Brown's Farmhouse (Site)

These coordinates mark the exact spot where the house used to be. No remains are visible here. This house is related to the Phoenix Mill directly across the street.


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In 1888, David G. Watkins’ heirs were forced to sell the family’s properties to satisfy estate debts. John Brown paid $6,500 for the “Old Dominion” Mill, its water rights, and a total of 83 acres of land (Fairfax Deeds Book H-5:50), but like many previous owners of this property, Brown apparently defaulted on the deed of trust. As a result, Frank M. Hill, a printer who lived on South Lee Street in Alexandria, acquired the mill in 1896 (Chataigne 1888; Census, Population Schedule, Alexandria 1900).

Two photographic images provide important insights into the development of this parcel during this period. A 1927 aerial photograph (Figure 4.10) appears to show the area south and east of the mill building as cleared but uncultivated, perhaps in use as pasture. A building directly across Mill Road from the mill itself may be the dwelling identified on Hopkins’ 1894 map as “J. Brown’s.” Finally, this photograph clearly shows a rectangular “building shadow” directly on Mill Road northeast of the mill building; it is possible that this building “shadow” relates to the frame barn that was visible in Figure 4.7. The mature trees and small growth that surround the mill in Figure 4.11 contrast sharply with the treeless landscapes shown in Figures 4.6 and 4.7, suggesting that the latter undated photograph may depict the mill—its wooden sluiceway and wheel still intact—after Cockrell ceased active farming in the area.