Near Falls Church in Fairfax County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Fort Buffalo

Photographed by J. J. Prats, April 26, 2008

1. Fort Buffalo Marker

Inscription. Nearby once stood Fort Buffalo. This earthwork fortification was built by the 21st New York Infantry of the Union army in 1861 and named for the troops’ hometown. During the Civil War, a concentration of forts existed in the Seven Corners section of Falls Church. These structures were used in the Federal defense of Washington. First occupied by Brig. Gen. Irvin McDowell’s troops during the First Manassas Campaign, the fort was briefly occupied by the Confederates following that Federal defeat in July 1861. In the 1950s, Seven Corners shopping center and the surrounding community was developed on land once part of and surrounding Fort Buffalo.

Erected 2000 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number T-49.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Defenses of Washington series list. A significant historical month for this entry is July 1861.

Location. 38° 52.2′ N, 77° 9.433′ W. Marker is near Falls Church, Virginia, in Fairfax County. It is on Sleepy Hollow Road (County Route 613) south of Leesburg Pike (Virginia Route 7), on the left when

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traveling south. Marker is at the Seven Corners Fire Station, one block from Seven Corners. Sleepy Hollow Road is one of the seven roadways that makes up Seven Corners. The others are Arlington Boulevard (U.S. 50) east and west, Leesburg Pike (VA 7) east and west, Wilson Boulevard (Route 613), and Hillwood Avenue (VA 338). Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2959 Sleepy Hollow Rd, Falls Church VA 22044, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Washington Metropolitan Area

and in Northern Virginia.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

and in the Mid-Atlantic.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Vietnamese Immigrants in Northern Virginia (approx. ¼ mile away);

Photographed by J. J. Prats, April 26, 2008

2. Fort Buffalo Marker

Taylor’s Tavern (approx. 0.3 miles away); Falls Church (approx. 0.4 miles away); a different marker also named Taylor’s Tavern (approx. 0.4 miles away); Fairfax Chapel (approx. 0.4 miles away); Tallwood (approx. half a mile away); Dulin Methodist Church (approx. 0.6 miles away); Original Federal Boundary Stone, District of Columbia, Southwest 8 (approx. 0.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Falls Church.

Also see . . .
1. Where Was Fort Buffalo?. Monograph by Mark Doehnert. “Apparently construction started on the October, 4 1861 and was completed on October 24 and christened ‘Fort Buffalo.’ It was reported the Union Generals McClellan and McDowell and Brigadier General Wadsworth visited the Fort.” (Submitted on January 16, 2009.)

2. 1st Wisconsin Heavy Artillery at Fort Buffalo. Company K of the Wisconsin Second Infantry became Company A of the First Wisconsin Heavy Artillery after the retreat from 1st Manassas. The regiment was posted at Fort Buffalo in 1862 after the retreat from 2nd Manassas and repulsed a Confederate attack. (Submitted on April 1, 2009, by Rob Aronson of Alexandria, Virginia.)

Photographed by J. J. Prats, April 26, 2008

3. Fort Buffalo Marker

This view is towards Seven Corners. Firehouse is on the right.

Credits. This page was last revised on July 28, 2025. It was originally submitted on April 27, 2008, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 9,542 times since then and 246 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on April 27, 2008, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. • Craig Swain was the editor who published this page.