The Herndon Historical Society’s 50th Anniversary (1971-2021)

The Herndon Historical Society celebrated its 50th anniversary at their 2021 annual meeting. During the meeting they took a look back in time, showing how the Society was formed and its accomplishments over the last 50 years.

2021 Annual Membership Meeting

W&OD History

The following are four YouTube videos on the history of the Washington and Old Dominion Railroad. These videos have been prepared by Paul McCray, who was the manager of the W&OD Trail for 20 years before becoming the Operations Director for NOVA Parks. His research about the W&OD led to a collection of almost 2,000 photos and over a thousand news articles and original documents from the railroad. These are wonderful reminders of our history in and around Herndon.

NOVA History Remembered: The W&OD Railroad Begins

NOVA History Remembered: The W&OD Railroad: After the Civil War

NOVA History Remembered: Great Falls and Old Dominion Railroad

NOVA History Remembered: The End of the Washington and Old Dominion Railroad and the W&OD Railway

HCTV - Herndon Community Television Videos “Herndon Voices”

The following link takes you to a series of Herndon Community Television videos entitled ‘Herndon Voices.’ In these videos, long-time Herndon residents talk about their recollections of Herndon history:

Richard Downer
Elma Mankin
Arthur Nachman
Jay Hutchinson
Connie Hutchinson
Charlie Waddell

HCTV Video On Demand: Herndon Voices

The speaker for 2021 Annual Meeting was well known author Chuck Mauro who has written a number of books on Herndon and Civil War history. His latest book "We Once Met by Chance" follows four people’s lives during the Civil War. The lives of John S. Mosby, Charles Russell Lowell, Laura Ratcliffe, and James Robinson are true nonfiction stories which are woven into a narrative that gives insights into life during a turbulent era in our Nation.

HCTV’s “Chats with Charlie” episode in which Barbara Glakas is interviewed about her book, “Hidden History of Herndon".

Herndon High School Band to participate in the 75th Anniversary of the Normandy Invasion

Below is link to an NBC4 story they did about the Band trip to Normandy. It’s 3:44 minutes long. It shows some brief scenes of when Angie Goff visited our Depot and spoke to Margaret Jamborsky who has been researching history of the USS Herndon.

Herndon High Band to Participate in 75th Anniversary of D-Day

The Road to Happiness

At our September 27, 2017 meeting Barbara Glakas showed the silent film “The Road to Happiness”. The film was made in 1924 by the Ford Motor Company. The purpose of the film was to promote improved roads and was shown throughout the United States. Many scenes in this film were shot in western Fairfax County and featured local residents, including residents from the Herndon area. In addition to viewing the film we learned about some of the local residents who participated in the film.

One such local resident was Louise Rinker Harrison who lived on Station Street in Herndon. In her younger years she taught at the historic Navy School, formerly located in greater Herndon near the intersection of West Ox and Thompson Roads and shown in the "Road To Happiness" film. The video includes footage of Miss Rinker teaching at the Navy School in 1924. The audio was recorded in her later years as she recollected her experiences as a young teacher at the Navy School.