Orange and Alexandria Railroad Bridge Piers

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Orange and Alexandria Railroad Bridge Piers
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USA Virginia location map.svg
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Nearest city Manassas Park, Virginia
Coordinates 38°46′35″N77°25′18″W / 38.776436°N 77.421606°W / 38.776436; -77.421606 Coordinates: 38°46′35″N77°25′18″W / 38.776436°N 77.421606°W / 38.776436; -77.421606
Area less than one acre
Built 1861 (1861)
MPS Civil War Properties in Prince William County MPS
NRHP reference # 89001061 [1]
Added to NRHP August 8, 1989

The Orange and Alexandria Railroad Bridge Piers are the historical remains of a bridge that carried the Orange and Alexandria Railroad across Bull Run between Fairfax and Prince William Counties, Virginia. The railroad, and this bridge location in particular, were of strategic interest to both Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. The bridge was rebuilt at least seven times during the war years. The piers are located just south of a modern railroad bridge. [2]

Orange and Alexandria Railroad

The Orange and Alexandria Railroad (O&A) was a railroad in Virginia, United States. It extended from Alexandria to Gordonsville, with another section from Charlottesville to Lynchburg. The road played a crucial role in the American Civil War, and eventually became an important part of the modern-day Norfolk Southern rail system.

Fairfax County, Virginia County in the United States

Fairfax County, officially the County of Fairfax is a county of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Part of Northern Virginia, Fairfax County borders both the City of Alexandria and Arlington County and forms part of the inner suburban ring of Washington, DC. The county is thus predominantly suburban in character, with some urban and rural pockets.

Prince William County, Virginia County in the United States

Prince William County is a county on the Potomac River in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 402,002, on July 1, 2015, the population was estimated to be 451,721, making it Virginia's second-most populous county. Its county seat is the independent city of Manassas.

The piers were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. [1]

National Register of Historic Places federal list of historic sites in the United States

The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance. A property listed in the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred preserving the property.

The Union Army/Orange & Alexandria Railroad Truss Bridge across Bull Run Orange & Alexandria Railroad Bridge over Bull Run (ca. 1863).jpg
The Union Army/Orange & Alexandria Railroad Truss Bridge across Bull Run

See also

National Register of Historic Places listings in Fairfax County, Virginia Wikimedia list article

This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Fairfax County, Virginia.

Related Research Articles

Manassas, Virginia Independent city in Virginia, United States

Manassas is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 37,821. The city borders Prince William County, and the independent city of Manassas Park, Virginia. The Bureau of Economic Analysis includes both Manassas and Manassas Park with Prince William County for statistical purposes.

Northern Virginia Region in Virginia, United States

Northern Virginia, locally referred to as NOVA or NoVA, comprises several counties and independent cities in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. It is a widespread region radiating westward and southward from Washington, D.C. With an estimated 3,149,413 residents in 2018, it is the most populous region of Virginia and the Washington metropolitan area.

Catlett, Virginia Census-designated place in Virginia, United States

Catlett is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fauquier County, Virginia, United States. The population as of the 2010 census was 297. It is located west of the Prince William County line. Catlett was formerly a rail stop on the Orange and Alexandria Railroad, and the area was the site of many raids on the railroad during the American Civil War.

Manassas National Battlefield Park

Manassas National Battlefield Park, located north of Manassas, in Prince William County, Virginia, preserves the site of two major American Civil War battles: the First Battle of Bull Run on July 21, 1861, and the Second Battle of Bull Run which was fought between August 28 and August 30, 1862. The peaceful Virginia countryside bore witness to clashes between the armies of the North (Union) and the South (Confederacy), and it was there that Confederate General Thomas J. Jackson acquired his nickname "Stonewall."

Brentsville, Virginia Unincorporated community village in Virginia, United States

Brentsville is an unincorporated community village in Prince William County, Virginia.

