The Civil War in Fairfax County: Civilians and Soldiers

By Charles V. Mauro
Illustrated, notes, index, softcover, 155 pp., 2006. History Press, 18 Percy St., Charleston, SC 29403, $21.95 plus shipping.

Reviewer: Blake A. Magner
Blake A. Magner is the Book Review Editor of Civil War News. He makes his living as an editor, writer, cartographer and photographer of Civil War history. He is author of At Peace With Honor: The Civil War Burials of Laurel Hill Cemetery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Review:
In 1640, Charles II granted all the Virginia land from the Rappahannock to the Potomac to seven Englishmen. One of these men, Thomas, Sixth Lord of Fairfax, took control of the land in 1719. In 1742 just over 12,000 acres was formed into Fairfax County.

The area was subsequently divided into Annandale, Langley, Dranesville, Herndon and Frying Pan, just south of Herndon. Some towns came from more humble beginnings like Falls Church and Centerville.

A county courthouse was built at Freedom Hill (just south of today's Tysons Corner) but was moved to Alexandria in 1752. In 1800 a new courthouse was built nine miles west of Alexandria that due to the influx of settlers developed into the community of Providence. Providence also became known as Fairfax Court House.

By 1860 the county's population was 11,834 with 27 percent being slaves. Of the votes cast in the 1860 election Abraham Lincoln received only 24. During the Secession Convention the county supported secession.

At 2 a.m., May 23, 1861, the first Federal troops crossed into Fairfax County where they would remain until after the Grand Review in 1865. The Confederates who manned the area retreated west to Manassas. Over half of the forts built in the Washington defenses were located in Fairfax County.

Mauro's book concentrates on the movements of the Federal and Confederate armies in the county throughout the course of the war. He uses diaries (both North and South) as well as claims filed for damage to farms and crops for the basis of his text.

Fairfax County was part of Mosby's Confederacy, so he is a major part of the story. The only major battle fought in the county was Chantilly (Ox Hill); however, numerous skirmishes continually occurred during the course of the war.

One observer commented in June 1865 that Fairfax Court House was a "few decrepit houses and leaning chimneys." He went on to say that locals "[had] their homes ruined, their families beggared and themselves humbled," and that Centerville "was a desert as late as 1914."

The author has done an excellent job compiling this book. It is well-researched and well-written. The illustrations are crisp and clear. I strongly recommend The Civil War in Fairfax County.