Fairfax County scenes, buildings, and portraits of Lord
Fairfax, George Washington, and George Mason.

[Illustration: Mural at the Central Staircase, Fairfax County
Courthouse. Painted in 1954 by Esther L. Stewart.]

On the brick floor of the arcaded porch of the first (1800) section of
the courthouse, is a National Register plaque (1974 listing) placed by
the Fairfax County History Commission in 1976. In the hall inside
hangs a plaque from the Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission
commemorating the building's placement on the State Register in 1973.

Hanging on the walls of this oldest court chamber are oil portraits of
county notables. (See Appendix for biographical listing.)

On the courthouse lawn, a dogwood tree was planted in 1954 dedicated
to the firemen of Fairfax County. A small bronze plaque with a poem
and the dedication was set in a cement post under the tree, by the
Firemen's Auxiliary.

In the wake of its many unresolved historical mysteries, the restored
courthouse remains a functional courtroom, as required by the terms
authorizing the work. Yet it cannot claim to represent any particular
period of Fairfax County's history with full historical or
architectural integrity. As now redesigned and rebuilt, the courthouse
presents an outward appearance presumably similar to its original
form. The interior achieves the pleasant appearance and atmosphere of
a working courtroom of the past.

NOTES FOR CHAPTER VII

[125] Catherine Fennelly, _The New England Village Scene: 1800_,
(Sturbridge: Old Sturbridge Village, 1955), p. 9.

[126] Sidney Hyman, "Empire of Liberty" in _With Heritage So Rich_,
(New York: Random House, 1966), pp. 5-6.

[127] Fairfax County Deed Book, B-2, pp. 373-377; 503-504.

[128] Fairfax County, Record of Surveys, 1742-1856, p. 93.

[129] Joseph Martin, _Gazetteer of Virginia and the District of
Columbia_, (Charlottesville: Martin, 1835), p. 168.

[130] Fairfax County, Record of Surveys, Section II, p. 93, March 13,
1800.

[131] Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Minute Book, #1, pp. 89, 91,
196, 206 (1871-1881).

[132] Interview with Thomas Chapman, Jr., former Clerk of the Circuit
Court; Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Minute Book #6, pp.
580-582, August 20, 1934; architectural drawings, 1951-1956,
Facilities Management Office.

[133] Fairfax County Court Minute Book, 1882-1885, April Court, 1884,
"The County Jail having been destroyed by fire ...," the county cou