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C−History
History · Oakton

Oakton’s post office opened in 1883, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

More historic than 22% of U.S. towns · #153 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it

Its Register listing is the Oakton Trolley Station. Most of Oakton was built recently: 1% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1983. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1915 on, and the census since 1990.

1883first post office
1on the National Register
1%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
4famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Oakton began

When was Oakton founded?

1883

The Oakton post office opened in 1883, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 24,610 in 19902020 census: 36,732143 years

How historic is Oakton?

C−

More historic than 22% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Oakton post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade

What drives Oakton’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Oakton is more historic than 22% of U.S. towns, #153 of 253 in Virginia. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Oakton’s overall grade.
Founding era1883, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19401.2% of homes (±0.6) · typical VA town 1.9% · U.S. 8.4%DNational Register1 listing, 0.3 per 10,000 residents · typical VA town 3.6 · U.S. 2.4C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 22%
NewerOlder
Virginia towns of 2,500+ (253)Ahead of 40%

Virginia towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Virginia town has 3.6 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Oakton’s 0.3 sits near the middle of its state (35% of Virginia towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C. The pre-1940 share (±0.6 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Oakton’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19157 editions of the USGS map, 1915 to 1994. Watch Oakton change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Oakton’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Oakton’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewFairfax Roses materials (Page 30): stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Oakton on the map, 1915 to 1994

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Oakton. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Oakton on the 1915 USGS mapOakton on the 1944 USGS mapOakton on the 1951 USGS mapOakton on the 1966 USGS mapOakton on the 1971 USGS mapOakton on the 1980 USGS mapOakton on the 1994 USGS map1915Fairfax sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Oakton.

The story so far

Oakton, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Oakton yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Oakton is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. The population was 36,732 at the 2020 census. Located in Northern Virginia, its center is 16 miles (26 km) west of Washington, D.C.

Its first post office opened in 1883. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 34,166 to 36,732 (+8%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Oakton, 1883 to 2002

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1883Post officeThe Oakton post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1911In the archiveFairfax Roses materials (Page 30)
  5. 1915On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1973Post officeThe Oakton post office closes
  7. 1981Born hereJacob Frey is born here
  8. 1984Born hereKeira D'Amato is born here
  9. 1990Born hereJohn Stertzer is born here
  10. 1993In the archiveBernis-1993
  11. 21st century
  12. 2002Born hereTheodore Ku-DiPietro is born here
By decade

Oakton, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1910s to the 1990s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s1 item
Fairfax Roses materials (Page 30)1911Fairfax Roses materials (Page 30)
1920s–1980snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
1990s1 item
Bernis-19931993Bernis-1993
Today16 recent
Oakton VA Florence Jodzies Hist Marker2013Oakton VA Florence Jodzies Hist MarkerOakton, VA, USA2012Oakton, VA, USAOak Marr Mini Golf2012Oak Marr Mini GolfJune 2012 North American derecho - Vienna, Va - 22012June 2012 North American derecho - Vienna, Va - 2June 2012 North American derecho - Vienna, Va - 12012June 2012 North American derecho - Vienna, Va - 1Oakton Community Library2011Oakton Community LibraryOakton Community Library2011Oakton Community LibraryOakton Community Library2011Oakton Community LibraryOakton Community Library2011Oakton Community LibraryOakton Community Library2011Oakton Community LibraryOakton Community Library2011Oakton Community LibraryOakton Community Library2011Oakton Community LibraryOakton Community Library2011Oakton Community LibraryOakton, va, 032010Oakton, va, 03Oakton, va, 022010Oakton, va, 02Oakton, va, 012010Oakton, va, 01
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Fairfax Roses materials (Page 30)
Retake this viewFairfax Roses materials (Page 30), 1911

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Oakton’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Oakton

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1995
Oakton Trolley Station
Oakton Trolley Station
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Late Victorian1
Oakton Trolley StationLate Victorian

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Oakton, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00040,00020002020Peak: 36,732

Between 24,610 and 36,732 people in every census since 1990.

4 censuses, 1990–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Oakton’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

4 famous people were born in Oakton

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Jacob FreyMayor of Minneapolis since 2018 · b. 1981
T
Theodore Ku-DiPietroAmerican soccer player · b. 2002
Keira D'AmatoAmerican runner · b. 1984
J
John StertzerAmerican soccer player · b. 1990
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Oakton had its own post office from 1883 to 1973.

Oakton
1883–1973
18801950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Fairfax AcresFairlee
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Oakton
Flint HillOakton Church of the Brethren

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Difficult Run1 historic placeC−Fair OaksIts storyD−Vienna1 historic placeB−Fairfax6 historic placesB−Wolf TrapIts storyD−MerrifieldIts storyD

Questions about Oakton’s history

What year was Oakton founded?

The Oakton post office opened in 1883, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Oakton rank for history?

Oakton is more historic than 22% of U.S. towns, #153 of 253 in Virginia. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Oakton?

One place: the Oakton Trolley Station (listed 1995).

How old are the homes in Oakton?

1% of Oakton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 1.9% for a Virginia town; the median home was built in 1983.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (10), the Library of Congress (8), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.