Vienna, Virginia

History

European settlement in the region dates to the mid-18th century. In 1754, soldier and landowner Colonel Charles Broadwater settled within the town boundaries. Broadwater's son-in-law, John Hunter, built the first recorded house there in 1767, naming it Ayr Hill to recall his birthplace, Ayr, Scotland. That name was then applied to the community. The town's name was changed in the 1850s, when a doctor, William Hendrick, settled there and the town renamed itself after his hometown, Phelps, New York, which at the time was known as Vienna.

On June 17, 1861, the Battle of Vienna, one of the earliest armed clashes of the American Civil War, was fought in Vienna. A Union army unit under Brigadier General Robert C. Schenck approached Vienna from the east by train but was ambushed and forced to retreat by a Confederate force led by Colonel Maxcy Gregg. Several historical markers in Vienna detail its Civil War history. In addition, in the town center lies the well preserved Freeman House; which, in 1861, was the polling place for the secession vote and was used during the war by both sides as a hospital. The house has been turned into a museum and gift shop.

The First Baptist Church of Vienna was founded in 1867, and the original church structure was built using Union Army barracks lumber obtained through the Freedmen's Bureau. This church building was also the town's first black public school. The first white public school was built in 1872.

A permanent black elementary school was built, and was later named for its long-time principal, Louise Archer. In fall 1965, Fairfax County Public Schools were completely desegregated.

Geography

Vienna lies in the Piedmont approximately 5.5 mi southwest of the Potomac River. Wolftrap Creek, a tributary of nearby Difficult Run, flows north from its source in the eastern part of town. The Bear Branch of Accotink Creek, a Potomac tributary, flows south from its source in the southern part of town.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 4.4 mi2, all of it land. As a suburb of Washington, D.C., Vienna is a part of both the Washington metropolitan area and the larger Washington–Baltimore combined statistical area. It is bordered on all sides by other Washington suburbs, including Wolf Trap to the north, Tysons Corner to the northeast, Dunn Loring to the east, Merrifield to the south, and Oakton to the west. These communities are unincorporated, and portions of them lie in ZIP codes with Vienna postal addresses despite lying outside the town's borders.

Climate

Vienna has a humid subtropical climate (Cfa), where the winters are cool, and summers are hot. The town is situated in USDA Hardiness Zone 7, where the annual average minimum is 0-9 °F.

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Demographics

As of the 2020 census, there were 16,473 people, 5,424 households, and 4,215 families residing in the town. The population density was 3,741.3 PD/sqmi. There were 5,686 housing units at an average density of 1,292.3 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 74.4% White, 13.7% Asian, 9.8% Hispanic or Latino, 2.2% African American, 0.4% Native American, and 7.8% from two or more races.

There were 5,424 households, out of which 39.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.4% were married couples living together, 3.7% had a male householder with no wife present, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.8% were non-families. 18.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.84, and the average family size was 3.19.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 28% under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 24.7% from 25 to 44, 30.3% from 45 to 64, and 13.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.1 males age 18 and over.

As of 2009, the median income for a household in the town was $113,817, and the median income for a family was $124,895. Males had a median income of $88,355 versus $66,642 for females. The per capita income for the town was $49,544. About 3.7% of families and 5.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.5% of those under age 18 and 2.9% of those age 65 or over.

Vienna's median home price was $820,000 in 2017, one of the highest in the nation.

Government

The Vienna Town Council is composed of a mayor and six councilmembers. The Council establishes policies, passes ordinances and resolutions, approves the Town budget, sets tax rates, approves land-use plans, and makes appointments to Town boards and commissions. Elections of the Council members and mayor is over seen and run by the Fairfax County Office of Elections The mayor is Linda Jane Colbert.

Education

The town is served by Fairfax County Public Schools. Vienna is served by three high schools (Oakton, Madison, and Marshall); two middle schools (Kilmer and Thoreau), and seven elementary schools. However, of all the schools Vienna students attend, only four public and one private are actually within the town limits: Cunningham Park Elementary School, Marshall Road Elementary School, Louise Archer Elementary School, Vienna Elementary School and Green Hedges School.

Vienna has one independent school, Green Hedges, accredited by the Virginia Association of Independent Schools. Green Hedges has students from ages 3– 5 (Montessori preschool and kindergarten program) through preparatory grades 1–8. Founded in 1942 by Frances and Kenton Kilmer, the School was relocated to the Windsor Heights area of Vienna in 1955.

Vienna also has one independent Catholic school, Oakcrest School, which was founded in 1976 and moved to its permanent campus in Vienna in 2017, and two Catholic elementary schools: St. Mark Catholic School and Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic School.

