The library will be closed all day Thursday, June 15, while staff attend training & the City Employee Picnic.
Monday: 1 pm – 5 pm
Tuesday: 5 pm – 8 pm
Wednesday: 1 pm – 5 pm
Thursday: 1 pm – 5 pm
Friday: CLOSED
Saturday: 10 am – 3 pm
Sunday: 10 am – 3 pm
* New hours as of Jan 1, 2023.
View history room hours in our online calendar...
The mission of the Falls Church History Room is to collect, preserve, and promote materials with historical significance concerning the inhabitants, government, institutions, and environment of the City of Falls Church.
LIBRARY CATALOG: Many of the items in the history room collection are fully catalogued and listed in our general online catalog with the location “Virginia Collection.” View all items...
DIGITAL COLLECTION & INDEX: Our Falls Church History Room Digital Collection and Index contains thousands of photographs and death notices, as well as an index to items in our vertical files and other parts of the collection.
COLLECTION OVERVIEW: Our collection overview FAQ boxes (on this web page) provide information about different materials that can be found in the Falls Church History Room.
Use our Contact Us form to submit a question. Be sure to choose "Local History" from the dropdown menu on the form asking "What would you like help with?"
Or call the Falls Church History Room at 703-248-5410 (TTY 711).
Can’t find what you need in our history room? Try these additional resources:
ARCHIVES: The FCHR contains archives covering a variety of City related individuals and organizations, including the Falls Church Historical Commission, the League of Women Voters Falls Church, and the Village Preservation and Improvement Society.
ASSESSMENT RECORDS: Assessment records are available in the FCHR for following:
Current – and some historic – assessment and sales records can be found online through the City’s Real Property Assessment Finder.
The FCHR – while not the City archive- does contain a number of City related documents and reports. Many may also be found online through the City’s website.
CITY COUNCIL
BOARDS & COMMISSIONS
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
GENEALOGY:
MAPS:
The FCHR houses a number of Falls Church related newspapers and community newsletters, either in print or on microfilm/fiche.
A number of Falls Church related newspaper can also be accessed online:
Several thousand Falls Church death notices and obituaries have been clipped and scanned and can be searched online in our Digital Collection and Index.
The library also provides online access to The Washington Post (1887-present), which can be searched for local obituaries and death notices.
The collection includes more than 120 oral histories recorded by H.H. Douglas and the Falls Church Historical Commission from the late 1960s through 1981.
PHOTOGRAPHS: The historic photo collection includes over 20,000 negatives and 8,000 prints. Several thousand images have been scanned and can be searched and viewed online in our Digital Collection and Index.
SCRAPBOOKS: The collection includes several community scrapbooks, including:
VERTICAL FILES: The FCHR maintains a “vertical file” of over 50 drawers of clippings and miscellaneous documents organized into 3 categories:
YEARBOOKS: The library has print copies of the following yearbooks:
Gernand, Bradley E. and Netherton, Nan. A Virginia Village Revisited. Virginia Beach, VA: The Donning Company/Publishers, 2000.
Steadman, Melvin Lee. Falls Church, By Fence and Fireside. Falls Church, VA: Falls Church Public Library, 1964.
Taylor, Cathy. Historic Falls Church. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Pub, 2012.
Victorian Society of Falls Church. Victorian Falls Church. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Pub, 2007.
Wrenn, Tony P. Falls Church: History of a Virginia Village. Falls Church, VA; Historical Commission of the City of Falls Church, 1972.
Alves, Joseph Hodges and Spelman, Harold. Near the Falls: Two Hundred Years of The Falls Church. Falls Church, VA: The Falls Church, 1969.
Beltz, Ella C. Falls Church Presbyterian Church, 1873-1973. Falls Church, VA: Beltz, 1976.
Block, Eugene B. Above the Civil War: Thaddeus Lowe, Balloonist, Inventor, Railroad Builder. Berkeley, Calif, Howell-North Books, 1966.
