Warrenton shares some services with the county, such as schools and the county landfill.[12] The area was home to Bethel Military Academy.
History
18th century and founding
The settlement which would grow into the town of Warrenton began as a crossroads at the junction of the Falmouth-Winchester and Alexandria-Culpeper roads,[13] where a trading post called the Red Store was located. In the 1790s, a courthouse was built in the area, and the location was known as "Fauquier Courthouse".[14]
Warrenton was connected to the Orange and Alexandria Railroad in 1853 via a branch line. Warrenton's connection to the line had previously been proposed, but construction hasn't begun until 1852.[17] Given the rail line's strategic usage during the American Civil War, the Warrenton Branch was a target for attack twice.[18] Because of this, the railroad was left largely abandoned and unusable by 1863. Southern Railway resumed passenger service to the town from 1909 to 1944 with commercial service continuing through the 1980s. Norfolk Southern ended service entirely in 1989 with the removal of tracks.[18][19]
Arthur Jordan, a black American man, was lynched by a mob of approximately 60–75 men in white hoods in the early hours of January 19, 1880. Jordan had been accused of miscegenation and bigamy for eloping with Elvira (Lucille) Corder, the daughter of his white employer, Nathan Corder, a landowner and farmer in the upper part of the county along the Rappahannock River. A group of local men hunted the pair down near Williamsport, Maryland, captured Mr. Jordan and returned him to Fauquier, whereupon he was delivered to the town jail. Later that night, the masked lynch mob gained access to the jail and dragged Jordan to the nearby town cemetery, where he was hanged from a small locust tree. Ms. Corder remained in Maryland, estranged from her family, until her death a few years later.[24] News of the lynching was reported in papers across the nation. Even some foreign newspapers, such as Australia's Sydney Morning Herald, reprinted accounts of the event.[25][26][27][28][29]
20th century
In 1909, a fire destroyed almost half the structures in the town and was halted with the use of dynamite to create a firebreak to stop the flames from spreading.[14]
In 1939, Washington Times-Herald journalist Count Igor Cassini wrote a column piece that upset several members of Virginia high society. While covering a horse show in Warrenton, Cassini was kidnapped and tarred and feathered by three disgruntled individuals related to one mentioned in his column piece.[30] Cassini was treated for burns at the Fauquier County Hospital in the early morning,[31] with the three individuals being arrested and placed on probation.[30]
In 1951, the federal government established the Warrenton Training Center just outside Warrenton. The center is a secret Central Intelligence Agency communications facility, which also houses an underground relocation bunker containing communications infrastructure to support continuity of government in the event of a nuclear attack on Washington, DC.[32][33][34]
A bypass route around the town was built in the early 1960s, which attracted restaurants, gas stations, and shopping centers, but also drew businesses away from the center of town.[15]
In 1998, Warrenton's "Black Horse" chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy erected and dedicated a monument in the Warrenton Cemetery to 520 Confederate soldiers buried there, many of whom died during the First and Second Battles of Bull Run.[36] This new monument altered a pre-existing Confederate obelisk built in 1877 by building a granite wall around the obelisk engraved with those 520 names.[37] The then-mayor's wife spearheaded fundraising for the monument from private organizations and the United Daughters of the Confederacy itself, of which she was a member.[36][37] This monument still remains.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Warrenton has a total area of 4.5 square miles (11.7 km2), of which 0.004 square miles (0.01 km2), or 0.13%, is water.[11] The eastern, southern, and northern parts of the town drain east to Cedar Run, a tributary of the Occoquan River and part of the Potomac River watershed, while the western part of town drains south via Great Run to the Rappahannock River.
Education
Primary and secondary schools
Fauquier County Public Schools serves Warrenton. The elementary schools within the town serve Kindergarten to Fifth grades and consist of James G. Brumfield Elementary, Carson M. Bradley Elementary, and Peter. B. Smith Elementary.
