"Old
Fairfax Station"
by Paul McGehee depicts a train of the Southern Railway passing Fairfax
Station, Virginia in the mid-1920's. The historic Fairfax Station was
established in 1851 as Lee's Station for the Orange and Alexandria
Railroad. The name was changed to Fairfax Station after a year. The
rail line was first created to transport farm goods north from central
Virginia to Alexandria and Washington, DC, and in turn transport
supplies south from the cites back to the farms. By the time of the
Civil War, Fairfax Station had become one of the main transportation
hubs for the Northern Virginia region. When war broke out, the
important rail line became the scene of many skirmishes and, in August
through September of 1862, was the scene of treatment for mass
casualties coming in from Manassas during and after the 2nd Battle of
Bull Run (Manassas) and Chantilly. A young employee of the U.S. Patent
Office named Clara Barton had answered the call to nursing as the need
arose...she took it upon herself to organize and tend to the wounded
along the Union evacuation route at Fairfax Station. Two decades later,
Clara Barton founded the American Red Cross. As time went on, Fairfax
Station was rebuilt several times as the area prospered, the most
recent structure dating back to 1903, and by this time was serving the
passengers and freight of the Southern Railway, a large outfit whose
engines sported a beautiful bright green livery. The small town that
sprang up around the station (the main features being a postal depot
and a church) was changed to Swetnam in 1897, and then briefly to
Faircroft in 1918. It officially became Fairfax Station once again in
1921, and the name has stayed. Today, Fairfax Station is a
well-populated mixture of beautiful suburban homes and burgeoning
businesses, with modern highways coursing through the woodland setting.
The Fairfax Station (which ceased operation in 1973) is still there,
saved from a sad fate by volunteers banding together and was moved away
from the tracks for safety's sake. Today it is a museum devoted to
local rail history encompassing everything from the Civil War to model
railroading. You may read more about the historic Fairfax Station
Railroad Museum and plan a visit here.
"Old Fairfax Station" is
faithfully reproduced from Paul's original color pencil and acrylic
artwork in a
limited edition of 2,000 hand-signed prints.
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