Willard, Virginia

The former unincorporated community of Willard (also known as Willard Crossroads) was located in what is now a part of Washington Dulles International Airport in the U.S. state of Virginia.

The village was named after Joseph Edward Willard, who was a delegate to the Virginia General Assembly from 1893 to 1901. Even though Willard was located in Loudoun County, he represented Fairfax County, due to the village's location, only convert|1500|ft|m from the county border. Willard owned a 50 acre estate in Fairfax. His father was Joseph Clapp Willard, the owner of the famous Willard Hotel, located in Washington, D.C.

Willard was located at the intersection of Willard Road (now Stonecroft Boulevard) and Sterling Road (now Horsepen Road). This intersection was surrounded by farms, homes, a school, a church, the Willard Store (until 1907), and Blue Ridge Airfield (1938-1951). In the early 1900s, the town of Willard stood west of Floris, north of Pleasant Valley, and south of Farmwell (now Ashburn). Although Willard's heyday was between 1900 and 1910, it was still regarded as a crossroads until 1958, when construction of Washington Dulles International Airport began.

When Dulles was under construction, Willard was demolished to make way for airport terminals and a control tower. Its surroundings were replaced by runways, hangars, a fire station, and parking lots (common in most airports). Blue Ridge Airport was turned into what is now the airport's main parking lot, located inside "Saarinen Circle". Dulles took over convert|26|sqmi|km2 of Virginia land from not only Willard, but Chantilly, Pleasant Valley, Sterling, and Ashburn. By 1962, most traces of old roads and buildings had been wiped out, and airport operations had taken over. However, Willard Road (Stonecroft Boulevard) was kept and is now used for private access and intra-airport transportation, between Runways 1L/19R and 1R/19L.

External links

*cite web
url=http://loudounextra.washingtonpost.com/news/2002/nov/17/dulles-airport-has-its-roots-rural-black-community/
title=Dulles Airport Has Its Roots in Rural Black Community of Willard
last=Scheel
first=Eugene
publisher=The Washington Post
date=November 17, 2002
accessdate=2008-04-03