McLean Hunt By Jeanne McChesney Assisted by Jean Jonnard 2007 Lewinsville was an early village, having its own post office and no definite dividing line between it and Langley. It was named after Troilus Lewin Turberville (1780-1803), the son of one of the early families settling in the area. In 1860 a census was taken in two books, one to record every free inhabitant, and the other for every slave inhabitant. There were 125 Lewinsville citizens who cast their votes on May 23, 1861 in the secession election; 38 of those votes were to deny secession. The Jackson House, near the intersection of Swinks Mill Road and Old Dominion Drive, was occupied by the Jackson family until 1843. On May 24, 1861, Federal troops invaded and captured Alexandria. James Jackson, a civilian, shot and killed Colonel Ephraim Ellsworth because the Union officer had removed the Confederate flag flying above Jackson’s hotel. Ellsworth was the first Union officer to die in the Civil War. In return, a sergeant of the Union Army shot and killed Jackson, who was not only the first Confederate casualty in the War, but also the first civilian to lose his life on either side. In 1906, Lewinsville had a population of 50 with twelve farmers, one physician, one notary public and two general stores. Most of the area which McLean Hunt now occupies was a farm, originally owned by Mrs. Marzano, with a pond and wide open spaces. The farmland on which Section 3 and 4 is located (west side of Swinks Mill Road) was deeded to the son of the original owner and he sold the land to the builders, Berlage Bernstein. Mrs. Marzano maintained her section of the property and lived in a small farmhouse. She rented the barn to several girls who boarded horses and set up a riding ring around the barn. Before Tysons II and the Spring Hill Recreation Center were built, the young people had much land in which to ride their horses. They would canter over to 711 at the corner of Spring Hill Road and Old Dominion Drive for a coke. The Hunt has an impressive private entrance, gently winding roads, scenic parks, and a tranquil setting. However, the developers drained Mrs. Marzano’s pond for fear that prospective owners would worry about their children falling into the water. They filled the pond with conduits so that the land can never accept a pool or be paved over. Some homeowners have suggested play areas or basketball courts be installed, but the existence of the pipes precludes that. Dr. Hatch, a retired College Professor who, as an avocation, explored the history of McLean, explained that Old Falls Street in section 3 was a road originally running from Falls Church to the falls in Great Falls. It was used by early settlers. When McLean Hunt was being built, an old log cabin and an original spring were still visible on Old Falls Street. In the spring of 1972, after a bad storm, the spring turned into a roaring river which created a hole 15 feet deep and 30 feet across. The County repaired the spring, but part of the road was later obliterated when The Cedars development was built.
In mid-1973, with nearly all lots sold or contracted for, Berlage-Bernstein agreed to turn the organization, which had been incorporated in 1968, over to the homeowners. Several meetings were held and a Nominating Committee of eight homeowners was selected to represent all sections of McLean Hunt. The original members of the Nominating Committee were: Chairman Chuck Brutza, Ames Albro, Doris Bullock, Randy Cabell, John Chase, Jean Jonnard, Brenda Nelson, and Bob Preston. At a meeting on October 30, 1973, members elected three Directors: William P. Jackson, Aimison Jonnard and Merton Batchelder. The original officers of the Association were: President Aimison Jonnard, Vice President William P. Jackson Jr., Secretary Brenda Nelson, and Treasurer Merton Batchelder. The Parks and Maintenance Chair was Dick Bowen. Ed Joseph served as liaison to the builder. During the early meetings of the Home Owners Association, some owners wished to have two classes of membership: A for homes on the main streets and B for homes sited on the pipestems. Although some members felt that residents of the pipestems should pay more to reflect the higher cost of maintenance and repair of the pipestems, the final decision was to have only one membership class and to have the Homeowners Association responsible for all maintenance as a single unit. The Association was concerned that Berlage-Bernstein wanted to give up the bond that had been placed with the County before the completion of Foxhound Road, the last part of the Hunt to be developed. Association Vice President Bill Jackson, who was a transportation specialist and attorney, worked with the County to ensure pavement of the street. The immediate efforts of the newly created Board included paying back taxes and interest, securing liability insurance, contracting for maintenance of the common grounds (parks), contacting County officials regarding completion of the streets, and ensuring that the builder met County specifications for the pipestems. Homeowner dues were $60 for the first year. From the beginning of the Hunt incorporation, the Association sponsored summer picnics, complete with old-fashioned three-legged races and egg and spoon contests, each with prizes. Everyone brought their prize picnic fare, spread blankets on the grass, and shared their picnic with all of their neighbors. Jean Jonnard asked all neighbors to purchase a flowering cherry tree in order to beautify the neighborhood. To this day, the trees grace the streets in early spring. In 1977, the total income for the Hunt was $4,716.67 and dues per home were $50.00 per year. 1977 was also a year in which McLean Hunt hit the headlines of papers all over the country. On Thursday night, April 28, 1977 at about 8:40 PM, a twin-engine private jet took off in the rain from National Airport en route to Birmingham, Alabama. Three minutes later, after reaching an altitude of about 9,500 feet, the pilot lost contact with the tower. According to eyewitnesses, the plane exploded in mid-air, making a noise like a sonic boom and bursting into a ball of fire. The plane apparently crashed into McLean Hunt Park, and then bounced into the
Jackson home, where parts of the bodies of the two crewmen were deposited. No one in the Jackson home or anywhere else on the ground was injured by the crash, but the two passengers in the plane also died. They were the President and Executive Vice President of Southern Company Services, an electric utility company based in Atlanta, Georgia, who were on their way to a meeting at the Atomic Industrial Forum with President Carter. One Hunt family, the Dennis Clarke family, who lived on the corner of Old Stable and Foxhound Roads, narrowly escaped injury when a section of the aircraft crashed into their house. All six members of the family escaped immediately through the garage after the plane crashed into the back of their home. One of the family’s two dogs, McGregor, a four-year-old Shetland Sheep dog, was later found by a neighbor unhurt. The other dog and family cat both died in the blaze. The family was watching a TV show entitled “What’s Happening,” in the family room when the plane struck. The family dashed out of the house through the garage seconds before the home collapsed in flames. Scott Schlegel, a McLean Hamlet resident, recalls, “I went to school with one of the children who lived [there]. I remember him