Hollin Hills

Hollin Hills is a neighborhood in Hybla Valley, Virginia, though much of the neighborhood (east of Elba Road and Rebecca Drive) was transferred to the Fort Hunt CDP for census purposes before 2010. The community abuts the Villamay and Mason Hill neighborhoods, just south of Alexandria in the South Alexandria section of Fairfax County, Virginia.

Hollin Hills Historic District
LocationRoughly Beechwood, Elba, Glasgow, Martha's, Paul Springs, Range & Stafford Rds., Mason Hill, Rebecca & Whiteoaks Drs., Alexandria, Virginia
Coordinates38°45′23″N 77°04′02″W
Area326 acres (132 ha)
Built1946 (1946), 1956
Built byDavenport, Robert C.
ArchitectGoodman, Charles M.
Architectural styleModern Movement
MPSHistoric Residential Suburbs of the United States, 1830–1960
NRHP reference No.13000807[1]
VLR No.029-5471
Significant dates
Added to NRHPSeptember 30, 2013
Designated VLRJune 2013[2]

Designed by Charles M. Goodman and developed by Robert C. Davenport in the 1940s, it was one of the Washington, D.C. area's first post-World-War-II developments. Its roughly 450 houses brought contemporary construction to northern Virginia.

Today, the neighborhood is known primarily for its mid-century modern architecture, which remains very cohesive because of a design review committee that advises on building or modification of existing houses.[3]

The Hollin Hills Historic District is a 326 acres (132 ha) residential neighborhood encompassing 468 contributing buildings, five contributing sites, and three contributing structures.[4]

History
Neighborhood entrance sign on Sherwood Hall Lane

Davenport intended the name "Hollin Hills" as a variation of the 18th-century Hollin Hall Plantation, originally owned by George Mason, one of the founding fathers, known as the "Father of the Bill of Rights." General Mason named his lands after an English estate of his mother's family. Some of the Hollin Hall plantation buildings still stand on Sherwood Hall Lane.[5]

He hired D.C.-based architect Charles M. Goodman (who also designed the Washington National Airport) and landscape architect Dan Kiley to design the community.[6] They chose to design each home with lots no smaller than one-third of an acre. During construction, many trees were retained to block sight lines, and houses were built at angles to ensure privacy. The popularity of the homes, which feature huge expanses of glass, established Goodman as a nationally acclaimed guru of modern architecture.[7][8] Davenport named some streets to complement the community name, while others were named after family members: Martha's Road for his mother and Rebecca Drive for his daughter. Elba Road was named after one of his prize bulls.[9]

Examples of architecture in Hollin Hills
  • A house in Hollin Hills designed by the architect Charles M. Goodman.
  • A house in Hollin Hills designed by the architect Charles M. Goodman.

Awards

Hollin Hills has won many awards, beginning with the Revere Quality House award from the Southwest Research Institute in 1950 and including two 1982 Test of Time awards from the Virginia Society of the American Institute of Architects, for houses on Stafford Road.

Hollin Hills is on the Fairfax County, Virginia, Inventory of Historic Sites.

Hollin Hills was added to the Virginia Landmarks Register in late June 2013.[10] The Board of the Civic Association of Hollin Hills (CAHH) sought a National Register of Historic Places national historic district designation for the neighborhood, which was granted in September 2013.[1]

Notable residents

Over the decades, Hollin Hills has attracted artists, architects, politicians, lawyers, doctors and numerous other individuals typical of the metropolitan DC region. Notable residents include former CBS newsman Eric Sevareid,[11] former U.S. Representative James G. O'Hara (1925–1989),[12] United States Senator Pat Roberts, musician Gil Scott-Heron, [13] singer Roberta Flack,[14] architect Michael Sorkin[15] and the production designers for Mad Men, Dan Bishop and Jeremy Conway.[16]

References
  1. "National Register of Historic Places Listings". Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 9/16/13 through 9/30/13. National Park Service. 2013-10-18.
  2. "Virginia Landmarks Register". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Retrieved 2018-12-07.
  3. "Hollin Hills: A Mid-Century Modern Community". Retrieved 2018-12-07.
  4. Laura V. Trieschmann; Andrea F. Schoenfeld; Jere Gibber (March 2013). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Hollin Hills Historic District" (PDF). Virginia Department of Historic Resources.
  5. "Hollin Hills: Our Community". Retrieved 2018-12-07.
  6. "Longtime Obstetrician Was Active in Mormon Church". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2008-05-05.
  7. John A. Burns (June 1, 2001). "back to the future: architect john a. burns, faia, looked back 50 years to find a house ahead of its time". Retrieved 2018-12-07.
  8. "Welcome to Hollin Hills". Retrieved 2009-06-06.
  9. "Facts and Highlights about Hollin Hills". Retrieved 2009-06-06.
  10. Schumitz, Kali (2013-07-17). "Hollin Hills added to Virginia Landmarks Register". The Washington Post.
  11. "Longtime Obstetrician Was Active in Mormon Church". The Washington Post. June 12, 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-06.
  12. "Biographical Directory of the United States Congress". Retrieved 2009-06-06.
  13. "Roberta Flack's Former Hollin Hills Home For Sale". Retrieved 2020-02-12.
  14. "A RESURGENT NIGHT FOR THE ARTS". Retrieved 2014-04-20.
  15. Lewis, Roger K. (2012-06-01). "Hollin Hills is a Happy Experiment in Modernity". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2014-04-20.
  16. Sergent, Jennifer (2010-07-22). "'Mad Men' and 'Sex and the City' production designers grew up in Hollin Hills". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2014-04-20.
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