michigan was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 30, 1805, until January 26, 1837, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Michigan. Detroit w ...

, was born in Warrenton.

John Marshall John Marshall (September 24, 1755July 6, 1835) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the fourth Chief Justice of the United States from 1801 until his death in 1835. He remains the longest-serving chief justice and fourth-longes ...

, the fourth Chief Justice of the

U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

, was from

Germantown Germantown or German Town may refer to: Places Australia * Germantown, Queensland, a locality in the Cassowary Coast Region United States * Germantown, California, the former name of Artois, a census-designated place in Glenn County * Ger ...

, modern-day Midland, south of Warrenton.

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 ...

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 ...

made raids in the town during the

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 ...

and later made his home and practiced law in Warrenton. The Warren Green Hotel building hosted many famous people, including the

Marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette (6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (, ), was a French aristocrat, freemason and military officer who fought in the American Revoluti ...

James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American statesman, lawyer, diplomat, and Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. A member of the Democratic-Republican Party, Monroe was ...

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

Henry Clay Henry Clay Sr. (April 12, 1777June 29, 1852) was an American attorney and statesman who represented Kentucky in both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. He was the seventh House speaker as well as the ninth secretary of state, al ...

, President

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

, and divorcée

Wallis Simpson Wallis, Duchess of Windsor (born Bessie Wallis Warfield, later Simpson; June 19, 1896 – April 24, 1986), was an American socialite and wife of the former King Edward VIII. Their intention to marry and her status as a divorcée caused ...

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 ...

General

George B. McClellan George Brinton McClellan (December 3, 1826 – October 29, 1885) was an American soldier, Civil War Union general, civil engineer, railroad executive, and politician who served as the 24th governor of New Jersey. A graduate of West Point, McCl ...

bade farewell to his officers November 11, 1862, from the steps of the hotel. It now hosts some offices of the Fauquier County government. Arthur Jordan, an African-American man, was

lynched Lynching is an extrajudicial killing by a group. It is most often used to characterize informal public executions by a mob in order to punish an alleged transgressor, punish a convicted transgressor, or intimidate people. It can also be an ex ...

by a mob of approximately 60–75 men in white hoods in the early hours of January 19, 1880. Jordan had been accused of

miscegenation Miscegenation ( ) is the interbreeding of people who are considered to be members of different races. The word, now usually considered pejorative, is derived from a combination of the Latin terms ''miscere'' ("to mix") and ''genus'' ("race") ...

and

bigamy In cultures where monogamy is mandated, bigamy is the act of entering into a marriage with one person while still legally married to another. A legal or de facto separation of the couple does not alter their marital status as married persons. I ...

for eloping with Elvira (Lucille) Corder, the daughter of his white employer, Nathan Corder, a landowner and farmer in the upper part of the county along the

Rappahannock River The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately in length.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 It traverses the entir ...

. A group of local men hunted the pair down near

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 ...

, captured Mr. Jordan and returned him to Fauquier, whereupon he was delivered to the town jail. Later that night, the masked lynch mob gained access to the jail and dragged Jordan to the nearby town cemetery, where he was hanged from a small locust tree. Ms. Corder remained in Maryland, estranged from her family, until her death a few years later. News of the lynching was reported in papers across the nation. Even some foreign newspapers, such as Australia's ''

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...

'', reprinted accounts of the event. In 1909, a fire destroyed almost half the structures in the town, and was halted with the use of dynamite to create a firebreak to stop the flames from spreading. In 1951, the federal government established the

Warrenton Training Center Warrenton Training Center (WTC) is a classified United States government communication complex located in the state of Virginia. Established in 1951, it comprises four discrete stations located in Fauquier and Culpeper counties. WTC has served ...

just outside Warrenton. The center is a secret

Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

communications facility, which also houses an underground relocation bunker containing communications infrastructure to support

continuity of government Continuity of government (COG) is the principle of establishing defined procedures that allow a government to continue its essential operations in case of a catastrophic event such as nuclear war. COG was developed by the British government bef ...

in the event of a nuclear attack on Washington, DC. A bypass route around the town was built in the early 1960s, which attracted restaurants, gas stations, and shopping centers, but also drew businesses away from the center of town. The Warrenton Historic District was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1983. Other listings in or near Warrenton include

Brentmoor Brentmoor, also known as the Spilman-Mosby House in Warrenton, Virginia, is a historic site that was the home of Confederate military leader John Singleton Mosby. History The house was built in 1859 as the residence of Judge Edward M. Spilman ...

Dakota Dakota may refer to: * Dakota people, a sub-tribe of the Sioux ** Dakota language, their language Dakota may also refer to: Places United States * Dakota, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Dakota, Illinois, a town * Dakota, Minnesota, a ...

, Hopefield, Loretta, Monterosa,

North Wales , area_land_km2 = 6,172 , postal_code_type = Postcode , postal_code = LL, CH, SY , image_map1 = Wales North Wales locator map.svg , map_caption1 = Six principal areas of Wales common ...