telling me that his parents had a premonition that something was terribly wrong and quickly ushered them out of the house. Had they stayed another minute, they would have been killed.” Only the chimney, with a CB antenna attached, remained standing in the midst of the smoke, debris and ruins of the house. Their station wagon parked in the street was the only thing they had left other than the clothes in which they escaped. Mrs.. Marzano, the owner of the original farm, died of a heart attack, believing the world was coming to an end. One of the paramedics had a heart attack in the midst of the furor. Many persons believed that, due to the sensitive nature of atomic energy, the plane may have been targeted. One police spokesman said that federal officials were looking into the possibility that a bomb may have been aboard the aircraft. Classified papers were strewn all over the area. Plane debris was found several miles away from the scene of the crash. One man living more than a mile from the scene told police that the bathroom door of the plane landed in his backyard. The Government investigated the cause of the crash, but no definitive answers were ever made public. The Clarkes moved into their newly built, completely brick, home on the same lot one year later to the day. Two U. S. Senators, Senator Reigle of Michigan and Senator Garn of Utah, lived in the Hunt for many years. Leland Brendsel, President of the Freddie Mac Corporation, purchased the Reigle’s home. Another resident, Bud Nance, was National Security Director. There was an attempted kidnapping on Foxhound Road. The intended victim was a smart young boy who told the guy to wait up until he finished a small chore. Instead, he called 911. The would-be kidnapper was gone by the time the police arrived. About six homes in Section 2 of the Hunt, along Swinks Mill Road and Bridle Path Road, were built by another builder with different designs than the Hunt homes. Two lots in Section 4 were not available to Berlage-Bernstein and were later built by private parties. One, at the end of
Stirrup Cup Lane, was purchased by a private builder who never gave the new owners an occupancy permit. After the owners moved in with their 12 children, the County came and cut all utilities for the house. The other home, a Williamsburg Colonial built on a wooded acre lot on Foxhound Road, was purchased by a Vice President of Pulte Homes. The home on the corner of Foxhound and Swinks Mill was at one time a tree nursery. In 1978 the major Association concerns were resurfacing of the pipestems, dogs running loose, motorbikes in the parks and the silver burglar. By 1989, major issues still involved paving of the pipestems. New issues included delinquent dues, a new annual dues payment schedule, and removal of the basketball posts which had become a hazard. There were also complaints about contractors and neighbors doing noisy work prior to 9:00 AM on Sundays and holidays. In 1996, residents were concerned about the dumping of debris in the parks, which was costly to remove. They were also concerned about the blockage at the end of Foxhound Road, which had been a walking path for twenty years, and for the expansion of the Korean Methodist Church at the corner of Swinks Mill Road and Lewinsville Road. That year Three Pigs Bar-B-Q catered the annual Hunt picnic. August 6, 1996 was designated as the Annual “Neighborhood Out� day. This was a time when one was to visit neighbors by welcoming any new neighbors or visiting with old ones. The annual dues increased to $150 per household per year. More formal Homeowners Association meetings are now held each spring at the McLean Community Center so that the Board can better represent the neighborhood. Currently, Peggy McNulty serves as Association President. She established a yearly Home Tour and reception for residents. This event has brought life back into the Hunt and provides neighbors an opportunity to meet one another. Treasurer Jim Bradley does Park Clean Up. He contracts for care and mowing of the parks, and keeps costs down by personally hauling away debris from the parks.
Greenway Heights By Roz McLean Written June, 1998 Updated August, 2006 The name “Greenway Heights” appears to have been taken from the name “Greenway” which Lucy Madeira Wing named the Madeira School property when it was purchased in the 1920’s. She named it after Lord Fairfax’s manor in Clarke County, Va. It was also appropriate for the subdivision as open greenways were planned into the development. It is built on a slope, with the low end at 280 feet elevation at the bottom of Hunting Hill Road and a high end of 387 feet elevation at the intersection of Bellview Road and Georgetown Pike. Bellview Road climbs to a ridge that continues through the Madeira School property. The 387 foot elevation is the high point of the area. Hence, the “Heights” part of the name is legitimate as well (see USGS map on page 7). NOTE: Odrick’s Corner to the south is at 372 feet elevation and Tyson’s Corner looms over all at 518 feet. Geologically, the elevation seems to be roughly similar to the deposits of the Brandywine Terrace, an ancient elevation. It is part of what is locally named the Mather Gorge Formation dating to the early Cambrian or Late Proterozoic period (500 million-1 billion years ago). The underlying rock has been folded many times in its geologic history as a result of plate tectonics which caused mountain building and compression. The climax of deformation and metamorphism of Piedmont rocks around Great Falls is suggested to have been before 470 million years ago, but further shearing and metamorphism may have continued for another 100 million years. The ancient rocks have weathered to a clay rich soil which is seen down as far as ten feet in one excavation (1998 addition at 8301 Riding Ridge Road). The rock that turns up (less than 10%) is often quartz which would be less resistant to erosion and weathering. Historically, there were gold-bearing quartz veins discovered in the area which gave rise to mining. Unfortunately, none proved really productive. The neighborhood is bordered more or less by four roads: Georgetown Pike to the north, Old Dominion Drive to the south, Spring Hill Road to the east, and Bellview Road to the west. Greenway Heights is the top of the drainage for Bullneck Run that is just east of Spring Hill Road. The pond at the lowest elevation must be maintained for flood water control and, while much of the neighborhood water ends up there, the responsibility for maintaining it falls on McLean Country Estates to the east, as it was originally part of their tract of land. The rest of the storm drainage was planned to be contained by the undeveloped parklands areas. As a newer development, begun in the early 1970’s, the original plan for Greenway Heights consisted of 110 houses to be cluster zoned on 110 acres. Each house would occupy less than an acre of land and the extra was to be set aside for parkland and drainage. As far as we know, Greenway Heights was one of the first such subdivisions in Fairfax County. The reality of the runoff is that the lowlands along Spring Hill Road get soggy when the little streams overflow. There is a wetland between the end of the neighborhood and the gas station at Spring Hill Road as one travels east on Old Dominion Drive. The runoff flows into the pond and below it into a stream that joins Bullneck Run on the north side of Georgetown Pike.