Fairfax County Public Library operates the Patrick Henry Library in Vienna.

Transportation

Interstate 66 is the main highway serving Vienna. Access is provided via Exit 62 and Virginia State Route 243. In addition, Virginia State Route 123 runs through downtown Vienna. The town is served on the Washington Metro network by Vienna station on the Orange Line.

Economy

MAE-East is located in Vienna. Along with MAE-West, it served as one of two locations, where all Internet traffic was exchanged between one ISP and other private, government, and academic Internet networks and served as a magnet for telecom and other high-tech companies focused on the Internet. In 1995 America Online (AOL) was headquartered at 8619 Westwood Center Drive in Tysons Corner CDP in unincorporated Fairfax County, near Vienna.

The corporate headquarters of Navy Federal Credit Union is located in Vienna.

Top employers

According to Vienna's 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, the top employers in the town are:

:{| class="wikitable" |- ! # ! Employer ! # of Employees |- | 1 |Navy Federal Credit Union

Recreation

The W&OD Trail crosses through downtown Vienna. Several parks are located near the town, including Meadowlark Botanical Gardens and Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts. The town green and Jammin' Java coffeehouse and music club serve as areas for theatre and musical performances.

Notable people

Many of these residents live outside the town but in the Vienna postal delivery area.

• Lillian Elvira Moore Abbot, painter
• Yussur A. F. Abrar, former governor, Central Bank of Somalia
• Angela Aki, singer
• Alex Albrecht, host of Digg podcast Diggnation
• Louise Archer, notable Black Educator
• Mike Baker, former CIA operations officer and Fox News contributor
• David Baldacci, author
• Sandra Beasley, poet
• Velta Benn, pilot
• Reva Beck Bosone, former U.S. Representative
• Gordon L. Brady, economist and writer
• Steve Buckhantz, Washington Wizards play-by-play announcer
• Ian Caldwell, author
• David Chang, chef and restaurateur
• Tom Davis, former U.S. Representative
• John M. Dowd, lawyer
• Trevor N. Dupuy, historian and former U.S. Army colonel
• Bill Emerson (musician), bluegrass banjoist and founder of The Country Gentlemen
• Billy Lee Evans, former U.S. Representative
• Kyle Foggo, former U.S. federal government intelligence officer convicted of bribery
• Hrach Gregorian, political consultant, educator, and writer
• Katherine Hadford, figure skater
• Jim Hill, former distance runner who competed in the World Athletics Championships
• Robert Hanssen, former FBI counterespionage agent convicting of conducting espionage for the Soviet Union
• Charles DeLano Hine, former civil engineer, lawyer, railway official, and U.S. Army colonel during Spanish–American War
• Orrin E. Hine, Union Army major in 50th New York Engineer Regiment during American Civil War
• Spencer Heath, inventor of the reversible pitch airplane propeller
• William G. Hundley, former criminal defense attorney
• Mark Keam, former Virginia House of Delegates member
• David Kellermann, former chief financial officer, Freddie Mac
• Lester Kinsolving, reporter, columnist, and talk show host
• Ilia Malinin, figure skater
• Michael McCrary, former professional football player, Baltimore Ravens and Seattle Seahawks
• Robert M. McDowell, former Federal Communications Commission commissioner
• Heather Mercer, Christian missionary held captive in Afghanistan in 2001
• John Myung, professional poker player
• Héctor Andrés Negroni, first Puerto Rican graduate of U.S. Air Force Academy
• Alketas Panagoulias, former Greece and the United States soccer team manager
• Howard Phillips, former conservative political activist
• Tony Rodham, American consultant and businessman and youngest brother of Hillary Clinton
• Garrett Roe, former U.S. hockey Olympian
• Chris Samuels, former professional football player, Washington Redskins
• Randy Scott, ESPN sportscater and former stand-up comedian
• Holly Seibold, non-profit leader and Virginia House of Delegates nominee
• Kaleem Shah, entrepreneur and owner of thoroughbred race horses
• Alfred Dennis Sieminski, former U.S. Representative
• Nick Sorensen, former professional football player, Cleveland Browns
• Michael J. Sullivan, fantasy novelist
• Edwin Winans, U.S. Army general
• Frank Wolf, former U.S. Representative

Points of interest

• Freeman Store and Museum (Vienna, Virginia)
• Jammin' Java coffeehouse and music club
• Meadowlark Botanical Gardens
• Terrorist Screening Center
• Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts (located in the CDP of Wolf Trap, Virginia)

References

References

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11. (April 14, 1996). "First Baptist Church of Vienna Church History". Fbcv.org.
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