Historic marker near library commemorates Civil War skirmish in Annandale

A new historic marker, titled “Action at Annandale,” commemorates a Civil War skirmish that took place on the spot now occupied by the George Mason Regional Library and Poe Terrace Park at the intersection of Little River Turnpike and Hillbrook Drive.

Annandale resident Helen Winter, who spearheaded the project on behalf of the Annandale Revitalization Committee, worked with the Fairfax County History Commission, Parks Commission, and Mason District Supervisor Penny Gross on getting the marker approved. It took two years to raise the $1,700 needed for the project.

A dedication ceremony for the historic marker, expected to take place some time in October, might include a re-enactment with people dressed as Civil War soldiers, Winter says. She also hopes the pending clean-up of Poe Terrace Park might be completed by then.

This is what the marker says:

“The roadbed for the unfinished Manassas Gap railroad was located in this immediate area and crossed Indian Run Creek in Poe Terrace Park. The stone bridge abutments are still visible. Financial problems caused work to stop on the railroad in 1857, but the roadbed provided a route that both the Federal and Confederate armies used during the Civil War. Where the roadbed crossed Little River Turnpike, approximately 200 Confederate cavalrymen overran a barricade defended by the 45th New York Volunteers on 2 December 1861. The skirmish ended when reinforcing troops from the 32nd New York Regiment joined the fight and the Confederates retreated west toward Centreville.”

Another historic marker, near the entranceway to Green Spring Gardens on Braddock Road in Alexandria, will be dedicated June 12. This marker celebrates the collaboration of two American masters of design, Walter Macomber and Beatrix Farrand, whose work, conducted in 1942, is showcased in the site’s 1784 brick house and surrounding gardens. The public is invited to the dedication ceremony, which will take place at 10 a.m. and will be followed by light refreshments.

Macomber was a restoration architect for Colonial Williamsburg and Mount Vernon, and Farrand was the only female member of the American Society of Landscape Architects when that organization was founded.