National Register of Historic Places listings in Virginia Wikimedia list article

Buildings, sites, districts, and objects in Virginia listed on the National Register of Historic Places:

Colchester, Virginia Unincorporated community in Virginia, United States

Colchester is a historic unincorporated community on the Occoquan River in Fairfax County, Virginia.

Leesylvania State Park State park in Prince William County, Virginia

Leesylvania State Park is located in the southeastern part of Prince William County, Virginia. The land was donated in 1978 by philanthropist Daniel K. Ludwig, and the park was dedicated in 1985 and opened full-time in 1992.

The Manassas Gap Railroad (MGRR) ran from Mount Jackson, Virginia, to the Orange and Alexandria Railroad's Manassas Junction, which later became the city of Manassas, Virginia. Chartered by the Virginia General Assembly in 1850, the MGRR was a 4 ft 8 in narrow gauge line whose 90 completed miles of track included 38 miles (61 km) of 60 pounds-per-yard T-rail and 52 miles (84 km) of 52 pounds-per-yard T-rail. A total of nine locomotives and 232 cars were operated on the line, serving 20 stations.

Thoroughfare Gap (Bull Run Mountain)

Thoroughfare Gap is a water gap in the Bull Run Mountains created by Broad Run between High Point Mountain to the north and Bisquit Mountain to the south. It is located on the border of Prince William and Fauquier counties in Virginia.

Centreville Military Railroad

The Centreville Military Railroad was a 5.5-mile (8.9 km) spur running from the Orange and Alexandria Railroad east of Manassas Junction across Bull Run and up the south side of the Centreville Plateau. Built by the Confederate States Army between November 1861 and February 1862, it was the first exclusively military railroad. Ultimately, the Centreville Military Railroad reached a point near a modern McDonald's restaurant on Virginia State Route 28, south of the modern junction with U.S. Route 29 in Virginia.

National Register of Historic Places listings in Prince William County, Virginia Wikimedia list article

This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Prince William County, Virginia.

17th Virginia Infantry

The 17th Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia.

Herndon Depot Museum

The Herndon Depot Museum, also known as the Herndon Historical Society Museum, is located in the town of Herndon in Fairfax County, Virginia. Built in 1857 for the Alexandria, Loudoun & Hampshire Railroad, the depot later served the Richmond and Danville Railroad, the Southern Railway and the Washington and Old Dominion Railroad. The structure is located at 717 Lynn Street, at the intersection of the Washington & Old Dominion Railroad Trail and Station Street, north of Elden Street. The building is adjacent to Town Hall Square, which contains the Herndon Town Hall, built in 1939 as a Works Progress Administration project to house all of the Town's administrative offices.

St. Marys Church (Fairfax Station, Virginia) church building in Virginia, United States of America

St. Mary's Church is a historic Catholic church in the eastern United States, at Fairfax Station, Virginia, a suburb southwest of Washington, D.C. Built in 1858, it is a rectangular, one-story, gable-front, frame structure in the Gothic Revival style. It has a steeple at the entrance and a large Gothic arched window over the entrance door. St. Mary's was the first Catholic church built within Fairfax County, and its early parishioners were primarily Irish immigrants employed by the Orange and Alexandria Railroad.

Prince William County Courthouse

Prince William County Courthouse is a historic courthouse located at 9248 Lee Avenue, Manassas, Prince William County, Virginia. Rehabilitated in 2000-2001, it currently houses some offices of the Prince William County clerk, and the historic courtroom upstairs can be rented for events.

Mayfield Fortification

The Mayfield Fortification is a historic American Civil War earthworks at 8401 Quarry Road in Manassas, Virginia. It is one of a series of fortifications constructed by the Confederate Army to defend the critical Manassas railroad junction in 1861. The fort consisted of earthworks with log revetments, and was built by local Confederate troops and slave labor. After 1862 the fort was sporadically occupied by Union forces.

References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service.
  2. "NRHP nomination for Orange and Alexandria Railroad Bridge Piers" (PDF). Virginia Department of Historical Resources. Retrieved 2014-02-21.