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Much of the parkland in the neighborhood is kept open by mowing but an equal amount of space, which was open farmland at the time Greenway Heights was developed, has become forest in the interim. The parkland is augmented by the open and wooded acreage currently owned by the county along Hunting Hill Lane. In addition, the close proximity of Madeira School’s 200+ acres and the large lot sizes between Georgetown Pike and the Potomac River give animals a continuous greenspace in which to live and move. The variety of habitat of pond, streams, open areas and woods encourages a wide array of inhabitants, including deer, foxes, rabbits, woodchucks, beavers, and birds. The pond hosts visiting Canada geese, mallards, snapping turtles, frogs, and an occasional Great Blue heron. The perimeter of the neighborhood contains some longstanding houses and bits of history. Old Georgetown Pike was one of the four important roads of early times in Northern Virginia. It began as a buffalo trail. In the 1630’s the Susquehannock Indians used it to carry furs to trade with early explorers anchored below Little Falls on the Potomac. In 1649, the land it ran through became part of “The Northern Neck Proprietary” (5 million acres between the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers and their headwaters) on charter from King Charles II to Lord Culpeper, his brother and five loyal friends. In 1681, it was all bought by the second Lord Culpeper whose daughter, Lady Fairfax, inherited it in 1710. The year before, there had been four major land grants made which subdivided the proprietary. The first of these was “The Sugarlands,” so named for a grove of sugar maple trees, now located in Loudoun County, made to Daniel McCarty in 1709. This was the first of the ‘upcountry’ tobacco plantations. After this, the old trail became known as Sugarlands Rolling Road because here the hogsheads full of tobacco were rolled from plantation to navigable waters for trade (see map below taken from The History of the Old Georgetown Pike). NOTE: A “difficult” crossing over a stream along this road became Difficult Run.
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In 1739, a further subdivision granted 5,568 acres called Towlston Manor to William Fairfax. The Greenway Heights neighborhood was part of this grant. See map below. Drover’s Rest, an “Ordinary” (a tavern or public house), was located just beyond Madeira’s entrance to the west of Greenway Heights. The building was still standing as of 2006.
16. Spring Hill Farm 17. Drover’s Rest
18. Towlston Grange 19. Madeira School
In the early 1900’s, the now-named Georgetown-Leesburg Turnpike (so established in 1813) was a dirt toll road, always in terrible condition with huge rocks in the middle of the road. Then, local people took turns collecting the tolls. One of these toll takers was Wallace Carper, owner of a large dairy farm at the corner of Spring Hill Road and Georgetown Pike. He said there were rocks as big as he was in the road. “Shun pikes” were side roads formed by deep cuts on the sides of the road where people drove in order to avoid the rocks. One still exists on the north side of Georgetown Pike just below the Madeira entrance. There is a deep gulley there separated from the road by a row of locust trees. In 1924, Lucy Madeira Wing bought “Greenway” as a place out of Washington to build a new school. It had been most recently a deserted dairy farm, part of the Northern Neck Proprietary, and part of 17,000 acres given by Lord Fairfax to Thomas Lee. The new school opened in 1931.
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In 1934 Madeira purchased Georgetown Pike from the Washington and Dranesville Highway Company for $500, and then turned it over to the State of Virginia. The toll house was removed and the road improved, but it wasn’t until the 1940’s that Wallace Carper, then Chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, had it upgraded from a secondary to a primary road and it was finally blacktopped. (A Greenway Heights residents, John Stanko, remembers driving from Washington where he attended prep school, out to Madeira for tea dances in the late 1930’s. He said it was like driving all the way to Richmond, and one would only be invited from 2:30-4:00 PM. Then there was the long drive back…) On the Bellview Road border to Greenway Heights, a bit of history surrounds “Prospect Hill,” an old farmhouse at 947 Bellview. The original house was built in 1854 and was said to have been occupied as a confederate encampment during the Civil War. The general apparently took over the house while his troops were billeted on the grounds. There is also some thought that the old house at one time was a stop on the Underground Railroad. A little log house, now on a separate foundation from the main house, used to be an attached smoke house. Further down Bellview were other log house additions, but these came from West Virginia to be made part of new construction. The original house at 937 Bellview, called “Carper’s Forge,” seems to have been connected at one time to the old dairy farm in the lower part of the neighborhood. The third border, Old Dominion Drive, used to be The Great Falls and Old Dominion Electric Railway from 1906-1934. It brought Washingtonians out to the country to enjoy the scenery and the park at Great Falls. It ran from Rosslyn to Cumberland, Md. with a spur that connected Langley and Lewinsville to Great Falls. The publisher of the Washington Post at the time, John R. McLean, was a major investor in the railway, which was an economic windfall to the area. In 1910, the post office that united Langley, Chesterbrook, and Lewinsville was named the McLean post office. There are several properties on the last perimeter road, Spring Hill Road, that are of interest. One house, now nestled in the McLean Estates subdivision, was built in 1890. In the early 1970’s and presumably for many years before that, it was owned by S. F. Barabas whose estate included all the property from there to Old Dominion Drive and across the pond to what is now McLean Country Estates next to Greenway Heights. There was an old pre-Civil War house by the pond at 8199 Hunting Hill Road. It was lived in by the black caretaker of Mr. Barabas’ estate, and was torn down to make way for new development. There is an old fence between #8199 and the pond, and Greenway Heights resident Nancy Srull remembers a huge pig and a cow named Daisy that were kept there when she built in the neighborhood in the early 1970’s. Two old roads through the woods lead to the old house site: one comes from Mr. Barabas’ house and is paved in places; the other was a dirt road starting near the gas station at the northwest corner of Spring Hill Road and Old Dominion Drive. That house was also internal to the Barabas estate and was lived in by a black man named Bimbo. As Greenway Heights became developed, Mr. Barabas’ taxes went up, forcing him to sell off first the corner piece where the gas station is and later other pieces of his property. He apparently was a rather sad and bitter man who resented the construction dirt washing into his pond and the children who rode horses around through the pastures and the woods. He also seems to have scandalously lived with a woman who never became his wife.