The only public middle school that serves Warrenton is Taylor Middle School. Taylor Middle School serves grades six through eight. Warrenton Middle School was closed following the 2022–2023 school year and temporarily merged with Taylor Middle School during the construction of a new middle school also to be named Taylor Middle School.[38]
The high school that serves Warrenton is Fauquier High School, which educates grades Nine through 12. The Fauquier County Public School system also operates an extremely small alternative learning school at Southwest Alternative School. This school serves both middle and high school students throughout the county, including Warrenton.[39]
There are three private schools in the town of Warrenton: Highland School, St. John The Evangelist's Catholic School, and St. James' Episcopal School.
Steeplechases have had a large impact on the culture within Fauquier County as well as the Town of Warrenton. This is largely due to the 1922 organization of the first Virginia Gold Cup race within the town. This event, along with the Maryland Hunt Cup, were two of the most prominent horse races at the time and remained prominent throughout the 20th century. Following the 1984 race, the event was moved to the nearby city, The Plains, where it has remained. The Virginia Gold Cup and International Gold Cup Race have drawn upwards of 50,000 attendees per year, assuring its cultural impact in the surrounding communities.[41]
On the first Friday of each month between May and October, the Town of Warrenton hosts a themed street fair called "First Friday" within the Warrenton Historic District. Each month is typically themed to a different topic, affecting what local vendors and activities are available during the event.[42]
The Town of Warrenton owns and operates four public parks and one recreation center.[43]
Warrenton has several pieces of public art adorning the town. In 2001, watercolor painter Stewart Burgess White painted three murals on a single building depicting scenes from the American Civil War. Additionally, these murals included several hidden details such as faces of 19th century American leaders, references to the September 11 attacks, and the name of the painter's daughter.[44] Artists Ross Trimmer and Michael Broth collaborated on a mural that emulates classic large-letter postcards.[16] In 2021, a group of local National Honor Society students from Kettle Run High School painted a small mural on a neglected wall lining a parking lot.[21]
The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Warrenton has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.[48]
As of the 2020 census, there were 10,057 individuals,[9] 4,016 households,[9] and 2,159 families[10] living in the Town of Warrenton. Population density is 2,296.1 people per square mile (885.01/km2).[10]
Of the town's residents, 56.4% were female, 43.6% were male,[10] 8.0% were under five years of age, 22.7% were under 18 years of age, and 16.7% were 65 years or older.[9] The population pyramid (below) shows the percentage of individuals of each sex within each age group, with a rectangular shape.[10] 6.9% were foreign born persons, 7.2% had a disability, 94.9% of adults were high school graduates, and 39.2% of adults had a bachelor's degree or graduate degree.[9]
The 2020 census stated that the Town of Warrenton had 4,014 households, of which 2,159 were family households and 1,857 are non-family households, with an average of 2.43 residents per household. 92.0% of households had access to a computer and 87.1% had a broadband internet subscription. 11.1% of households spoke a language other than English at home.[9] 63.1% of households own their housing units while 36.9% rent.[10] The median household income was $78,275 while per capita income was $41,385.[9] 6.2% of the town's residents live in poverty.[9][10]
In Warrenton 74.7% of the population drives alone to work, 12.4% carpool, 3.3% walk to work, 0.0% via public transportation, 0.0% bicycle to work, 0.5% commute via other means, and 9.1% work from home.[10] Additionally, the average commute time for Warrenton residents was 33.1 minutes.[9][10]
^Faul, August, and Orange And Alexandria Railroad Company. Map and profile of the Orange and Alexandria Rail Road with its Warrenton Branch and a portion of the Manasses sic Gap Rail Road, to show its point of connection. [New York, ?, 1854] Map. https://www.loc.gov/item/98688754/.
^Pincus, Walter (September 24, 1994). "CIA: Ames Betrayed 55 Operations; Inspector General's Draft Report Blames Supervisors for Failure to Plug Leak". Washington Post. p. A1.