The Great Falls Grange hall, located on Georgetown Pike, was constructed in 1929 by a fraternity organization associated with the Order of the Patrons of Husbandry. This ritualistic fraternal organization made significant contributions in nationwide efforts to improve the social and material prosperity of the American farmer.

With the collapse of agricultural prices in 1920, an outcome of a sharp postwar recession, grangers looked for ways to increase farm profits.[1] The cooperative movement, sanctioned by the National Grange in 1871, spread during the years of 1920-32.[2] Cooperatives eliminated the middle man by purchasing directly from manufacturers and selling directly to consumers. It was at the beginning of the agricultural depression, which spanned from 1920 to1940, that the Great Falls Grange was formed.

On October 9, 1920 twenty-nine men and women living in the Forestville, Virginia area applied to the Patrons of Husbandry to organize the Great Falls Grange #738. On the application form, Mr. J. W. Preston was listed as Master, Mr. F. O. Hicks as Lecturer, and A. C. Dorne as Secretary. The charter members are listed in the following table, with information obtained from the 1920 Federal Census. All of the charter members found in the census were listed in the race column as being white. Of the seven females, all of them were wives of a male charter member. Most of the members were farmers. The Great Falls Grange was organized by two New York men, Messrs Betts and DeLancy, who were invited to various anniversary celebrations throughout the years.[3]

* Based on 1910 census. Occupation of all females is listed as “None.”

In 1921, the Fairfax Herald reported that farmers in the vicinity of Forestville organized a grange with Mark Turner president and Edward Follen as secretary. The membership was reported to exceed one-hundred farmers.[4] Mark Turner owned and operated a dairy farm nearby, which is now owned by the Fairfax County Park Authority and known as Turner Farm.

Turner was active in state and local affairs. He served for 18 years on the three-member Milk Commission, which regulated the state’s milk industry. He was a master of the Virginia State Grange for four years, and also served on its executive board. He was also the first master of the Fairfax County Pomona Grange. Locally, Turner served on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors for four years, and was chairman on the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Commission of Fairfax County.[5]

Mark Turner, Photo Courtesy Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division

Initially, meetings were held in a small school house, likely the wood-frame schoolhouse currently adjacent to the Grange Hall.[6] Afterward, the meetings were moved to Cornwell’s sawmill, but by December 1924 they were meeting in the auditorium of the Forestville School.[7] Construction of the Forestville School was nearing completion by February 1923.[8] This school was located at the site of the present-day Great Falls Fire Station.

The Great Falls Grange met at the Forestville School for several years until they constructed their own hall. Action on the part of the Fairfax County School Board may have influenced the decision by the Grange to relocate their meetings from the Forestville School to a new location. On October 10, 1924, the Fairfax County School Board published a resolution that stated that the Board owned all articles of personal property which have been or may be placed in the various schools of the county.[9] Understandably, this caused an uproar in the County that resulted in a court case to decide the issue. Various organizations were instructed to file lists of the property they owned in a school. Both the Great Falls Grange and the Forestville Dramatic Club filed property lists of belongings in the Forestville School auditorium.[10] A newspaper article in the February 26, 1925 issue of the Herndon Observer described a speech given at the District meeting of the Cooperative Education Association by the Centreville School League, who was locked out of using their local school after the School Board was unable to confiscate their property.[11] In the same issue, it was reported that the Great Falls Grange appointed a committee to make arrangements for securing new quarters. The committee was directed to investigate the possibility of building a new grange hall or renting rooms in the community.[12] The following month, the committee recommended that a new grange hall be constructed that summer as close to the center of the village as possible.[13]

The land that the grange hall would be constructed upon was part of a 12,588 tract surveyed by Lord Thomas Fairfax in 1739, and subsequently assigned to Bryan Fairfax, to whom the grant was issued in 1765.[14] William Gunnell purchased land from Fairfax and constructed a house, now known as Gunnell’s Run, which is listed on the Fairfax County Inventory of Historic Sites. Other than for two years in the 1840s, the land remained in the Gunnell family until it was purchased for the grange hall.