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The other property on Spring Hill Road is that of Wallace Carper’s dairy farm. Carper and other dairy farmers were major suppliers of milk to residents of Washington, D.C. Carper collected the milk from neighboring farms and drove it across Chain Bridge to Georgetown each day. Carper may have owned all the land that is now Greenway Heights. John Stanko remembers two old ladies working the dairy when he came out to the area as a young man. When Stanko built his house in 1970, Carper’s farm consisted of approximately 20 acres between Georgetown Pike and Riding Ridge Road, all fenced. There were two houses on that property: one was a caretaker’s cottage at 914 Spring Hill Road built about 1929, which has since been added on to; and the other was presumed to be the main house at 8133 Georgetown Pike. The latter probably had parts at least that were older. The owner, Bob Glamb, said that he discovered a log foundation under part of it when the house was razed after a fire in the 1980’s. Glamb said there was a second barn on the property at one time, and the USGS map on page 7 indicates the previous existence of several buildings that are not present now. The original farmland was divided up among family members. Mr. Barabas’ tract may have been a spinoff from this division. Now to Greenway Heights itself. In 1967-68, a Montgomery County developer, Grover Cooley, bought the 110 acres of farmland from Mr. Greenhaugh who apparently had bought it as a real estate investment property, possibly from Wallace Carper. Greenhaugh sold part of the farm to a man named Kalaiski who let out stalls for horses. Greenway Heights resident Nancy Srull’s children kept horses there. Cooley planned to develop a cluster-zoned subdivision. The houses were to conform to the terrain. The first, built as a show house, was 911 Kimberwicke. Each was to be custom built. Fences enclosed the community and there were gas lights at the entrance. Gas lights were planned to be placed throughout. Groover Cooley built houses up Riding Ridge to Rail Court, and part way down Kimberwicke before giving up and selling the rest of the land to Mort Zuckerman. Mr. Zuckerman readjusted the plan slightly. He added more houses, used stock designs, and discontinued the gas lights. Greenway Heights today is an active neighborhood with a Civic Association to which approximately 85% of households voluntarily contribute dues each year. As a courtesy, the Greenway Heights Civic Association includes the two McLean Country Estates homes at the end of Hunting Hill Lane and the homes along Bellview Road between Georgetown Pike and Old Dominion. The Civic Association meets once a year in the spring. Greenway Heights also has a Home and Garden Club which hosts events from time to time and maintains the plantings around the neighborhood's two entrances. The Civic Association also maintains the trail along Old Dominion linking the neighborhood to the five estate homes near the Exxon Station. Together with the Home and Garden Club, the Civic Association sponsors the following annual social events: Fall Picnic, Holiday Party (at a neighbor's home in December) and Spring Egg Hunt. The residents of Greenway Heights spend much time outside, maintaining their yards, walking with dogs, children and/or friends, riding bikes and playing in the creek that runs through the neighborhood. When spending time in the woods, it is difficult to believe one is so close to Georgetown Pike, Old Dominion and even Tyson's Corner. It is quiet and peaceful. Because of the strength and beauty of the neighborhood, there are several second-generation families in Greenway Heights - children who grew up in Greenway Heights who have returned to raise families of their own. There is also a good mix of long-time residents and newer families.
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Notes on the surrounding area: The Ridings, just west of Spring Hill Road on the south side of Old Dominion Drive, is located on the site of an old car junkyard. The land where the 7-11 is at the intersection of Spring Hill Road and Old Dominion Drive was supposed to be a fire station. Eventually, the fire station was built on Spring Hill Road near Leesburg Pike (Route 7), next to the 22102 post office. Within the Lewinsville community, there used to be two black settlements: Odrick’s Corner and the Sharper Settlement. Shiloh Baptist Church on Spring Hill Road may date from pre-Civil War. It and the Pleasant Grove Church on Lewinsville Road are old black churches. There was a mill between Georgetown Pike and the Potomac along Difficult Run. Swink’s Mill was a grist mill where grain was ground until 1908. The mill race is still evident. There was also a saw mill across Georgetown Pike on Scott’s Run. References Cooke, Elizabeth Miles. The History of Old Georgetown Pike. 1977 McLean archives at The Dolley Madison Library, McLean McLean Internet Directory. www.McLean,VA.US “Miss Madeira’s School—A Portrait/1906-1981” from the Madeira archives Moore, John E. and Jackson, Julia A. ed. Geology, Hydrology and History of the Washington, D.C. Area. American Geological Institute. 1989 Oral histories: Bob Glamb, 914 Spring Hill Road John Stanko, 905 Kimberwicke Road Nancy Srull, 941 Kimberwicke Road Barbara Fabiani, formerly 947 Bellview Road Kathy Sterling USGS topographical map, Falls Church, VA
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USGS Map goes here
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7/7/2013 Woodside Estates by Joe Berry as told to Jan Auerbach 2006 Woodside was once the home of the Berry family. The history of Woodside is much the history of the Berrys. Col. George West Gunnell, born in 1790, was the Fairfax County Surveyor and an entrepreneur. His parents owned land in what is now Great Falls and Reston in grants obtained from Lord Fairfax. Col. Gunnell served in the Virginia Militia and fought in the War of 1812. Early in the 1800’s he bought the land now known as Woodside. The property ran from Leesburg Pike, down Lewinsville Road as far as Spring Hill Road, across to the now-defunct Old Falls Road, up to what is now Laurelwood Drive, on to Bellview Road, then along Old Tolson Mill Road, and south to Leesburg Pike. The property included over 500 acres. The Gibson family owned one triangular section on the north side of Lewinsville Road. Col. Gunnell had two children: a daughter, Mary Josephine Gunnell, and a son, Dallas Polk Gunnell. The Gunnells lived in a home that he built near the corner of Spring Hill Road and Lewinsville Road, in what is now Summerwood. Mary Josephine Gunnell married Captain J(ames) Owens Berry, who was born in 1837. Berry was Captain of Company G, Eighth Va. Infantry, in the Confederate army. He was captured at Ball’s Bluff, was a prisoner of war in the Old Capital at Washington, escaped from that prison, and returned to his regiment where he served until the end of the war. He was the only one in his company not killed or wounded in Pickett’s Charge at Gettysburg. As a one-term member of the House of Delegates, Berry signed the papers incorporating Vienna in 1890. Owens and Mary Berry lived in a big frame house built for her by her father near the spring that feeds Woodside Lake. The spring was the water supply for the house. The house, known as Woodside, had a large sitting room, living room, and eating room on the ground floor and five bedrooms upstairs. The kitchen and toilet were outside. They had six children: The oldest, Mary Ann (Minny), married William Shreve of the family for which Shreveport, LA is named, and moved to Oakland, California, never to return. Richard Edgar Berry, known as Ed, remained on the property and lived in a house where the Providence Baptist Church is now. Joseph Berry was married in 1892 at Salona, the home made famous as the destination of James Madison the night the White House burned in 1814. His father, Captain Owens Berry, was friendly with the Smoots who owned Salona at that time. In 1895, Joseph and his wife moved to a home in Vienna with a three-seat outdoor privy, plus a barn for his two horses. Grace Berry married Franklin Sherman, a son of the first Superintendent of Fairfax County Schools after whom Franklin Sherman Elementary School is named. The Shermans moved to South Carolina and Franklin taught at Clemson University. Dallas Berry built the farmhouse still standing at 8904 Gallant Green Drive. Hester (Hetty), the youngest, lived with her older brother Ed. All the children were born before 1900. Captain Berry died in 1905.
