Falmouth is an unincorporated community in
Stafford CountyStafford County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, a U.S. state, and just across the Rappahannock River from the City of Fredericksburg. As of the 2000 census, the population was 92,446, increasing to 128,961 in 2010.. Its county seat is Stafford. In 2006, and again in 2009,...
,
VirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
,
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Situated on the north bank of the
Rappahannock RiverThe Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately in length. It traverses the entire northern part of the state, from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the west, across the Piedmont, to the Chesapeake Bay, south of the Potomac River.An important river in American...
at the falls, the community is north of and opposite the city of
FredericksburgFredericksburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia located south of Washington, D.C., and north of Richmond. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 24,286...
. Recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau as a
census-designated placeA census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...
(CDP), Falmouth population was 3,624 as of the 2000 census.
History
Founded in 1728 by the same act of the Virginia Assembly that established neighboring Fredericksburg, Falmouth was created as a port town on the Rappahannock to serve inhabitants living north of the river within the vast Northern Neck holdings of
Lord FairfaxThomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron was the son of Thomas Fairfax, 5th Lord Fairfax of Cameron and of Catherine, daughter of Thomas Culpeper, 2nd Baron Culpeper of Thoresway....
. His agent, Robert "King" Carter, promoted the establishment of the town, and the Carter family played a dominant role in the town's development throughout much of the colonial period. Originally located within King George County, Falmouth became part of Stafford County when county lines were redrawn in 1776.
During the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, Falmouth was occupied by Union forces in 1862 and 1863, and Northern commanders located their headquarters southeast of the town during the
FredericksburgThe Battle of Fredericksburg was fought December 11–15, 1862, in and around Fredericksburg, Virginia, between General Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and the Union Army of the Potomac, commanded by Maj. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside...
and
ChancellorsvilleThe Battle of Chancellorsville was a major battle of the American Civil War, and the principal engagement of the Chancellorsville Campaign. It was fought from April 30 to May 6, 1863, in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, near the village of Chancellorsville. Two related battles were fought nearby on...
campaigns. In May 1864, Union wounded and Confederate prisoners from the battles of the
WildernessThe Battle of the Wilderness, fought May 5–7, 1864, was the first battle of Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Virginia Overland Campaign against Gen. Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. Both armies suffered heavy casualties, a harbinger of a bloody war of attrition by...
and
Spotsylvania Court HouseThe Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, sometimes simply referred to as the Battle of Spotsylvania , was the second major battle in Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Overland Campaign of the American Civil War. Following the bloody but inconclusive Battle of the Wilderness, Grant's army disengaged...
were transported through the area to the wharves at Belle Plain on
Potomac CreekPotomac Creek is a tidal tributary of the Potomac River in King George and Stafford counties, Virginia. Potomac Creek's source lies between the communities of Glendie and Paynes Corner in Stafford County. It empties into the Potomac River at Marlboro Point...
, a tributary of the
Potomac RiverThe Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
, located east of Falmouth.
Today Falmouth is a residential community and a suburb of Fredericksburg. Among the community's significant historic structures is
BelmontThe Gari Melchers Home, also known as Belmont, was the home and studio of American artist Gari Melchers in Falmouth, Virginia...
, the home of American artist
Gari MelchersJulius Garibaldi Melchers was an American artist. He was one of the leading American proponents of naturalism.-Biography:...
, now a historic house museum administered by
University of Mary WashingtonThe University of Mary Washington is a public, coeducational liberal arts college located in the city of Fredericksburg, Virginia, USA. Founded in 1908 by the Commonwealth of Virginia as a normal school, during much of the twentieth century it was part of the University of Virginia, until...
.
Chatham ManorChatham Manor is the Georgian-style home completed in 1771 by William Fitzhugh, after about 3 years of construction, on the Rappahannock River in Stafford County, Virginia, opposite Fredericksburg. It was for more than a century the center of a large, thriving plantation. Flanking the main house...
, the 1771 home of
William FitzhughWilliam Fitzhugh was an American planter and statesman who served as a delegate to the Continental Congress for Virginia in 1779. -Life:...
and a Union headquarters during the Civil War, is located downstream from Falmouth, opposite the historic district of Fredericksburg. It is administered by the
National Park ServiceThe National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
as part of
Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County Battlefields Memorial National Military ParkFredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park is a unit of the National Park Service in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and elsewhere in Spotsylvania County, commemorating four major battles in the American Civil War.-Park:...
and now serves as park headquarters.
Geography
Falmouth is located at 38°19′54"N 77°27′41"W (38.331790, -77.461361).
According to the
United States Census BureauThe United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, Falmouth has a total area of 3.2 square miles (8.4 km²), of which, 3.1 square miles (8.1 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.3 km²) of it (3.09%) is water.
Demographics
As of the
censusA census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 3,624 people, 1,323 households, and 997 families residing in the CDP. The
population densityPopulation density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 1,155.6 people per square mile (445.6/km²). There were 1,412 housing units at an average density of 450.3/sq mi (173.6/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 89.29% White, 6.46% Black or
African AmericanRace and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 0.22% Native American, 1.08% Asian, 0.61% from
other racesRace and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 2.35% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.15% of the population.
There were 1,323 households out of which 35.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.5% were
married couplesMarriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.6% were non-families. 18.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.68 and the average family size was 3.03.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 26.2% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 13.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 92.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.3 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $57,697, and the median income for a family was $66,989. Males had a median income of $39,280 versus $31,202 for females. The
per capita incomePer capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the CDP was $25,544. About 5.9% of families and 7.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.6% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.
Notable residents and natives
- Moncure Daniel Conway
Moncure Daniel Conway was an American abolitionist, Unitarian clergyman, and author.-Early life and education:Conway was born of an old Virginia family in Falmouth, Stafford County...
, abolitionistAbolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...
- Bazil Gordon
Bazil Gordon emigrated from Scotland to America, settling in Falmouth, Virginia in 1786 where he opened a small store. Gordon grew his business, exporting large amounts of tobacco from plantations along the Rappahannock River to England. He is believed to be America's first millionaire.He married...
, America's first millionaireA millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. It can also be a person who owns one million units of currency in a bank account or savings account...
.
- William J. Howell
William J. Howell is an American politician of the Republican Party. He is the current Speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates...
, Speaker of the Virginia House of DelegatesThe Virginia House of Delegates is the lower house of the Virginia General Assembly. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbered years. The House is presided over by the Speaker of the House, who is elected from among the...
- Gari Melchers
Julius Garibaldi Melchers was an American artist. He was one of the leading American proponents of naturalism.-Biography:...
, artist.
External links