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D−History
History · Wolf Trap

Half of Wolf Trap’s homes were built after 1980

More historic than 4% of U.S. towns · #212 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it

Most of Wolf Trap was built recently: 0.6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1980. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1915 on, and the census since 1980.

0on the National Register
0.6%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Ser Amantio di Nicolao · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

About Wolf Trap’s history

How historic is Wolf Trap?

D−

More historic than 4% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
History grade

What drives Wolf Trap’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Wolf Trap is more historic than 4% of U.S. towns, #212 of 253 in Virginia. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Wolf Trap’s overall grade.
Founding eraNo founding year we can rely on, so the grade uses the other two–Homes built before 19400.6% of homes (±0.5) · typical VA town 1.9% · U.S. 8.4%DNational RegisterNo listings counted · typical VA town 3.6 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 4%
NewerOlder
Virginia towns of 2,500+ (253)Ahead of 16%

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 Wolf Trap’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (17% of Virginia towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±0.5 points) is firm at this size.

Founding year: our sources. 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 Wolf Trap’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 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s Wolf Trap, and 12 old place names are still on the map.On the map since 19157 editions of the USGS map, 1915 to 1994. Watch Wolf Trap change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Wolf Trap’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Another post office, Hunter, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
A Country PlaceBeau RidgeBrowns MillCinnamon CreekClarks CrossingCrowells CornerFour CornersHunterShouse VillageSpring RidgeSun ValleyTowlston Meadow
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Wolf Trap
Andrew Chapel United Methodist ChurchCartersville Baptist ChurchDay Family

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

On the map

Wolf Trap on the map, 1915 to 1994

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

Wolf Trap on the 1915 USGS mapWolf Trap on the 1944 USGS mapWolf Trap on the 1951 USGS mapWolf Trap on the 1966 USGS mapWolf Trap on the 1971 USGS mapWolf Trap on the 1980 USGS mapWolf Trap 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 Wolf Trap.

The story so far

Wolf Trap, in brief

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

Wolf Trap is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 census, Wolf Trap had a population of 16,496. Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts is located in the CDP.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 16,131 to 16,496 (+2%).

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

Timeline

Wolf Trap, 1826 to 1926

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1826In the archiveCapes of Virginia
  3. 20th century
  4. 1904Post officeThe Hunter post office opens
  5. 1915On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1926Post officeThe Hunter post office closes
By decade

Wolf Trap, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1820s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1820s1 item
Capes of Virginia1826Capes of VirginiaDocument
Today29 recent
Leesburg Pike Difficult Run Bridge 20212021Leesburg Pike Difficult Run Bridge 2021Hunter Mill Road Bridge 2021b2021Hunter Mill Road Bridge 2021bHunter Mill Road Bridge 2021a2021Hunter Mill Road Bridge 2021aW&OD Trail Difficult Run crossing 2020c2020W&OD Trail Difficult Run crossing 2020cW&OD Trail Difficult Run crossing 2020b2020W&OD Trail Difficult Run crossing 2020bW&OD Trail Difficult Run crossing 2020a2020W&OD Trail Difficult Run crossing 2020aDulles Toll Road Difficult Run Crossing 2020c2020Dulles Toll Road Difficult Run Crossing 2020cDulles Toll Road Difficult Run Crossing 2020b2020Dulles Toll Road Difficult Run Crossing 2020bDulles Toll Road Difficult Run Crossing 2020a2020Dulles Toll Road Difficult Run Crossing 2020aCross County Trail 4th Difficult Run crossing 2020b2020Cross County Trail 4th Difficult Run crossing 2020bCross County Trail 4th Difficult Run crossing 2020a2020Cross County Trail 4th Difficult Run crossing 2020aCross County Trail 3rd Difficult Run crossing 20202020Cross County Trail 3rd Difficult Run crossing 2020Browns Mill Road Bridge 20202020Browns Mill Road Bridge 20202019-09-17 14 07 33 View east along Virginia State Route 7 (Leesburg Pike) at the exit for Virginia State Route 267 WES…20192019-09-17 14 07 33 View east along Virginia State Ro…2019-09-17 13 03 52 View west along Virginia State Route 7 (Leesburg Pike) at the exit for Virginia State Route 267 WES…20192019-09-17 13 03 52 View west along Virginia State Ro…2018-10-26 11 52 54 View west along Virginia State Route 267 (Dulles Toll and Access Roads) from the overpass for Virgi…20182018-10-26 11 52 54 View west along Virginia State Ro…2018-10-26 11 42 51 View east along Virginia State Route 267 (Dulles Toll and Access Roads) and the Silver Line of the …20182018-10-26 11 42 51 View east along Virginia State Ro…2018-10-26 11 40 51 View west along Virginia State Route 267 (Dulles Toll and Access Roads) and the Silver Line of the …20182018-10-26 11 40 51 View west along Virginia State Ro…2018-10-26 11 34 20 View east along Virginia State Route 267 (Dulles Toll and Access Roads) and the Silver Line of the …20182018-10-26 11 34 20 View east along Virginia State Ro…2018-10-26 11 33 06 View west along Virginia State Route 267 (Dulles Toll and Access Roads) and the Silver Line of the …20182018-10-26 11 33 06 View west along Virginia State Ro…2018-10-26 11 32 08 View west along Virginia State Route 267 (Dulles Toll and Access Roads) and the Silver Line of the …20182018-10-26 11 32 08 View west along Virginia State Ro…2018-10-24 13 00 24 View west along Virginia State Route 267 (Dulles Toll Road) at Exit 14 (Virginia State Route 674-Hu…20182018-10-24 13 00 24 View west along Virginia State Ro…2018-10-24 12 13 11 View east along Virginia State Route 267 (Dulles Toll Road) at Exit 16A (Virginia State Route 7 EAS…20182018-10-24 12 13 11 View east along Virginia State Ro…Trap Rd2016Trap RdNeighborhood in2016Neighborhood inHouses in2016Houses inHouse along the road2016House along the road2016-10-21 07 37 26 View east along Virginia State Route 267 (Dulles Toll Road) just east of Exit 14 (Hunter Mill Road)…20162016-10-21 07 37 26 View east along Virginia State Ro…C.J. Harris Wolf Trap (cropped)2014C.J. Harris Wolf Trap (cropped)
People over time

Wolf Trap, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,00016,00018,000198020002020Peak: 16,496

Between 9,875 and 16,496 people in every census since 1980.

5 censuses, 1980–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Wolf Trap

Nobody well known was born in Wolf Trap itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Jason SudeikisAmerican actor and comedian · b. 1975
Ariel WinterAmerican actress · b. 1998
Sean ParkerAmerican entrepreneur, programmer and philanthr… · b. 1979
Taryn ManningAmerican actress, singer and songwriter · b. 1978
Darren StarAmerican television producer, writer · b. 1961
I
Ilia MalininAmerican figure skater · b. 2004
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Vienna1 historic placeB−Oakton1 historic placeC−TysonsIts storyDReston2 historic placesC−McLean8 historic placesC−Difficult Run1 historic placeC−Great Falls8 historic placesCGreat Falls CrossingIts storyD−

Questions about Wolf Trap’s history

How does Wolf Trap rank for history?

Wolf Trap is more historic than 4% of U.S. towns, #212 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.

How old are the homes in Wolf Trap?

0.6% of Wolf Trap’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 1.9% for a Virginia town; the median home was built in 1980.

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 (30), 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.