Airmont 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 the

Loudoun Valley The Loudoun Valley is a small, but historically significant valley in the Blue Ridge Mountains located in Loudoun County in Northern Virginia in the United States. Geography The lush and fertile valley lies between Catoctin Mountain and the B ...

Loudoun County 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 C ...

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 ...

, United States. It is located at the crossroads of Snickersville Pike (Virginia Secondary Route 734) and Airmont Road (Virginia Secondary Route 719) approximately south of the town of Round Hill and east of the village of

Bluemont Bluemont is an unincorporated village in Loudoun County, Virginia located at the eastern base of Snickers Gap in the Blue Ridge Mountains. The village's center is located along Snickersville Turnpike ( Virginia Route 734), west of the incor ...

History

Though the crossroads location of Airmont had hosted a collection of dwellings and a general store since not long after the opening of the Snickersville Turnpike, it was not considered a village nor called Airmont until 1897 when the

United States Post Office The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the ...

established a branch there. As was tradition, the first post-master of the office was allowed to name it. In this case, the honor went to Lucien Powell, a renowned landscape painter who gave the village its name for its scenic westward views and in deference to the village of Philomont, named by an unknown Italian painter. Powell, himself, could be considered a native of Airmont, having been born a few miles southeast. The post office at Airmont did not last long, falling victim to

Rural Free Delivery Rural Free Delivery (RFD) was a program of the United States Post Office Department that began in the late 19th century to deliver mail directly to rural destinations. Previously, individuals living in remote homesteads had to pick up mail themsel ...

in 1912. In its short life the post office greatly helped the small village grow, reaching a population of 25 by 1908, prompting the establishment of a school the following year. Like most small villages in western Loudoun, Airmont began a slow decline during the Great Depression. The school closed in 1931 and many of its historic buildings were destroyed by fire or torn down through the years. The general store alone has survived, albeit through several intermittent incarnations.

References

* Scheel, Eugene. ''Loudoun Discovered - Communities, Corners & Crossroads. A series of five volumes.'' Friends of the Thomas Balch Library. Leesburg, Virginia. 2002. {{authority control Unincorporated communities in Loudoun County, Virginia Washington metropolitan area Unincorporated communities in Virginia