In November 1927, the Great Falls Grange purchased eight acres from Gilbert F. Gunnell and Frances Gunnell, his wife, for the purpose of constructing a grange hall.[15] The deed was not recorded until March 1928 so that papers of incorporation could be filed with the State Corporation Commission.[16] The legal entity of Great Falls Grange No. 738, Incorporated was the party to the deed. [17] The parcel was used to secure a trust agreement for $4,000 with Fernando W. Hicks and Daisy E. Hicks, suggesting that either a portion of the purchase price or funding for construction was borrowed.[18]

Prior to construction of the grange hall, the community managed to raise a portion of the funds needed for the purchase of the land and for construction of the hall. At the time, agricultural prices were depressed; however, the overall economy was engaged in a speculative boom which preceded the Great Depression (1929-1939). Fundraising for the hall began at least two years prior to the start of construction. Forestville Day, an event held under the auspices of the Great Falls Grange, raised funds for the Grange Hall. The annual event included baseball games, dancing in an open-air pavilion, tug-of-war, and carnival games. Forestville Day of 1928 raised $800 for building the hall. Plays were also put on to raise funds for construction of the hall.[21] Funding was also obtained through the issuance of stock by the incorporated Great Falls Grange.[22]

Work began in Spring 1928 clearing the land of underbrush and trash in preparation for construction of the building foundations. The men and boys of the community brought their farm equipment to assist in clearing the site, while the women of the grange prepared a luncheon to be served to the workers.[23] The building committee, headed by Lemuel B. Morris, met on various occasions to discuss the plans for the hall. The construction contract was awarded to Morris in October 1928. 

L. B. Morris worked on other construction projects in the area. In 1938 he remodeled the basement of the nearby Colvin Run School, which was at that time owned by the Colvin Run Community Association and operated as a community center. That same year, Morris was elected president of the Association.

A newspaper article described the plans for the Great Falls Grange hall.

Excavations began soon after the contract was awarded and within a week it was reported that the excavations had been completed and the tile laying on the foundation and walls started. The cornerstone was expected to be laid the following month with all due ceremony.[25] The hall was completed in March 1929, and described as follows:

The final cost of the hall was $10,250. On May 4, 1929, the hall was dedicated in the presence of about 400 people, including leaders of the national and state granges. National Master Lewis J. Tabor and Great Falls Grange Master Oswald Carper led the dedication ceremony, during which the grange was presented with the Grange Seal. The ceremony included speeches, music, dinner, and dancing.[27] The occasion warranted several descriptions of the grange hall reported in newspapers and periodicals.

Metal medalion hanging in the Great Falls Grange hall on the wall above the stage.

The June 1929 issue of the National Grange Monthly reported that the Great Falls Grange hall was the first grange hall built in Virginia, however, the Pioneer Grange hall was in existence earlier, certainly by July 8, 1926 when it was mentioned in a newspaper article.[30] The land for the Pioneer Grange hall, located near Annandale, Virginia was purchased in 1922.[31] About 1927, just prior to construction of the Great Falls Grange hall, there were approximately 3,500 grange halls nationwide.[32]

After completion of the hall, the grange members intended to request the services of a landscape specialist from Blacksburg (Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University)  to assist in laying out the grounds.[33] A 1937 aerial photo of the Great Falls Grange depicts a circular driveway. Other structures, now non-extant, appear in the image.

When the Forestville High School was demolished to build the current fire station, O. V. Carper acquired the cornerstone and had it installed in the Great Falls Grange.[34] The name of the grange, and the builder L. M. Morris, were engraved on the stone. The cornerstone was not part of the original construction.

Building plans for school auditoriums were likely adapted for the construction of the grange hall. In fact, the Herndon Observer described the hall as an auditorium in an article about the building layout.[35] The following photo of a grange meeting held in a schoolhouse depicts a hall and stage nearly identical to the Great Falls Grange, with the exception that the schoolhouse had paired windows and the grange has single windows. A small portion of the ceiling shown in the photo suggests that the school auditorium/gymnasium may have also had a barrel-vaulted ceiling.

The old Oakton High School

The school auditorium/gymnasium in the photo has been identified as the old Oakton High School, which no longer exists.[36] A partial logo above the stage supports this identification. The Centreville Grange, later known as Providence Grange, held its meetings at Oakton High School.[37]

The auditorium/gymnasium for the Oakton High School was constructed in 1923 prior to construction of the Great Falls Grange.[38] The almost identical design suggests that the Great Falls Grange building committee may have used the Oakton High School auditorium/gymnasium building plans. School plans were standardized in Virginia at this time, and local leaders are known to have viewed other schools when selecting building plans. 

