About Fauquier County...

Steeped in equestrian tradition, and surrounded by wineries and vineyards, today
Fauquier County is known for being at the heart of hunt and wine country. Famous for
its horse farms and beautiful rolling land at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains,
Fauquier offers contrast as both a natural haven and gateway to bustling Northern
Virginia and the D.C. Metropolitan Area.

Dating back to the 17th century and the beginnings of our country, the area we now
know as Fauquier County was listed in 1608 as part of the Northern Neck of the
Colony of Virginia by Captain John Smith, explorer and leader of the Jamestowne
Colony. Named after Francis Fauquier, Lieutenant Governor of the Colony of Virginia
from 1758 to 1768, Fauquier County was founded from a section of land previously
considered Prince William County.

The rich Civil War history in Fauquier County can be experienced through several
different self-driven tours, guided tours, museums, and historical trail markers.
Although no major battles were fought in Fauquier County, a number of skirmishes
involving infantry and cavalry did occur.

After the second Battle of Manassas, which took place just 15 minutes from Fauquier
by today's travel standards, over 1,800 wounded soldiers were brought to Warrenton
to makeshift hospitals set up in Warrenton's businesses, churches and homes.
In 1862, Union General McClellan said farewell to his troops, as Commander of
the Army of the Potomac, from the balcony of what is now the Warren Green Building.

Other interesting facts

  • In 1909 Warrenton experienced a major fire that destroyed close
    to half its structures, including the county courthouse
  • Wallis Warfield Spencer, the future Duchess of Windsor,
    set up residency at the Warren Green Hotel to get her first divorce
  • President Teddy Roosevelt (1901-1909) rode horseback from Washington
    to Warrenton and back in one day to prove such a trip was possible
  • The John Kennedy family came to Fauquier for recreation during
    their years in Washington

Towns & Villages in Fauquier County

Fauquier has three incorporated towns, including The Plains, Warrenton,
and Remington, and many small historic villages.

  
 

Francis Fauquier

   

Born in England in 1703
Lt. Governor of the Colony of
Virginia from 1758 until his
death in 1768.

Son of Dr. John Francis Fauquier
who relocated from France to
Britain to work with Sir Isaac
Newton.

Friend to Thomas Jefferson,
Francis Fauquier was considered
a "Renaissance Man" with expertise
in both science and industry, and
interests in the arts and charity.

A sympathizer with the colonists,
Lt. Governor Fauquier was one
of the most popular of the royal
governors.

 
   
       
   

Notable Residents...

  • John Marshall
    born in Fauquier County in 1755, was the fourth Chief Justice of the Supreme
    Court of the United States from 1801 to 1835, helped shape American
    constitutional law and make the Supreme Court a center of power

  • Turner Ashby
    born in Fauquier County in 1828, was a Confederate cavalry general during
    the Civil War; he achieved prominence as Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson's cavalry
    commander in the Shenandoah Valley; Turner Ashby was killed in battle in 1862.

  • James Markham Marshall Ambler
    born in Fauquier County in 1848, was a soldier in the Confederate Army,
    and a physician on the Artic exploring ship, the U.S.S. Jeanette    , which sailed
    from San Francisco, California, in July 1879 to begin what would become a nearly
    two-year long expedition into the icepack north of Siberia. His medical skills were
    critical for maintaining the health of his shipmates during their long entrapment in
    the ice, and during their arduous journey over the rugged ice and frigid seas after
    the ship sank in June 1881.     During the following weeks he treated his
    companions' frostbite and tried to maintain their strength as they slowly starved.
    Passed Assistant Surgeon Ambler was apparently one of the last three
    members of the group to succumb to hunger and exposure    .

  • Colonel John Singleton Mosby
    known as the "Gray Ghost", Mosby was a Colonel in the Civil War, and lived for
    a time in Fauquier County, in what is now the Town of Warrenton; he was noted
    for his lightning quick raids and his ability to successfully elude his pursuers
    (the Union Army) and disappear (like a ghost); an interesting man who, while
    a student at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, served time in prison
    for shooting a fellow student, was known for his hot-tempered, lively personality

    After fighting in the First Battle of Bull Run, being promoted to First Lieutenant,
    being captured by the Union Army and imprisoned in the Old Capitol Prison in
    Washington, D.C., Mosby formed and commanded the 43rd Battalion, Partisan
    Rangers of the 1st Virginia Cavalry, also known as Mosby's Men.
    Mosby was laid to rest in the Warrenton Cemetery.
John Marshall, Chief Justice
of the U.S. Supreme Court
   
 
Col. John Singleton Mosby