Warrenton, Virginia, United States

🇺🇸 Warrenton is a town in Fauquier County, Virginia, of which it is the seat of government. It is at the junction of U.S. Route 15, U.S. Route 17, U.S. Route 29, and U.S. Route 211. The town is in the Piedmont region of Virginia just east of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The well-known Airlie Conference Center is 3 miles (5 km) north of Warrenton, and the historic Vint Hill Farms military facility is 9 miles (14 km) east. Fauquier Hospital is located in the town. Surrounded by Virginia wine and horse country, Warrenton is a popular destination outside Washington, D.C.

Warrenton shares some services with the county, such as schools and the county landfill. The area was home to Bethel Military Academy.

History 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, 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".

The Town of Warrenton was incorporated on January 5, 1810, and named for General Joseph Warren, a Revolutionary War hero. Richard Henry Lee donated the land for the county seat. John S. Horner, Secretary of Wisconsin Territory and Acting Governor of Michigan Territory, was born in Warrenton. John Marshall, the fourth Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, was from Germantown, modern-day Midland, 10 miles (16 km) south of Warrenton.

Confederate Colonel John S. Mosby made raids in the town during the American Civil War and later made his home and practiced law in Warrenton. The Warren Green Hotel building hosted many famous people, including the Marquis de Lafayette, James Monroe, Andrew Jackson, Henry Clay, President Theodore Roosevelt, and divorcée Wallis Simpson. Union General George B. McClellan bade farewell to his officers November 11, 1862, from the steps of the hotel. It now hosts some offices of the Fauquier County government.

Arthur Jordan, an African-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. 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.

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.

In 1951, the federal government established the Warrenton Training Center just outside Warrenton. The centre 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.

A bypass route around the town was built in the early 1960s, which attracted restaurants, gas stations, and shopping centres, but also drew businesses away from the centre of town.

The Warrenton Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. Other listings in or near Warrenton include Brentmoor, Dakota, Hopefield, Loretta, Monterosa, North Wales, The Oaks, the Old Fauquier County Jail, and Yorkshire House.

Geography Warrenton is located in central Fauquier County. U.S. Route 29 leads north-east 12 miles (19 km) to Gainesville and 47 miles (76 km) to Washington, D.C., and south-west 25 miles (40 km) to Culpeper. U.S. Route 15 follows US 29 out of town in both directions, but leads north-northeast 34 miles (55 km) to Leesburg. U.S. Route 17 leads north-west 42 miles (68 km) to Winchester and south-east 44 miles (71 km) to Fredericksburg, and U.S. Route 211 leads west 34 miles (55 km) to Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park.

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. 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 The Fauquier campus of Laurel Ridge Community College resides just south of the town limits.

In 2022, Hazel Hall, a science, engineering and health professions building, was opened and construction begun on a Center for Skilled Trades.

Public Libraries The Fauquier Public Library's Warrenton Library is located within the Warrenton Historic District. Despite being located within the town, the library is actually run by the county government's Library Board. Each public school also has an internal library that students can access. Additionally, public bookcases adorn the town, often on the property of private citizens, acting in a manner similar to Little Free Library

Arts & Culture 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 it's cultural impact in the surrounding communities.

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.

The Town of Warrenton owns and operates four public parks and one recreation center.

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 11th attacks, and the name of the painter's daughter. Artists Ross Trimmer and Michael Broth collaborated on a mural that emulates classic large-letter postcards. 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.

Transport Warrenton is served by four U.S. Routes; U.S. Route 15, U.S. Route 17, U.S. Route 29 (which collectively form the Eastern Bypass) and U.S. Route 211. US 15 extends north and south, heading towards Leesburg in the north and Orange to the south. US 17 is oriented north-west to south-east, connecting to Winchester to the north-west and Fredericksburg to the southeast. US 29 is oriented north-east to south-west, reaching Washington, D.C. to the north-east and Charlottesville to the southwest. Finally, US 211 begins north of the downtown area and extends westward, passing through Luray and the Shenandoah Valley. All four highways originally passed directly through the centre of town and now follow bypasses. However, downtown Warrenton is now served by U.S Route 15 Business, U.S Route 17 Business, U.S Route 29 Business and U.S Route 211 Business.

Virginia Regional Transit operates the Circuit Rider bus in Warrenton. Academy Bus operates a commuter bus from Warrenton to Washington, D.C.