The basement of the Great Falls Grange resembles standard State of Virginia school plans for lunch rooms that were prepared in the early-20^th century. The lunch rooms were characterized by rectangular-shaped spaces with a kitchen at one end separated from the dining area by a wall with a counter and pass-through. As with the Great Falls Grange, the following standard plan has two pass-through areas. The larger pass-through was used for serving food, and the smaller for the return of lunch trays.

Lower Level of Great Falls Grange Hall.

Nearby, the Colvin Run School constructed an auditorium sometime between 1924 and June 1926 that is also similar to the grange hall. The upper-level ceiling is barrel-vaulted and constructed with wood paneling. A stage exists at the far end of the hall that has a curved downstage edge. On the lower level, there exists a kitchen at the rear with a pass-through. The lower level was used as the school cafeteria.

Other grange organizations operated in the area under the umbrella of the Fairfax County Pomona grange. By October 1920, Pioneer Grange (also known as Annandale Grange) was organized as Grange No. 737 of the Patrons of Husbandry. They had purchased a 100 feet by 200 feet lot of land in Masonville (located at the intersection of Annandale Road and Gallows Road as it existed at that time). Pioneer Grange is the only Fairfax County grange, other than the Great Falls Grange, known to have built a grange hall. The Pioneer Grange hall had already been constructed by July 8, 1926 when the hall was mentioned in a newspaper article. [39]

Original Pioneer Grange Hall is right-most portion of building.

Today the Pioneer Grange hall exists as part of the Korean Evangelical Church of Washington. The church constructed a large addition to the hall c. 1988; the grange hall comprises the southern portion of the building. Originally, the grange hall was rectangular shaped, similar to the Great Falls Grange.

The furniture used for grange meetings was constructed in 1951 by Mr. Euth P. Orr, a school teacher who lived adjacent to the grange hall. A metal plate is secured to the underside of the furniture stating that the furniture was “Designed – Built & Presented to Great Falls Grange by Euth P. Orr, 1951.”

Five pieces of grange furniture exist in the grange hall: a small podium, a large podium, an octagonal pedestal, and two trapezoidal-shaped tables. One of the longer tables was used by the three graces who sat by the stage.[40]

Applying

To become a member of the Great Falls Grange, prospective members completed an application, which was submitted with a fee.  A vote was taken on the application by placing a ball in a ballot box. If one person put a black ball in the ballot box, you were “blackballed” and the application was denied. The balloting was secret, and no reason was given for being blackballed. This process caused animosity between the Grange and people in the neighborhood.

You did not need to be a farmer to join the grange, and there was no limit to the number of people who could join.

Meetings

The Great Falls Grange typically had two meetings per month on Wednesdays. The younger children played in the basement during the meetings. If they got too loud, someone would bang on the floor above.

Green felt sashes were worn by the grange officers. Medals attached to the sash identified the granger’s office. The master had a gavel. The three graces, Ceres, Pomona, and Flora, held baskets of grain, flowers, and fruit.

Plans began in 1936 to organize a Junior Grange. This organization was for the young people between the ages of 6 and 14.[41] Their meetings were held in the adjacent schoolhouse.

Women have always participated in the grange. Originally four of the officer positions were designated for women: lady assistant steward and the three graces. In 1934, all of the elected officers were women.[42]

The Great Falls Grange was involved in education, promoting better roads, and improved community services. Their efforts were in line with the mission of the national Order of the Patrons of Husbandry.

Education

·        In 1925, the Great Falls Grange worked to retain the Home Demonstration Agent, and offered to provide financial assistance.[43]Home Demonstration Agents provided home economics education to women and girls.

·        The Grange was instrumental in getting the Forestville High School constructed.[44]The building was constructed through fund-raising, volunteerism, and financial contributions by grangers.

·        In 1929, they formed a committee to protest the closing of the Forestville High School, expressing that many boys and girls would discontinue attending school at an earlier age due to the long distance required to travel on horseback and foot over muddy roads.[45]

·        The Lecturer of the grange arranged for speakers to educate on various topics. In 1930, Mr. A. C. Speight lectured on the best way to protect flowers and shrubs through the winter months.[46]

·        In 1932, the Great Falls Grange hosted J. P. Andrews, of the Virginia Forest Service, who campaigned for the prevention of forest fires.[47]

·        In 1933, the grange opened a library in the hall. A case for the books was donated by William Cleveland to hold donated books.[48] A public library opened at the Great Falls Grange on January 27, 1939 with 100 books. The county bookmobile delivered books to the library on a regular schedule.[49] The library operated in the grange hall until 1961.[50]

Community Services

·        In 1925, they lobbied the Post Office Department for a post office at Great Falls.[51] A post office was re-established at Great Falls in 1959.

