The other day the better half and I were driving along Route One south of Alexandria. Passing by Fort Belvoir, we noticed a brown-colored roadside sign that said, “Historic Route One.” I was pleased to see the sign and its northbound counterpart. They are an indication of the way the county an...

In 2009, an attractive bronze marker affixed to a block of smooth granite stone was installed at the corner of Route One and Potomac Avenue. One half of the marker provides a list of elected and city officials associated with the construction of the Monroe Avenue Bridge. The other half l...

“That little piece of land on King Street doesn’t amount to a hill of bean.” - Mayor Frank E. Mann (quoted in The Washington Post, September 10, 1978), reacting to a request to take down a six-foot-high chain like fence that ran across the foot of King and gave members of the Old Dominion Boat...

Should the City of Alexandria annex a small portion part of Fairfax County, a set of neighborhoods south of the city, including Huntington, New Alexandria, Penn Daw and Groveton? I’m guessing such an action won’t happen anytime soon and maybe never. The thought, however, did occur to me a whi...

Excellent visit yesterday to The Arlington Historical Museum, located at 1805 South Arlington Ridge Road and inside an historic building. Arlington has a lot of history. One standout individual is Frank Hume. A grocer and “whiskey man” who lived and worked in Washington and summered at Warwic...

In Smithsonian Magazine, Edward Ball writes an incredibly moving article that covers the forced migration of a million African-Americans in the decades leading up to the Civil War. This story is a recurring nightmare in the annals of Alexandria’s history. As pointed out by the state hig...