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Dallas Polk Gunnell married Ida Blanche Gibson whose parents owned the triangular tract on Lewinsville Road. That tract became part of Woodside when Ida’s parents died. Dallas and Ida Gunnell lived in the house that Dallas’ father, Col. Gunnell, built. They had two daughters who died very young on the same night. There was suspicion that the hired girl poisoned them but it was never proved. Mary and Dallas inherited Woodside from their father when he died in 1878. Mary Berry and Dallas Gunnell both died about 1915. About the time Dallas died, his house burned to the ground. He, his wife, and two infant daughters are buried at Andrew Chapel. Since the Gunnells had no living children, the Berry children (all but Minny) inherited the property. Grace sold her share to Joe Berry and Hester sold her share to Dallas Berry, leaving all the property in the hands of Ed, Joseph, and Dallas Berry. Dallas sold the westernmost portion of the property to Col. Nye, and a portion along Lewinsville Road to Mr. Hawkins, whose son Burton was a sports writer for the Washington Post. The Hawkins property, with its stately antebellum-style mansion, is now owned by the Jewetts. The Nye property is now The Courts. Ed and Dallas were dairy farmers and farmed the western section of the property. Dallas was instrumental in forming the Maryland//Virginia Milk Producers’ Association. Joseph followed the Gunnell family tradition of being the County Surveyor. He owned the eastern portion, which was all woods. Ed Berry had three children: Granville, Elizabeth, and John. Only Granville inherited his father’s property and continued farming the land. Granville married Elizabeth Elgin whose father, Davenport (Port) Elgin, owned the dairy farm where the McLean Hamlet, Spring Hill Elementary School, and the Spring Hill Recreation Center now stand. Dallas had four children who all died as infants due to blood type incompatibility. Granville bought Dallas’s section and farmed both portions. Joseph Berry had a son, J(oseph) Gilbert Berry, who was a surveyor and developer who lived on Park Street in Vienna. Gilbert inherited all of Joseph’s holdings in Woodside. From 1900 to 1950, McLean was almost all dairy farms and was sparsely populated. Lawrence Leigh farmed the land where Covance (formerly Hazelton) Laboratories are now. Dr. Wiehle owned thousands of acres of what is now Reston; he later sold the land to Smith Bowman. Wallace Carper farmed what is now Greenway Heights. Howard Lowe farmed the land north of Leesburg Pike and west of the Toll Road, where McLean Hundred is now located. Clement Storm owned the land near Route 123 and Magarity Road. Vernon Palmer farmed the land around Langley on Georgetown Pike. Marvin Kirby owned the property across Route 123 from where the CIA now stands. Kirby Road is named after his family. The Ulfelders owned the farm called Maplewood near Tysons Corner where Scotts Crossing Road is. Trammel and Bright Carper farmed adjoining properties near Churchill and Balls Hill Road. Bright Carper made the rounds to pick up many farmers’ milk, including Granville Berry’s, twice a day and take it to market across Chain Bridge to Georgetown. Wildlife consisted of only small game. Fairfax County men had to travel to Luray to hunt deer since there were none east of the Shenandoah. Wild turkeys were hunted in Prince William
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7/7/2013 County. Squirrels were not plentiful since they were shot for food. Only foxes, rabbits, and copperhead snakes were in abundance. The mailing address in the late 1800’s was Ash Grove. The Ash Grove post office was located on Leesburg Pike about halfway between the current Toll Road and Lewinsville Road. Woodside was later a rural route out of the Vienna post office since that post office served the Leesburg Pike area. The McLean post office served farms off Old Dominion, but there were no roads south of Old Dominion between Swinks Mill Road and Towlston Road. Mail service from McLean’s post office began around 1960. . Around 1950, Gilbert and Granville, the two cousins owning all of Woodside, decided to sell. Granville kept five acres around his home on what is now Gallant Green, over to where the Providence Baptist Church is, and they subdivided the rest. The property was zoned for one acre lots but they divided the parcels into a minimum of two acre lots. They wrote covenants dated October 15, 1952, that established house setbacks, required that homes be designed by a licensed architect who is a member of the American Institute of Architects, lots could only be used for residential purposes, and no lot could be subdivided while the covenants were in effect. The covenants expired on October 22, 1973. The first road the Berry cousins cut in was Brook Road, from Leesburg Pike to the top of the hill going down to Rocky Run. The second road to be cut was Woodside Drive, from Lewinsville Road to what is now Dixie Place. The road curved at what is now Gallant Green, but Gallant Green wasn’t there since the Berry farmhouse was there. The third road was Daleview, but it only went as far as the first hill, a bit beyond Nye Road (now Windrock Drive) leading to the Nye property. All the roads were gravel roads, as were all secondary roads in the area. The gravel came from a quarry where Tysons II is now. Gravel roads could be hazardous. In 1952, shortly after he got his license, Joe Berry (Gilbert’s son) got his car stuck on Brook Road. Second cousin Granville used his farm tractor to pull him out. The first lots were sold in 1951-1952 and the first houses appeared on Brook Road. Whether the lot was two or four acres, it sold for $2,000. Sales were slow since the area was sparsely populated. There was a traffic light on Route 7 in Falls Church but not another one until Winchester. Only a stop sign existed where Route 7 crossed Route 123. When a house was built, the power company would install a power line to the home at no charge. Water was from a well and there were no sewer lines. The closest sewer lines were in Falls Church. To help sell the properties, the cousins decided to build Woodside Lake. They split the $2,000 fee paid to Cyril Albright of Vienna who bulldozed the land to form the lake around 1953 or 1954. The cousins made Hugh McDairmid, a real estate agent from Vienna, the trustee of the lake to remove themselves from liability for accidents that might occur there. McDairmid had no ownership in the lake or in Woodside, although he tried to write into sales contracts that owners who resold had to hire him as their agent. Henry Mackall, a prominent McLean attorney and friend of the Berrys, sued McDairmid over the provision and won. Initially the Berrys sold some lots directly and McDairmid sold some. The Berrys joined McDairmid in other real estate ventures, as well. Gilbert Berry, McDairmid, Lacy Compton (an attorney in Manassas), and Meredith Capper (of Capper’s Nursery) bought Tom Elgin’s property south of Lewinsville Road
