Hollin Hall was 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 ...

three miles (5 km) southwest of

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 ...

Fairfax County 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. ...

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 ...

George Mason George Mason (October 7, 1792) was an American planter, politician, Founding Father, and delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention of 1787, one of the three delegates present who refused to sign the Constitution. His writings, including s ...

, a

United States Founding Father The Founding Fathers of the United States, known simply as the Founding Fathers or Founders, were a group of late-18th-century American Revolution, American revolutionary leaders who United Colonies, united the Thirteen Colonies, oversaw the Am ...

, gave Hollin Hall to his third son,

Thomson Mason Thomson Mason (14 August 173326 February 1785) was an American lawyer, planter and jurist. A younger brother of George Mason IV, United States patriot, statesman, and delegate from Virginia to the U.S. Constitutional Convention, Thomson Mason wou ...

, through deeds of gift in 1781 and 1786. The land, as given, totalled . Thomson Mason was the first member of the Mason family to actually live here. Before then, tenants farmed the property. George Mason also helped Thomson Mason have a house constructed. Thomson and his wife, Sarah McCarty Chichester, celebrated Christmas, 1788 in the new house. However, as late as 1792 George Mason wrote Thomson about difficulties procuring lumber for the Hollin Hall front porch. Fire destroyed the house in 1824, four years after Thomson's death. An outbuilding survived and became known as Little Hollin Hall. In 1852, Thompson's son George Mason of "Spring Bank" sold the property to Quakers Edward and Eliza Gibbs, and in 1868 Mason wrote to congratulate them on their success in growing wheat, which inspired his own son to try the crop despite financial difficulties after the war. Hollin Hall continued occupied well into the 20th century. In 1916, industrialist Harley Wilson and his wife bought the property and constructed a new residence, pool and other buildings. It was advertised for sale again in 1938. The Hollin Hills (whose name was inspired by the estate) neighborhood, primary to the west and north of Hollin Hall, was developed in the 1940s and is now a historic district of mid-century modern homes and landscape design. Mount Vernon Unitarian Church bought the property from Mrs. Merle Thorpe in 1958. It hosted a

Congress on Racial Equality The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) is an African-American civil rights organization in the United States that played a pivotal role for African Americans in the civil rights movement. Founded in 1942, its stated mission is "to bring about ...

(CORE) training workshop in 1961, as well as other civil rights activities, both local and national, during the next several years. The congregation also worked against the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

and for affordable housing. In 1983, the church sold part of the property to finance construction of a new meeting house to replace the old car garage. Fairfax County added the building to The Fairfax County Inventory of Historic Sites in 1993. In 1994, with the help of Alexandria's Campagna Center, the main hall was restored as a decorator showcase, and started hosting concerts several years later. Further renovations (e.g. kitchen and air-conditioning) were performed in 2003–2004. It is currently available for function rental such as weddings.

References

Houses in Fairfax County, Virginia Mason family residences Plantation houses in Virginia {{Virginia-struct-stub