Well, Happy Anniversary to Us! The 8th of April [1999] marked the 37th year that Heritage Church has been formally in existence. Glory Be to God!! On that historic day 56 souls joined together in the exclusive club of "Charter Members." Three of that distinguished group active among us today are John and Margaret Hayes and Kit Stearns. Six others who almost made it into the club are Bob Hill, Carl Gray, Joan & John McLellan and Joan & Krieger Henderson.

As was noted, earlier George Washington purchased Mount Vernon in 1752, and among his acreage was River Farm, the property where our church is now located. Through a succession of land grants and subdivisions prior to that time, Fairfax County -- much larger than we now know it -- emerged from the holdings of the Fairfax family, holdings that amounted to a staggering 5,282,000 acres with William Fairfax as the land agent. It was William who built the Great Belvoir mansion in 1741 on land that is now Ft. Belvoir. At the time of its formation, Fairfax County included all of what are now Loudon and Arlington Counties, and the communities of Alexandria, Falls Church, and Fairfax.

Perspective of the full extent of our heritage would be incomplete without also noting that land east of our property, to Little Hunting Creek and to the north just short of the stone bridge that now spans the George Washington Parkway, was owned by another distinguished neighbor, George Mason. It was his descendant, George IV, who built Gunston Hall, and it was there that he wrote what became the American Bill of Rights.

In the early 1800s, after both Washington and Mason had died, Fairfax County's agricultural-based economy declined and remained poor until recovery began in mid-century, but which was cut short by the Civil War. The County returned to agriculture following the war and prospered, but the ability to get produce to markets was greatly constrained by the lack of adequate roads. Getting around on dirt roads that alternately became dusty, muddy, frozen, and thawed was extremely difficult. The "level of service," as we term it today, fell far short of the demands of commercial needs and of the growing tourism industry -- the volume of visitors to Mount Vernon was growing steadily. Steamboat service on the Potomac River had been instituted in 1850, but it ended with the Civil War. Near the end of the century, momentum grew for providing rail service as an additional mode for movement of people and goods through Alexandria and into the southern portion of Fairfax County, including Mount Vernon. So, the Alexandria and Fairfax Railway Company was retained to do just this. The electrified rail route that resulted -- although horses and other modes of locomotion were authorized -- generally followed the present Parkway. Track was laid at the rate of a mile a day -- not at all bad, given the environmental circumstances. Then, again, one didn't have to file Environmental Impact Statements in those days! The present pullouts on the Parkway are where the trains made scheduled stops along the way.

On reaching the Parkway and Collingwood Road intersection, the rail line turned southeast and crossed our church property along the western boundary, crossed Ft. Hunt Road (renamed from Clifton's Neck Road in 1892 when Sheridan's Point became Fort Hunt), passed behind the present 7-Eleven site, crossed Little Hunting Creek, and terminated at Mount Vernon. In 1962 one could stand at the end of the church's entrance drive and look down along what was still a clearly delineated railroad right-of-way running along the fence for the farmland to the right where large cattle herds grazed -- now Riverside. C.L. Pullman, founder of the Pullman Car Company, had a luxuriously appointed, customized parlor car with sumptuous trappings that he rode to Mount Vernon in 1892. He was reported to have said that this line was one of the finest he had ever seen, both here and in Europe. The volume of rail traffic steadily increased and soon reached 32 trains a day, 4 of which carried freight. In 1906 almost one and three-quarter million passengers traversed our property in both commercial ventures and quests to view Mount Vernon.

Sadly, the railroad of that day was destined to suffer the fate of later mighty rail systems that fell prey to development of extensive highway systems. In this case, a confluence of events virtually doomed the project almost from conception. Those who were principal in development of the rail system were also pushing for a highway to Mount Vernon, one that would be a national memorial to George Washington. The Federal Government allocated funds in 1928 with the goal of having a completed memorial highway in time for celebrating the bicentennial of George Washington's birth. Opened in 1932, all construction was completed in 1936. Meanwhile, the railroad went "belly up" in 1930, and there were no more trains. On the plus side, the trend in design of that day was toward conservatism leading to "overkill," and the Parkway pavement was not only constructed on a very thick supporting base, but it was made 12" thick. Given the prohibition of heavy truck traffic, the pavement served admirably for more than fifty years before having to be rehabilitated extensively.

In the early 1900s, our property was notable for the presence of a large, two-story brick home that prevailed until abandonment near the end of 1950. The circumstances of the occupants have long faded into oblivion. The house rapidly fell into disrepute, mostly because of vandalism. The combined circumstances of a dilapidated structure and surrounding property that was badly overgrown made for a pretty dismal sight. It was commonly referred to as the "Haunted House," because it was much the epitome of some of the caricatures one sees on Halloween cards. The neighbors surely must have welcomed erection of the sign that announced, "Future Home of Heritage United Presbyterian Church." Removal of this old eyesore, and concomitant hazard to curious children, was effected early in the '60s. Soon thereafter, sale of the property to what was then the Presbytery of Washington City was consummated, and the Presbytery became owner of eight acres of prime real estate. Thus, the stage was set for the Presbytery's development of one of thirteen churches slated to minister to the area's exploding population.