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7/7/2013 as an investment. They later sold it to Sigmund Goldblatt. McDairmid and the Berrys also formed a real estate company called Northern Virginia Properties in which each party owned 50%. The partners had a falling out in the 1960’s and did little new business after that. The corporation was terminated in 1980 and the remaining properties were divided between them. Cyril Albright’s son, Glenn, developed Woodhaven along with Larry Reed. Woodhaven runs along Brook Road from Laurelwood Drive to near Alvord Street. Albright and Reed were both builders. Each of them built several homes along Brook Road and Portland Place. The Rectors developed Springhaven which runs along Rector Lane from about Alvord Street to Old Dominion Drive. In the 1950’s, the county required that all street names be unique. The Berrys found it difficult to come up with names. Polk Court was named after Dallas Polk Gunnell. Gunnell Court and Berry Place are named in honor of the founding families. Berry Place was called “Place” since there already was a Berry Street in Vienna. Daleview was the phone exchange in the area. Alps Drive was developed and named by others. The derivation of names like Dixie Place and Gallant Green is unknown, although it is known that Elizabeth Berry, Granville’s wife, named Gallant Green. Dixie Place, Polk Court, Woodside Court, and Overlook Road were cut in after the lake was built. Daleview was extended to its current length in 1961. Granville Berry kept the farm going on the five acres he retained until he died in 1958. Elizabeth sold part of the property to Providence Baptist Church but continued living in the Gallant Green farmhouse until she married Charlie Romanus and moved into a house on Woodside overlooking the lake. The last land Gilbert owned was on Laurelwood, where he built a house and moved from Vienna in 1961. He died in 1969 but his widow, Frances, stayed in the house until 1985. Gilbert and Frances’ daughter, Jo Ann, who married Orlo Paciulli, lived on Brook Road. Their son Joe built four houses on Daleview Drive and moved into one of them in 1969. He also built a house on Woodside Drive and another on Brook Road. Earl Whitley built a number of homes on Daleview Drive but most homes in Woodside were built singly. The last street to be cut was Gallant Green Drive. Brook Road was extended and joined to Rector Lane in the late 1960’s. Telephone service was out of Falls Church until the mid 1950’s when the phone company switched to the dial system. McLean had the Elmwood (356) exchange. Vienna had the Dunkirk (385) exchange. The name associated with the 893 exchange is lost, but it came into existence in the early 1960’s. In 1963, Orlo Paciulli and Henry and Doug Mackall began the process to form the Great Falls Water Company. Joe Berry joined the effort when he got out of the Navy in December that year. They received their franchise from Richmond in 1964. They drilled a well off Weller Avenue and put in a 200,000 gallon storage tank which they bought second hand from Chicago Bridge and Iron. The water served Woodside, Greenway Heights, and what is now McLean Hamlet. Fire hydrants in the area were painted yellow to show insufficient water pressure in case of a fire. When Sig Goldblatt wanted to develop the Hamlet, he began negotiations to put in additional water lines. The Fairfax County Water Authority learned of the negotiations,
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7/7/2013 condemned the well in 1967, paid the partners $270,000 in indemnification, and took over water service in the area. Hugh McDairmid was imperious and always acted like he had much more authority than he had. His wife, Dorothy, was a member of the Virginia House of Delegates and he tried to exert as much authority in his sphere as she had in hers. Through his role as lake trustee, he continued to exert considerable influence in Woodside, even though his official duties were limited to collecting Lake Association dues and maintaining the lake. McDairmid continued to manage the lake until 1984. By that time, there was substantial resident involvement in the Lake Association. Joe Berry and his brother Dallas asked McDairmid to give the lake over to the residents. McDairmid claimed that Elizabeth Berry, Granville’s widow, wanted him to keep it. Joe called Elizabeth in McDairmid’s presence and learned the story was not true. McDairmid then turned management of the lake over to the Lake Association. There was $12,000 left in the lake fund at that time. McDairmid gave $1,000 to Gilbert Berry’s widow, $1,000 to Granville Berry’s widow, and kept the rest, justifying his action by calling it a fee for service. Joe Berry, son of Gilbert Berry, grew up in Vienna. He attended Vienna Elementary School from 1942 to 1949 and graduated from Fairfax High School in 1954. At that time, there were only three other high schools in Fairfax County: Herndon High School (a much smaller version of the present school), Mt. Vernon High School, and Falls Church High School (an earlier namesake of the current school that was located at the intersection of Hillwood Avenue and Lee Highway). Joe was on the football team. In order to play a 10-game schedule, the team had to travel to Danville, Fredericksburg, Hampton, and Yorktown to find other teams to play. They wore leather helmets and had no face masks. When Joe went to college in the mid-1950s, the biggest football players of quality and ability weighed no more than 210 lbs. After graduating from North Carolina State College, he served in the Navy until 1963. He came back to Vienna and joined Berry Engineers, an engineering and surveying firm formed by his father Gilbert, with his brother-in-law, Orlo Paciulli. He was the fourth generation of Berrys to serve as a surveyor. He moved to Woodside in 1967 and is the only Berry descendant to still live there. In 1981 residents Carroll Howard (Old Tolson Mill Road) and W.J. (Sleepy) Redwine (Daleview Drive) formed a Neighborhood Watch program in Woodside. It was called Springwood Watch Association of Neighbors, with the acronym SWAN. The watch area included Springhaven and Woodhaven, the two Brook Road communities connecting Woodside to Old Dominion Drive. Members sported stickers with a black swan on a yellow background on their vehicles. For many years, there were enough members for both a daytime and an evening patrol. Around 2000, after both Carroll Howard and Sleepy Redwine had passed away and Irv Auerbach and Sleepy’s widow, Darryle Redwine, were managing Neighborhood Watch, the patrol was cut to once a day. Besides Neighborhood Watch, Woodside residents could belong to two local organizations: the Woodside Citizens Association and the Woodside Lake Association. The Citizens Association, formed in the 1960’s, takes positions on development issues affecting Woodside, such as with Hazelton (later Covance) Laboratories, Providence Baptist Church, McLean Hundred, and the McLean Bible Church. It also publishes a resident directory every few years. Speakers at meetings have included local elected officials and government officials
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7/7/2013 discussing matters ranging from the gypsy moth infestation to potential widening of Leesburg Pike. The Lake Association manages the lake and the road next to it, which serves as a dam for the lake. The association hires lifeguards every summer, holds a cleanup day each spring to replace the beach sand and trim shrubbery, and sponsored family picnics on July 4 and other holidays. Maintaining the dirt dam road was a major expense. The road required regrading twice per year and funds were sometimes not available to meet that schedule. In 2000, association members learned that the dam was being damaged by vehicle traffic, particularly trucks. Efforts to limit truck traffic with signs and pleas to trash companies were unsuccessful. Finally, on October 25, 2000 the association voted 47 to 46 to close the road. By 2004, membership had dwindled so much that lifeguards could no longer be hired except on weekends.
