Arlington County

History
Alexandria County, District and Commonwealth Jurisdictions

Once part of Fairfax County in the Colony of Virginia, the area that contains Arlington County was ceded to the new U.S. government by the Commonwealth of Virginia. In 1791, the U.S. Congress formally established the limits of the federal territory that would be the nation's capital as a square of 10 miles (16 km) on a side, the maximum area permitted by Article I, Section 8, of the United States Constitution. However, the  legislation that established these limits contained a clause that prohibited the federal government from locating any offices within the portion of the territory that Virginia had ceded.

When Congress moved to the new District of Columbia in 1801, it enacted legislation that divided the District into two counties: (1) the county of Washington, which lay on the east side of the Potomac River, and (2) the county of Alexandria, which lay on the west side of the River.  Alexandria County contained the present area of Arlington County, then mostly rural, and the settled town of Alexandria (now "Old Town" Alexandria), a port located on the Potomac River in the southeastern part of the area of the present City of Alexandria.
Residents of Alexandria County had expected the federal capital's location would result in land sales and the growth of commerce. Instead the county found itself struggling to compete with the town of Georgetown, a port located in Washington County adjacent to the capital city.

As the federal government could not establish any offices in the County, and as the economically important Chesapeake and Ohio Canal (C&O Canal) on the north side of the Potomac River favored Georgetown, Alexandria's economy stagnated. It didn't help that some Georgetown residents opposed federal efforts to maintain the Alexandria Canal, which connected the C&O Canal in Georgetown to Alexandria's port. Moreover, as residents of the District of Columbia, Alexandria's citizens had no representation in Congress and could not vote in federal elections.

The town of Alexandria had been a port and market for the slave trade. With growing talk of abolishing slavery in the nation's capital, some Alexandrians feared the local economy would suffer if the federal government took this step.

At the same time, there arose in Virginia an active abolitionist movement that created a division on the question of slavery in Virginia's General Assembly (subsequently, during the Civil War, Virginia's division on the slavery issue led to the formation of the state of West Virginia by the most anti-slavery counties). Pro-slavery Virginians recognized that Alexandria County could provide two new representatives who favored slavery in the General Assembly if the County returned to the Commonwealth.  As a result, a movement grew to separate Alexandria County from the District of Columbia. After a referendum, the county's residents petitioned the U.S. Congress and the Virginia legislature to permit the County to return to Virginia. The area was retroceded to Virginia on July 9, 1846.

In 1852, the independent city of Alexandria was incorporated from a portion of Alexandria County.  This led to occasional confusion, as the adjacent county and municipal entities continued to share the name of "Alexandria".  Alexandria County renamed itself in 1920 as Arlington County. The new name was borrowed from Arlington National Cemetery.

Arlington National Cemetery

Arlington National Cemetery is an American military cemetery established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Confederate General Robert E. Lee's home, Arlington House (also known as the Custis-Lee Mansion). It is directly across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., north of the Pentagon. With nearly 300,000 people buried there, Arlington National Cemetery is the second-largest national cemetery in the United States.

The government designate the grounds as a military cemetery on June 15, 1864, by Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton. In 1882, after many years in the lower courts, the matter of the ownership of Arlington National Cemetery was brought before the United States Supreme Court. The Court decided that the property rightfully belonged to the Lee family. The United States Congress then appropriated the sum of $150,000 for the purchase of the property from the Lee family.

Veterans from all the nation's wars are buried in the cemetery, from the American Revolution through the military actions in Afghanistan and Iraq. Pre-Civil War dead were re-interred after 1900.

The Tomb of the Unknowns, also known as the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, stands atop a hill overlooking Washington, DC. President John F. Kennedy is buried in Arlington National Cemetery with his wife and some of their children. His grave is marked with an "Eternal Flame." His brother Senator Robert F. Kennedy is also buried nearby. Another President, William Howard Taft, who was also a Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, is the only other President buried at Arlington.

Other frequently visited sites near the cemetery are the U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial, commonly known as the "Iwo Jima Memorial", the U.S. Air Force Memorial, the Women in Military Service for America Memorial, the Netherlands Carillon and the U.S. Army's Fort Myer.

The Pentagon

The Pentagon in Arlington is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense. It was dedicated on January 15, 1943 and it is the world's largest office building. Although it is located in Arlington, the United States Postal Service requires that "Washington, D.C." be used as the place name in mail addressed to the ZIP codes assigned to The Pentagon. The building is pentagon-shaped in plan and houses about 23,000 military and civilian employees and about 3,000 non-defense support personnel. It has five floors and each floor has five ring corridors. Built during the early years of World War II, it is still thought of as one of the most efficient office buildings in the world. It has 17.5 miles of corridors, yet it takes only seven minutes or so to walk between any two points in the building.  The open-air central plaza in the Pentagon is the world's largest "no-salute, no-cover" area (where U.S. servicemembers need not wear hats nor salute). The snack bar in the center is informally known as the Ground Zero Cafe, a nickname originating during the Cold War when the Pentagon was targeted by Soviet nuclear missiles.

Growth

Arlington has won awards for its "smart growth" development strategies. For over 30 years, the government has had a policy of concentrating much of its new development near transit facilities, such as Metrorail stations and the high-volume bus lines of Columbia Pike. Much of Arlington's development in the last generation has been concentrated around 7 of the County's 11 Metrorail stations.

