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Alexandria

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The Bank Robberies of Del Ray

The Bank Robberies of Del Ray

03/16/2022 in Virginia by Henry Kokkeler

In 1929, six bandits robbed the Bank of Del Ray in the Town of Potomac, Virginia. But little did anyone know that a much larger crime was unfolding inside the bank the whole time...

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DC
The Birchmere Gets Its Start

The Birchmere Gets Its Start

09/05/2019 in DC by Hannah Schuster

Gary Oelze purchased a Shirlington restaurant called the Birchmere in the mid 1960s. At the time, he wasn't planning to get into the music business. But soon, the Birchmere became a hub for bluegrass music in the nation's capital. Today, it is an internationally renowned music hall that draws fans of every musical genre. 

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Virginia
Honoring Alexandria's Two Lynching Victims

Honoring Alexandria's Two Lynching Victims

01/08/2019 in Virginia by Jesse Remedios

The National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Alabama, is dedicated to all the victims of racial terror lynching in this country. The memorial is made of hundreds of steel monuments with the names of all known lynching victims inscribed on the front. A monument representing Alexandria, Virginia contains two names: Joseph McCoy and Benjamin Thomas. This is their story, and our community's history. 

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Virginia
The Phantoms of North Fairfax Street

The Phantoms of North Fairfax Street

10/22/2018 in Virginia by Ruthie Cooney

When the Alexandria Gazette published a report about a "Fatal and Melancholy Affair" on June 29, 1868, editors probably didn't anticipate that the article would become the basis for one of Alexandria, Virginia's most infamous ghost stories. Maybe you've heard of the Bride of Old Town, or perhaps the name "Laura Schafer" rings a bell, but what's the full story? What really happened to the woman who supposedly burned to death on the night before her wedding day? What about her groom? And what if she never left Old Town?

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Virginia
The Potomac's Houseboats of Ill Fame

The Potomac's Houseboats of Ill Fame

03/28/2017 in Virginia by Marissa Dever

If you thought pirates were the only ones able to get into trouble on the water, you’d be wrong. At the turn of the twentieth century, the Potomac River was full of boats — or arks as they were called — that provided all sorts of illicit temptations for parties that were so inclined. While efforts were made to enforce the laws of Virginia, Maryland and the District, the arks’ ability to float downriver to avoid authorities made them a persistent problem.

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Virginia
Civil War Alexandria Through the Eyes of Judith Brockenbrough McGuire

Civil War Alexandria Through the Eyes of Judith Brockenbrough McGuire

03/15/2017 in Virginia by Claudia Swain

When the Civil War began looming on the horizon, Judith Brockenbrough McGuire (1813-1897) was the wealthy wife of a prominent citizen in Alexandria, and like many on both sides of the conflict, she believed in a speedy and perhaps even non-violent end to the conflict. In the days leading up to the war, McGuire recorded in her diary the increasingly depressing landscape of Alexandria. Give it a read and take a step back in time!

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Virginia
"Some of the noblest residences in Alexandria had been desecrated to licentious purposes."

"Some of the noblest residences in Alexandria had been desecrated to licentious purposes."

02/07/2017 in Virginia by Claudia Swain

One of the most remembered war correspondents was also the youngest reporter in the Civil War, George Alfred Townsend. Born in 1841, Townsend’s reports on the Battle of Five Forks and the Lincoln assassination gained him wide recognition, but before he had the chance to write those, Townsend visited the occupied city of Alexandria. Among his observations: "It would not accord with the chaste pages of this narrative to tell how some of the noblest residences in Alexandria had been desecrated to licentious purposes; now how, by night, the parlors of cosey homes flamed with riot and orgie [sic]."

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Virginia
"More Tons, Less Huns": World War I Shipbuilding in Alexandria

"More Tons, Less Huns": World War I Shipbuilding in Alexandria

12/23/2016 in Virginia by Lila Spitz

World War I fueled a rapid buildup in industrial production and, in particular, merchant shipbuilding. America needed cargo vessels—fast—and, as luck would have it, Alexandria was prepared. Between 1910 and 1912, the Army Corps of Engineers had infilled a 46-acre bay and wildlife preserve – Battery Cove – near Jones Point Lighthouse. The land’s proximity to the Potomac River and its enormous size made it an ideal site for shipbuilding. Alexandrians rejoiced when the Virginia Shipbuilding Corporation came to their city but the enthusiasm would not last.

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Virginia
A Fight to End Horse Racing and Gambling in Alexandria

A Fight to End Horse Racing and Gambling in Alexandria

12/15/2016 in Virginia by Max Lee

The St. Asaph racetrack in Alexandria was a hotbed of gambling at the turn of the century, and local prosecutor Crandal Mackey made it his personal mission to shut the track down. But that was easier said than done as the track's owners concocted elaborate schemes to outwit authorities and circumvent Virginia's anti-gambling statutes.

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Virginia
George Washington's Bicentennial Birthday Bash

George Washington's Bicentennial Birthday Bash

11/29/2016 in Virginia by Max Lee

Across the country, members of high society celebrated George Washington's 200th birthday by attending costumed balls. But only Alexandria could boast that their ball occurred at the location of Washington's last birthday party.

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