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Shouse Village 1968-1978 history written by Harl Jeffrey, 1980 2007 update written by Bob Philipp The land now occupied by Shouse Village was known as far back as 1845 as the Cooksey place. The Cooksey family lived in the farmhouse now owned by Pam and Gene Bacher at 1442 Towlston Road. Following the deaths of the Cookseys, the farm was sold in the early 1900s to a family named Johnson. After their residency, different tenants rented the place. The last owner to live in the house was Lyle Smith, Assistant Attorney General under Franklin D. Roosevelt. Then Vice-President Harry S. Truman, a close friend of Mr. Smith, was a frequent visitor to the farm. The Smiths named the property Spring Glade Farm. The Smiths sold the farm to local businessman Randolph Rouse who, in turn, sold it to the Yeonas Company for development. Shouse Village, as conceived by Yeonas, was to be unique in area developments—a community which would be self-contained and have autonomous control of its assets, with every homeowner a dues-paying member of the association by virtue of his purchase of property. The Shouse Village Citizens Association was incorporated and working by-laws adopted at a meeting of Yeonas representatives on December 17, 1968. The original model homes on Schubert Court were opened to the public in the spring of 1969, with the sales office in the “Allegro” model at 9305 Schubert. Building began on Parkside with these models, the first of which were ready for occupancy in July, 1969. Rising building costs during the summer caused the builders to change their plans and build a new set of smaller, less expensive model homes for the Lakeside section. These models opened the following spring on Filene Court. Originally, the barn belonging to Spring Glade Farm was to be converted to a community center. However, a severe summer storm in 1969 collapsed the barn. A new building was constructed on the site, using siding from the old structure on the clubroom walls. With slightly over twenty families in residence, a Christmas party was held the first weekend in December, 1969 in the recreation room of the “Rhapsody” model, 9304 Schubert Court. The first homeowners’ meeting was held April 30, 1970, in the “Classic” model on Filene Court. David Wolfe of Wolfe, Reader and Associates, presented a plan for organization and management of the community. The plan, which included full-time managerial and secretarial support, proved too ambitious and was never adopted. Later attempts to hire a full time community center director were also rejected for financial reasons. Instead, new President Bud Goehring presented plans for readying the pool and community center for opening. Mrs. Jouett Shouse and Yeonas representatives officially cut the ribbon on these facilities on Memorial Day weekend, 1969.
As the village grew, committees were formed to deal with various phases of community life: Architectural Control, Finance, Recreation, Maintenance, and Youth. A Teen Club and Junior Teen Club soon became active, meeting on alternate Friday nights for dancing, games, and special activities. Sub-groups of the Recreation Committee were formed to take care of the center, welcome new residents, and plan activities. Women volunteers, in lieu of paid janitors, armed themselves with buckets, mops, and vacuum cleaners to keep the community center in shape. The association tried different systems to keep the community center open for use, such as assigned building sitters for afternoons and evenings, keys made available at certain residents’ homes, and a schedule of mothers assigned to supervise different age groups at various times after school. None of these ideas was found to be practical and all were abandoned. In 1971, the board identified a policy that did work: each Saturday night, couples took turns opening the center from 9 PM to midnight. Their job was to make sure the building was opened and closed on time, and to have set-ups available. The first New Year’s Eve dance was held to usher in 1971. Snow began to fall in early afternoon and continued into the night. Many residents arrived on foot, some bringing their evening clothes in bundles pulled on sleds for dressing at the center. Spirits were high, and champagne was chilled in the snow piled high on the porch. A band and a midnight buffet prepared by the ladies of the Recreation Committee made the festivities complete. Many of those who had arrived by car left on foot in the wee hours of the morning, their cars stuck for several days in the still-falling snow. Residents became concerned that Towlston Road, which ran through the Village, was to become the access to Wolf Trap Farm Park. Shouse residents Bud Goehring and Lee Cort met many times with the Virginia Department of Transportation to identify solutions to the problem. It was finally agreed to open an access ramp from the Dulles Road, a solution which became reality through the assistance of Mrs. Shouse. The 1971 board, which now included seven residents and one Yeonas representative, established separate Pool, Grounds, and Publicity Committees, with a board member serving as a liaison to each. The board approved purchases of a jukebox for the Teen Club, player piano for late night songfests, and a mimeograph machine to produce monthly newsletters, flyers, and directories. The new board became aware that some new houses being built were not up to the standards of Shouse Village. After much negotiation with Yeonas and the threat of litigation, an agreement was reached that all requests for upgrading made by the board would be complied with. Yeonas sold the last sixty-seven lots remaining in the community to Town and Country for development. In 1971, a basketball court was completed, and swimming lessons were offered for the first time. Polly LeFaivre helped organize the first swim team, open to any intermediate swimmers over age six who could qualify in two strokes. Diving lessons and a tennis program were added later. Over time, many activities became traditional: monthly coffees for women, holiday dances and picnics, pool parties, slimnastics classes, a women’s recreational bowling
league, monthly potluck suppers, and Memorial Day tennis tournaments. Marlin Fitzwater, later Press Secretary to Ronald Reagan and George Bush, won the tournament on two occasions. Over the next few years, Cub Scout, Brownies, Webelos, and Junior Girl Scout troops were formed. A needlework group, ballet classes for women and children, a Gourmet Club, fall fashion show, evening bridge group, Sunday volleyball, Red Cross life-saving classes and summer fun fair all began. The Garden Club contributed greatly to the landscaping and beautification of the community, including the planting of 370 cherry trees. Annual work days were started to paint the community center and do grounds work, including seeding, pruning, and fertilizing. By 1972 the association was at last able to afford the services of a cleaning firm to clean the community center twice a month. A new sub-committee on community relations was charged with keeping the community informed of school, highway, and zoning news. The Publicity Committee published the first community information booklet and a new directory, with a cover drawing of the community center done by Brian McGinn. Through the efforts of George Degnon, Jane Peterson, and Delegate Wyatt Durrette, a traffic light was approved for Towlston Road and Route 7. In 1973 a community-wide campaign to rid Shouse Village of the Japanese beetle by treatment with milky spore reached 97.7% participation. That winter residents were asked to save electricity during the energy crisis by not using outdoor Christmas decorations. Also that year, the community center became available to residents for rental. A committee developed a set of rules governing rental use and handled the requests. All funds from rentals were to be used for repair and replacement of furnishings. On January 24, 1974, around 10 PM, disaster struck in the form of a fire at the community center. Parkside residents Don Brumback and Bill Davis first spotted the flames and sounded the alarm. Eighteen pieces of equipment from Dunn Loring, Vienna, Falls Church, and Fairfax responded, as did most residents who stood under umbrellas, many wearing bathrobes over nightclothes, while they watched the firemen hosing down the flames and throwing burned and damaged articles out into the rain. Damage was mostly confined to the entrance area, including the roof and walls. The cause was determined to be a faulty electrical outlet. Repairs to the building included new ductwork for the malfunctioning air conditioning system and a new carpet. The center reopened in May, 1974. In the fall of 1975, the association started a project to repair, refill, and stock the lake. Residents assessed themselves their first special assessment: $90 to be paid over five quarters. Started in 1976, grounds maintenance was contracted out to Shouse Village youth for specific jobs. The year 1977 began with a $10,000 cash reserve, a minimal dues increase, no debts, a completed lake project, and a comprehensive plan for landscaping the common ground. A second special assessment was voted in April 1978 for $60 to defray the cost of high priority repairs. In 1978, the Village learned that plans for the construction of Towlston Meadows next to Shouse included a cut-through to Chopin Street. This cut-through was not in the original plan.