Government

Arlington is governed by a five person County Board, whose members are elected to four year terms. Arlington also elects four Members of the 100 Member Virginia House of Delegates and two Members of the Virginia Senate. State Senators are elected to four year terms, while Delegates are elected to two year terms.

Arlington has an elected five person School Board, whose members are elected to four year terms. Virginia law does not permit political parties to place school board candidates on the ballot, but as in many other Virginia jurisdictions, most Arlington school board candidates run with an explicit party endorsement. Arlington also has several Constitutional Officers, all of whom are elected County-wide.

Transportation
Airports

Arlington is the home of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.  Nearby airports with international services include Washington Dulles International Airport, located in Fairfax and Loudoun counties in Virginia, and Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, located in Anne Arundel County, Maryland.

Public transportation

Arlington is served by the Orange, Blue and Yellow lines of the Washington Metro. Additionally, it is served by Virginia Railway Express (commuter rail), Metrobus (regional public bus), and a local public bus system, Arlington Transit (ART).

Bicycle paths

Arlington has a number of off-road bicycle trails, all of which travel along the Potomac River and its tributaries, abandoned railroad beds, or major highways. One of these trails, the Mount Vernon Trail, runs for 17 miles (27 km) along the Potomac, continuing through Alexandria to George Washington's plantation home.

Geography

Arlington County is the smallest self-governing county in the United States.  According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 26 miles, of which about 4.6 square miles is federal property.  It is bounded on the north by Fairfax County, on the west by the City of Falls Church, on the south by the City of Alexandria, and on the east by the Potomac River; across the river ia the City of Washington, D.C.

Neighborhoods in Arlingon

There are numerous unicorporated neighborhoods within Arlington County that are commonly referred to by name as if they were distinct towns.  The county characterizes some of these neighborhoods - particularly those located at Metrorail stations and other major transportation corridors - as "urban villages."  These are usually centers with commercial activity.  These include: Ballston, Clarendon, Courthouse, Crystal City, Langley, Lyon Village, Pentagon City, Rosslyn, Shirlington, Virginia Square, Westover, Williamsburg Circle, Palisades.

There are also numerous neighborhoodes which are largely residential including: Alcova Heights, Arlington Ridge, Arlington View, Ashton Heights, Aurora Hills, Ballston Crossing, Barcroft, Bellevue Forest, Bluemont, Boulevard Manor, Buckingham, Cherrydale, Claremont, Columbia Forest, Columbia Heights, Country Club Hills, Crescent Hills, Dominion Hills, Donaldson Run, Douglas Park, East Falls Church, Fairlington, Forest Hills, Glencarlyn, Halls Hill, High View Park/Halls Hill, Lacey Forest, Lee Heights, Lyon Park, Lyon Village, Madison Manor, Maywood, New Dover, Nauck (Green Valley, Penrose, Rivercrest, Waycroft-Woodlawn, Waverly Hills, Williamsburg, Yorktown

Arlington County includes a large selection of Sears Catalog Homes, which were offered between 1908 and 1940, Considered to be of exceptional quality, in modern times, these houses are sought after by many home buyers. As well, Arlington features some of the first and among the best examples of post-World War II garden style apartment complexes in the U.S., some of which were designed by architect Mihran Mesrobian. Arlington Boulevard (Route 50) is the dividing line in the county.
Neighborhood Historic Preservation Districts

A number of the county's residential neighborhoods and larger garden-style apartment complexes are listed in the National Register of Historic Places and/or designated under the County government's zoning ordinance as local Historic Preservation Districts. These include Arlington Village, Arlington Forest, Ashton Heights, Buckingham, Cherrydale, Claremont, Colonial Village, Fairlington, Lyon Park, Lyon Village, Maywood, Penrose, Waverly Hills and Westover.

Postal areas

The three-digit zip code prefix 222 uniquely identifies Arlington.
The Reagan National Airport and the Pentagon, both within the boundaries of Arlington County, are assigned with Washington, D.C., ZIP codes.

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Arlington County is served by the Arlington Public Schools system. The public high schools in Arlington County are Yorktown High School, Washington-Lee High School, Wakefield High School, and the H-B Woodlawn program. Arlington County is also home to Bishop O'Connell, a Roman Catholic high school.

Through an agreement with Fairfax County Public Schools approved by the school board in 1999, up to 26 students residing in Arlington per grade level may be enrolled at the Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Fairfax.

Colleges and Universities

Marymount University is the only university with its main campus located in Arlington. Founded in 1950 by the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary as Marymount College of Virginia located on North Glebe Road. George Mason University operates an Arlington campus in the Virginia Square area between Clarendon and Ballston.  DeVry University operates a campus for undergraduate classes along with the Keller School of Management for its graduate classes, in Crystal City. Institute for the Psychological Sciences is a regionally accredited institution offering postgraduate programs in Psychology with a Roman Catholic perspective. University of Management and Technology is a distance learning university that is headquartered in Rosslyn.  The Art Institute of Washington, a local branch of The Art Institutes is located in the Ames Center across from the Rosslyn Metro Station. Strayer University has a campus in Arlington as well as its corporate headquarters. In addition, Argosy University, Banner College, Everest College, George Washington University, Georgetown University, Northern Virginia Community College, Troy University, the University of New Haven, the University of Oklahoma, and Westwood College all have campuses in Arlington.
 
Check out these additional sites for more information about Arlington County:
Arlington County, VA (official website)
Arlington County Public Schools
Arlington County Chamber of Commerce
Arlington County, VA weather
The Commonwealth of Virginia

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