Camp, Shirley. Past Times Around Falls Church. Baltimore: Gateway Press, 1997.
Douglas, H.H. Falls Church, Places and People. Falls Church: Falls Church Historical Commission, 1981.
Falls Church City Public Schools Celebrating 50 Years: A History. Falls Church, VA: City of Falls Church, 1999.
Falls Church Historical News and Notes. Falls Church, VA: Village Preservation and Improvement Society, 1970.
Footprints in Faith: Columbia Baptist Church History. Falls Church, VA: Columbia Baptist Church, 2007.
Gernand, Bradley E. A Virginia Village Goes to War. Virginia Beach, VA: The Donning Company/Publishers, 2002.
Harrison, Noel Garraux. City of Canvas: Camp Russell A. Alger and the Spanish American War. Falls Church, VA: Falls Church Historical Commission, 1988.
Henderson, James H. M. and Henderson, Betty F. Molder of Men: Portrait of a “Grand Old Man,” Edwin Bancroft Henderson. New York: Vantage Press, 1985.
Jewell, Marianne H. Dulin from Saddlebags to Satellites: A Story of Faith and Service. Falls Church, Va., Dulin United Methodist Church, 1969
Jones, Carrol Anne. Doers of the World: 125 Years of History: Saint James Catholic Church, Falls Church, VA. Vienna, VA. Coronae Rosarum Publications, 2017.
Stewart, Charles Alexander. A Virginia Village: Historical Sketch of Falls Church and the Old Colonial Church. Falls Church, VA: J.H. Newell, 1904.
Wrenn, Tony P and Douglas, Henry H. Cherry Hill Farm: Falls Church, VA. Falls Church, VA: Falls Church Historical Commission, 1977.
Falls Church, Virginia, was settled in 1699 and named for its first church. Located near Washington, D.C., this rural farming community grew into an important crossroads during the 19th century. Prior to World War II, its most significant growth occurred during the Victorian era. The area and lifestyle of its residents were significantly impacted by the Northern migration into the South for better farmland; the Civil War; the expansion of railway service; the developing role as a suburb of
Washington; and military buildup during the Spanish-American War. This collection of vintage images portrays the people, places, and events that are central to the Victorian heritage of Falls Church.
Once the largest farm population center in what was then Fairfax County, Falls Church has slowly evolved over the past three centuries into the unique town it is today.
Fertile soil and abundant streams at former Native American cross trails provided ideal farmland to early settlers, and though the first known home was built in 1699, it wasn't until 1875 that Falls Church was incorporated into a town, taking its name from the prominent 18th century Anglican church built at these old cross trails. The town has seen the coming of Revolutionary independence and a mere seven miles from downtown Washington, DC, Falls Church sat close enough to witness the nation's capital burn during the War of 1812, and was transformed by the effects of the Civil War. Since 1900, residents have experienced the growth of the post-World War II suburban ideal and felt the impact of the civil rights movement, ultimately developing Falls Church into a small town with established religious, educational, and civic institutions amidst urban sprawl.
As told by the villagers themselves, this book details the history of Falls Church, Va., during the Civil War and how it fell victim to a duo of military "firsts". The first aerially-directed bombardment of a human settlement and the first use of aerial reconnaissance in the war by hot-air balloon.
First published in 1964 as a special project of the Falls Church Public Library, this book is a comprehensive survey of the history of Falls Church, Virginia, from its colonial roots up through the 1960s. The main text relates, in detail, the history of t
Interview of Kay Britto about growing up in Falls Church in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s by MRSPL Librarian Pete Sulivan. Recorded on October 19, 2022, at the FCCTV studio at Meridian High School. Video posted on April 12, 2023.
Chet DeLong, longtime Falls Church resident, Mary Riley Styles Public Library board member and volunteer interviewed by library director, Jenny Carroll. Recorded on July 7, 2022 at the FCCTV studio at Meridian High School.
Virginia Chronicle is a historical archive of Virginia newspapers, providing free access to full text searching and digitized images of over 3 million newspaper pages.
