Taming Rebel Hill

Burke native Glenn Curtis photographed the work in progress taming Rebel Hill and turning that stretch of Braddock Road into a four-lane divided highway. Research has not determined the exact time of construction by the Virginia Department of Transportation. Examination of aerial photos by the Fairfax County GIS & Mapping Services office narrowed the time to between March 1970 and March 1972.

Glenn H. Curtis

Glenn H. Curtis

Copyrighted material, not to be reproduced without permission of owner Glenn H. Curtis

Photograph

Rebel Hill, Artist's Drawing

On March 29, 1962, The Washington Post reported testimony by Mrs. Z. C. Zefteris of Kings Park West about Rebel Hill on Braddock Road to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. Describing cars sliding off the steep road in icy conditions and the inability of women to walk up the hill to call for help, she is quoted: "They had to go up that hill on their hands and knees..."

Artist Chris Lipsey depicts what it might have been like for drivers in winter.

Courtesy Chris Lipsey

Copyrighted material, not to be reproduced without permission of owner

Slideshow: Rebel Hill

Rebel Hill, a small but steep hill on Braddock Road near Wakefield Chapel Road, challenged drivers, especially in bad weather, until tamed by highway engineers in the early 1970s. A good replica of the original road exists in the bike and footpath on the north side of Braddock Road, which the slideshow traces in a series of 10 captioned pictures.

NOTE: Although the second slide caption dates the highway construction in the 1960s, later research places it between March 1970 and March 1972.

Courtesy John Browne

Memories: Elizabeth Dove

Elizabeth Dove remembers Braddock Road in the 1930s, describing the neighborhood, home ownership, and daily life.

Oral History: Paul Kincheloe

Paul Kincheloe grew up on a dairy farm on Burke Road his father bought in the early 1940s. The farm was sold and developed into the Lake Braddock community about 1970. His boyhood home, Greenfield, still stands on Burke Road. Now an attorney, he talks about his memories of growing up on a working dairy farm, his childhood chores, education, and recreation.

Oral History: Robin Hirst

Robin Hirst grew up among influential people when her father, Omer Hirst, served as a Virginia State Legislator. Her family's farm near Burke has been subdivided and developed, but the unique house they built, Hirst House, remains. She shares memories of her childhood, people she met, and her involvement in equestrian sports.

Oral History: John Hawthorne

John Hawthorne grew up in Northern Virginia and talks about childhood, development, and community action against excessive growth. He describes the early years of Ravensworth Farm.