Neighbors enlisted the help of Dranesville Supervisor John Shacochis and the plan was stopped. In November 1978 the association presented a three-year financial plan to residents that included a dues increase. Until this time dues had been raised only in accordance with the rise in the Consumer Price Index. Residents accepted the plan and set the dues level not to exceed $225 for a three-year period. The New Year’s party tradition ended in 1978 due to lack of response. However, the community did sponsor a special “champagne coffee” and party for college age residents during the Christmas break. In 1979 the association financed repairs to the community center air conditioning system and bought new furniture, draperies, and other face-lifting items. They also purchased new pool furniture. The refurbished community center opened that fall at a dance featuring music of the big bands played by Ed Walker of WMAL radio and Channel 7. In 1979, a villager wrote, “We have grown from a few residents to more than 250 families, with a continuous parade of new names and faces, though many of the originals are still here. The closeness of a small village has, in many respects, disappeared, but the attitude of good neighbors remains, and willing hands still seem to come forth to get the work done. We are indeed a unique community with much to offer new residents---something to appeal to the interests of everyone. We owe much to those who have given their time and efforts over the years to keep the wheels turning and ensure that Shouse Village remains a community in which we can all take pride. Shouse Village Board of Director members: 1970-1980 Greg Ahart 1971-1973 Marvin Arrowsmith 1971 Mark Baltes 1972-1973 Bob Betsold 1978-1979 Billy Boiles 1973 Jim Bolton 1977-1978 Ralph Brown 1977-1978 Aggie Capsalie 1974 Dick Chillemi 1972 Lucy Church 1973-1974 Lee Cort 1971 P.J. Darr 1971 George Davis (Yeonas) 1970 Marlene Dean 1977 George Degnon 1972 Vince DiCarlo 1974-1975 Polly LeFaivre 1973-1975 Bill Leverage 1977 Cal Matheny 1971 Natalie Mazzoni 1977 Ed McCloskey 1978-1979 Bob McConnell 1973
Tony DiSilvestre 1975-1976 Harold Erickson 1976 Jim Garrison 1976 Bob Giles 1980 Bud Goehring 1970 Sal Guardino 1974 Lowell Gutzler 1980 Marvin Hammond 1970 Dale Henderson 1980 Barbara Henshaw 1975-1976 Carolyn Hobbs 1980 Ray Hodgdon 1979 Mary Lou Hughes 1974-1975 Herb Jonkers (Yeonas) 1971 Cliff Kennedy 1979-1980 Ray Kuhlman 1972 John McGinn 1975 Warner Mewborne 1974 Bill Miller 1971-1972 Steve Montgomery 1975-1976 Diana Mowry 1977-1978 Chuck Mumford 1976-1977
Howard Myrick Dick Nygaard Diane Osborne Kathy Parkins Ron Prohm Doug Pruit William Rosenow Lou Sak Dick Scales
1978 1973 1975-1976 1978-1979 1977-1978 1975-1976 1971 1974 1977-1978
Bob Snuggs 1979-1980 Peter Storm 1972 Betty Sturman 1972-1973 Wayne Taylor 1979-1980 Barney Thomson 1980 James Todd (Yeonas) 1970 Henry Warren 1978-1979 Peter Wood 1979-1980
2007 Update The Shouse Village Board continues its tradition of no one serving longer than one consecutive two-year term. The tradition spreads the burden, helps newcomers get into the swing of things, and prevents dynasties from forming. Many people have recycled on the Board and many families have had both spouses on the Board at different times. Some people "move up" on the Board, while others keep the same job. The Board hires companies to help manage the pool, keep up the common grounds, and clean the community center, but continues to rely on volunteers for overall management. Current standing committees are: Architectural Control and Neighborhood Watch, Pool and Swim Team, Lake and Grounds, Community Center, and Social Committee. 2007 dues are $547, per a by-laws formula. There is a three-year $170/yr special assessment, which is in its second year, for capital improvements. In 2007, there is a swim team, but no diving or tennis team. The Village no longer sponsors Boy or Girl Scout troops but there is a Boy Scout troop at Andrew Chapel and some units within the Girl Scouts meet at the Shouse community center. The only club that is currently functioning is a book club, but classes are offered periodically. There are no major problems with Wolf Trap Farm Park which operates next door to the Village. Occasionally there is a trash or traffic issue, but these get resolved quickly, perhaps because the National Park Service Supervisor for Wolf Trap lives in the neighborhood. General renovations have been done to the community center over time but the building footprint is unchanged. There is a rental schedule and rules for rental in the annual directory and on the private Village website. A Board member supervises the rentals but there is no separate committee to oversee the rentals. The community center no longer operates any drop in hours, but social directors do occasionally schedule Friday happy hours. The Neighborhood Watch patrols went inactive several years ago but information related to the program is still provided to residents through the Shouse Village Voice newsletter. The community was actively involved in considering many issues in the planning and building of Colvin Run Elementary School, which opened in 2004. The school was generally welcomed as the highest and best use for the dedicated land it occupies. Current issues include beavers and invasive plant species in the lake, and beautification of the Colvin Run retention pond area.