, The Oaks, the

Old Fauquier County Jail Built in Warrenton in 1808, the sixth jail in Fauquier County, Virginia ran for only fifteen years before a new jail was erected behind it after a lawsuit with the Commonwealth of Virginia. In those fifteen years the four-cell jail saw death and d ...

, and Yorkshire House.

Geography

Warrenton is located in central

Fauquier County Fauquier is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 72,972. The county seat is Warrenton. Fauquier County is in Northern Virginia and is a part of the Washington metropolitan area. History In 160 ...

at (38.718307, −77.797085). U.S. Route 29 leads northeast to Gainesville and to Washington, D.C., and southwest to Culpeper. U.S. Route 15 follows US 29 out of town in both directions, but leads north-northeast to Leesburg. U.S. Route 17 leads northwest to

Winchester Winchester is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs Nation ...

and southeast to Fredericksburg, and

leads west to

Skyline Drive Skyline Drive is a National Parkway that runs the entire length of the National Park Service's Shenandoah National Park in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, generally along the ridge of the mountains. The drive's northern terminus is at a ...

Shenandoah National Park Shenandoah National Park (often ) is an American national park that encompasses part of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The park is long and narrow, with the Shenandoah River and its broad valley to the west, and the ...

. According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, Warrenton has a total area of , of which , or 0.13%, is water. The eastern, southern, and northern parts of the town drain east to Cedar Run, a tributary of the

Occoquan River The Occoquan River is a tributary of the Potomac River in Northern Virginia, where it serves as part of the boundary between Fairfax and Prince William counties. The river is a scenic area, and several local high schools and colleges use the r ...

and part of 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 ...

watershed, while the western part of town drains south via Great Run to the

Education

Fauquier County Public Schools The Fauquier County Public Schools system (abbreviated FCPS) is a school division in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. It is a branch of the Fauquier County government which administers public schools in Fauquier County. FCPS enrolls approximate ...

serves Warrenton. Public schools in the town include

Fauquier High School Fauquier High School is a public high school in Warrenton, Virginia, United States. The school is part of Fauquier County Public Schools and is located at 705 Waterloo Road. History Fauquier opened in 1963 and is the oldest high school in Fauqui ...

, Warrenton Middle School, and Taylor Middle School. The elementary schools consist of J.G. Brumfield, C.M. Bradley, and P. B. Smith. There are three private schools in the town of Warrenton: Highland School, St. John The Evangelist's Catholic School, and St. James' Episcopal School.

Transportation

Warrenton is served by four U.S. Routes;

U.S. Route 15 U.S. Route 15 (US 15) is a -long United States highway, designated along South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New York. The route is signed north–south, from U.S. Route 17 Alternate in Walterboro, South Caro ...

U.S. Route 17 U.S. Route 17 or U.S. Highway 17 (US 17), also known as the Coastal Highway, is a north–south United States Highway that spans in the southeastern United States. It runs close to the Atlantic Coast for much of its length, wit ...

U.S. Route 29 U.S. Route 29 (US 29) is a north–south United States highway that runs for from Pensacola, Florida to the western suburbs of Baltimore, Maryland in the Southern United States, connecting the Florida Panhandle to the Baltimore-Washington me ...

(which collectively form the Eastern Bypass) and

. US 15 extends north and south, heading towards Leesburg in the north and

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

to the south. US 17 is oriented northwest to southeast, connecting to

to the northwest and Fredericksburg to the southeast. US 29 is oriented northeast to southwest, reaching Washington, D.C. to the northeast and

Charlottesville Charlottesville, colloquially known as C'ville, is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is the county seat of Albemarle County, which surrounds the city, though the two are separate legal entities. It is named after Queen Cha ...

to the southwest. Finally, US 211 begins north of the downtown area and extends westward, passing through Luray and 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- ...

. All four highways originally passed directly through the center of town and now follow bypasses. However, downtown Warrenton is now served by U.S Route 15 Business, U.S Route 17 Business, U.S Route 29 Business and U.S Route 211 Business. Virginia Regional Transit operates the Circuit Rider bus in Warrenton.

Academy Bus Academy Bus Lines is a bus company in New Jersey providing local bus services in northern New Jersey, line-run services to/from New York City from points in southern and central New Jersey, and contract and charter service in the eastern United ...

operates a commuter bus from Warrenton to Washington, D.C.

Notable people

* James DeRuyter Blackwell, Civil War-era poet and writer * Steve Brodie, Major League Baseball player *

Edward Brooke Edward William Brooke III (October 26, 1919 – January 3, 2015) was an American politician of the Republican Party, who represented Massachusetts in the United States Senate from 1967 until 1979. Prior to serving in the Senate, he served as t ...

, U.S. senator *

Anthony Cave Brown Anthony Cave Brown (21 March 1929 – 14 July 2006) was a British journalist, espionage non-fiction writer, and historian. Early years Brown. was born in Bath, and moved to London as a boy, stuffing propaganda leaflets into bombs meant for N ...

, Journalist and historian *

Jesse Brown Jesse Brown (March 27, 1944 – August 15, 2002) was a veteran of the United States Marine Corps who served as United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs under President Bill Clinton from 1993 to 1997. Early life Jesse Brown was born on Mar ...