·        In 1928, they endorsed efforts to have the federal government build a bridge across the Potomac River at Great Falls.[52]

·        Throughout the years, they organized Forestville Day, which brought the community together in a social setting. Forestville Day also helped to raise funds for construction of the grange hall. Before the hall was built, Forestville Day was held in big tents during the summer on the school grounds. The women would fry chicken on coal stoves brought to the site for that purpose. Forestville Day was an annual event held for about 60 years.[53]

·        Dinners were held in the basement of the grange hall, which included oyster suppers, turkey dinners, ham, and biscuits by the hundreds.[54]

·        Dances, primarily for teenagers, were held at the grange hall. In the 1950s, the cost to attend the dance was a quarter. A record player supplied the music. Downstairs, the grange had bottled Coke and some refreshments.[55]

·        Plays were regularly conducted at the hall. The Great Falls Players held many shows in the grange hall.

·        In 1932, the Great Falls Grange planted two Norway Spruce trees in memory of George Washington. The trees were planted in conjunction with other local and national events celebrating the bicentennial of George Washington’s birth.[56] The two spruce trees were planted in the yard between Georgetown Pike and the grange hall, and are significant for their association with the national bicentennial event.

·        Fund-raising events, such as dinners and dances, were held to support community service projects.

Social Services

·        Soup was provided to school children. There was not enough soup for everyone, so the children were distributed the soup based on the child’s weight. Children were lined up for the soup with the thinnest children at the front of the line.[57]

·        Grange members participated in barn and house raisings.[58]

·        At Thanksgiving and Christmas, grange members, along with churches and the fire department, prepared food baskets for those in need.[59]

World War II Activities

The Virginia State Grange called upon the local granges throughout the state to adopt programs that would benefit the needs of war. At local meetings, members could find out which agricultural products were in greatest need, and to learn how to deal with the difficulties that arise in farming during times of war. For example, farmers could work out arrangements between neighbors for sharing labor when their sons left the farm for war. Farmers were required to meet unit requirements to justify men and boys staying on the farms to produce the necessary food and feed crop for the war. Grange meetings provided an opportunity to learn how to meet those quotas. Farm equipment was also shared and carefully maintained so that it could last through the war. Grange members were kept abreast of the changing legislation and administrative rulings enacted during the war.[60] Locally, the Great Falls Grange women met at the grange hall to roll bandages.[61]

Because granges and farm bureaus assisted in the war effort, attendees could travel by automobile without the trip being considered pleasure driving.[62]

In 1948, the Grange cleared and graded the rear wooded lot, and installed a baseball diamond for community use. The baseball field included a backstop and two cinder block dugouts.[63]

In 1950, members of the Great Falls Grange prepared the first hand-sewn United Nations banner, which was presented to President Truman. The banner was described as a 3x6 foot flag.[64]

The heyday of the Great Falls Grange was during the 1920s and 1930s when participation was greatest. After the 1940s, many of the members who joined were not farmers, but military and government workers who moved to the Forestville area.[65]

The number of farms was declining nationwide. After several decades in the early 20^th century of a steady, if slight, rise in the number of farms, the statistics show a decline  in farming beginning in the mid-1930s. Many of the farms in the Forestville area were discontinued following World War II due to the affect the labor shortage had on the farms.[66]

In the late 1970s, a desire to transfer ownership of the grange hall to the State Grange split the community. The instigator belonged to the Great Falls Grange, and was master of the Virginia State Grange. Many people in the community possessed ownership shares of the grange hall, and didn’t want to lose the grange hall. Some of the stock had been passed down through generations of family. Shareholders were concerned that the State master wanted to purchase the hall for himself. A court case ensued in Fairfax County, and the share owners retained ownership. It was believed that the deciding factor in the case was that the grange hall was owned by Great Falls Grange, Inc., i.e. the shareholders, rather than the grange organization.

Many of the shareholders preferred that that County own the building so that it could continue serving the neighborhood as a community center.[67] The shareholders did not feel that they had the necessary funds for the adequate upkeep of the building. In 1980, the Fairfax County Park Authority purchased the grange hall and surrounding 7.8 acres.[68] The Park Authority closed the building for two years for repairs, and reopened the hall for community use in 1982.[69]