Ashburn In It’s Younger Days

Contributed by Cathy Gant

Moving to a new town was very scary for this family of seven back in 1964. We were leaving a small community that knew everyone and our home that we were born and raised in. Dad came south to find better work. In 1964 he found a small town called Ashburn. The town was old but had a lot of good people living there that made you feel like you lived there all your life. The old train station still stood along the railroad tracks and the train still came through the town right passed Partlow’s Store.

I can remember talking to people in the yard and having to stop, just so we could watch the train go through. We always wondered where it was going and when it would be back. It was a very added attraction to this small town. The main street which was Rt. 641 housed the main attractions and meeting places for the neighbors of all over. There was Partlow’s Store which was owned and operated by Calvin and Urnestine Partlow, the old Ashburn Mill which was owned and operated by the Fletcher family, the Ashburn Firehouse which was filled with volunteers (no paid firemen!) And we can’t forget the old Ashburn Post Office that stood not far from the train station and the churches that are still a great part of the community. In the mornings the lines would gather as we walked to Ashburn Elementary School.

Ashburn was a safe community, because the people cared about you. As kids we could ride our bikes till dark and walk any where, any time we wanted too, and no one ever tried to harm us. My family got involved with the fire company and hearing the fire siren go off was quite an event. You would stand there and watch the firemen head for the trucks and you knew who had to come yet and who didn’t. By the time the siren stopped, Dad was in the driver seat and on his way. There was not much "action" in those days, the town was quite and the neighbors all talked to each other and helped each other out when needed. I remember Miss Lucy who lived all by herself at the end of town. She was all alone and loved visits from the kids in town. She was very lonely and old. She would walk to the store dressed as if she was going to a Sunday social with her umbrella in hand. There were others that you just never forgot. All part of being a small town.

The homes were well kept and the streets were clean from clutter. The businesses in the town were kept busy and no matter how busy they were, they were never to busy to help you. I remember going to the Post Office and asking for the mail in our box and then when the new Post Office came, we had combinations! What a real wake-up!

Later in life, I would go to Belmont Plantation to visit friends that lived on the farm. The Clarks owned and lived there for many years in the mansion. Mr. Clark would pay my former husband 5 cents to mow his lawn or do odd jobs for him when he was younger. His aunt and uncle lived in the nearby tenant house and helped take care of the grounds for many years. So visiting Belmont was a regular stop for us. I can remember driving up the long lane and making the circle around the house, wondering what it would be like to live there. When ever I would go through the house, it was like being a young child in fantasy land. The grounds were well kept and the mansion was beautiful. As the years went on and times changed, I always felt that this plantation should stay a historic landmark in Loudoun County and be used for social events and tours. I had hoped that private owners would share this beautiful site with the public.

The old town of Ashburn still stands, but with many changes. The train and its station is now a memory and no longer a reality. Many of the families are now gone and new ones have moved in. The farmlands and fields are now housing developments on top of each other. Our home in Ashburn is no longer a home, but a business.

Ashburn was hardly on the map in those days, now it is flashing across the television set and other areas. Why? Because someone had the need to build houses. There will soon be no history to see unless people wake up and realize that our history is leaving us every time a house is built. I realize this is growth and a continuous trend, but is there no hope left for the true world anymore?

Ashburn is not the Ashburn we once knew and grew up in, it is a world of housing developments and businesses. And that my friend, is sad...