, former U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs *

Samuel Chilton Samuel Chilton (September 7, 1804January 14, 1867) was a 19th-century politician and lawyer from Virginia. Biography Born in Warrenton, Virginia, Chilton moved to Missouri with his family as a child and attended private school there. He studi ...

, 19th-century politician and lawyer *

Walter Chrysler Walter Percy Chrysler (April 2, 1875 – August 18, 1940) was an American industrial pioneer in the automotive industry, American automotive industry executive and the founder and namesake of American Chrysler Corporation. Early life Chrysler wa ...

, founder of the

Chrysler Corporation Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automoti ...

Walter P. Chrysler Jr. Walter Percy Chrysler Jr. (March 27, 1909 – September 17, 1988) was an American art collector, museum benefactor, and collector of other objects such as stamps, rare books, and glassworks. He was also a theatre and film producer. Early lif ...

, art collector, museum benefactor, and Thoroughbred horse breeder * Julia Ringwood Coston, 19th-century Afro-American publisher and magazine editor who founded the first magazine ever published for black women *

Mike Duvall :''This is an article about Mike Duvall, the major league baseball pitcher. For the former California State Assemblyman, see Michael D. Duvall'' Michael Alan Duvall (born October 11, 1974) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He ...

, Major League Baseball player * George B. Fitch, former mayor of Warrenton and co-founder of the

Jamaican bobsled team The Jamaica national bobsleigh team represents Jamaica in international bobsleighing competitions. The men's team debut in the 1988 Winter Olympic Games four-man bobsleigh in Calgary, Alberta, was received as underdogs in a cold weather sport ...

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...

, drag queen *

Benita Fitzgerald-Brown Benita Fitzgerald Mosley (formerly Benita Fitzgerald-Brown; born July 6, 1961) is a retired American athlete, who mainly competed in the women's 100 metres hurdles event. Early life A native of Warrenton, Virginia, she grew up in nearby Dale ...

, Olympic athlete * Craig Gilmore, winner, 2013

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

Tournament Challenge *

, acting governor of

Eppa Hunton Eppa Hunton II (September 24, 1822October 11, 1908) was a Virginia lawyer and soldier who rose to become a brigadier general in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War. After the war, he served as a Democrat in both the United States ...

, United States House of Representatives, U.S. congressman and United States Senate, senator, Brigadier general (United States), brigadier general in the Confederate Army *John C. Mackie, U.S. congressman *Malcolm MacPherson (writer), Malcolm MacPherson, ''Newsweek'' correspondent and author *Frances Harrison Marr (1835–1918), poet *Charles Marshall (colonel), Charles Marshall, Confederate States Army colonel *James K. Marshall, Confederate States Army colonel *John Augustine Marshall, U.S. federal judge *Thomas Love Moore, U.S. congressman and lawyer *William Moore (musician), William Moore, blues musician *

, Confederate cavalry battalion commander *William H. F. Payne, Confederate States Army general *Ric Savage, pro wrestler, television star, archaeologist *Scott Shipp, superintendent of the Virginia Military Institute *William Smith (Virginia governor), William "Extra Billy" Smith, congressman, twice governor of Virginia, and Confederate general *Gwyn R. Tompkins, Thoroughbred horse racing trainer *Septimus Tustin, clergyman *Erica Wallach, American-German political activist and teacher *Sarah White, singer-songwriter *Charles S. Whitehouse, career Foreign Service officer, U.S. Ambassador to Laos and Thailand *Bonnie Zacherle, illustrator and designer

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Warrenton has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.Climate Summary for Warrenton, Virginia
/ref>

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 6,670 people, 2,683 households, and 1,591 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,574.8 people per square mile (607.4/km²). There were 2,856 housing units at an average density of 674.3 per square mile (260.1/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 80.04% White (U.S. Census), White, 16.49% African American (U.S. Census), African American, 0.24% Native American (U.S. Census), Native American, 1.00% Asian (U.S. Census), Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander (U.S. Census), Pacific Islander, 0.63% from Race (United States Census), other races, and 1.57% from two or more races. Hispanic (U.S. Census), Hispanic or Latino (U.S. Census), Latino of any race were 3.25% of the population. There were 2,683 households, out of which 28.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.6% were Marriage, married couples living together, 14.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.7% were non-families. 33.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 3.01. In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.9% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 31.0% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 17.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.8 males. The median income for a household in the town was $50,760, and the median income for a family was $59,744. Males had a median income of $40,405 versus $31,689 for females. The per capita income for the town was $23,552. About 6.7% of families and 9.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.3% of those under age 18 and 10.2% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links

Town of Warrenton official website

Fauquier County Public Library

Warrenton Volunteer Fire Company

Historic Warrenton Presbyterian Church

Warrenton Historic District - National Register of Historic Places, Final Nomination Form

Warrenton Historic District Design Guidelines

Greater Warrenton Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control Towns in Virginia Towns in Fauquier County, Virginia County seats in Virginia