Was talking to a left-coaster the other day here, and the subject came up: is northern Virginia a northern or southern area. Won't tell you where either side ended up, but it got me thinking, do we consider ourselves Southern, Northern, or possibly in-between?

Geographically we are Southern, but we are not Mississippi. Then again, we are not Massachussetts either. Being from Robert E Lee's AND George Washington's area, what would you say?

Southern efficiency and Northern charm - JFK

Spunky or Meade are still trying to reconcile their "southerns" roots with living in NOVA? Really?

Fairfax is a suburb of Washington DC.

It is neither northern or southern.

It is "suburban cosmopolitan", an educated, professional community that would not have existed during the age of "north versus south" that some people are unable to let go of.

Whoever wants to label NOVA as "southern" should go and take a look at Raliegh-Durham, or even Atlanta, anymore.

To really blow your mind, you should spend a week in Austin Texas.

And, Miami and South Beach are truly NOT "southerns".

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The function of conservatives is not to meet every liberal program or scheme with a denunciation or a destructive counterscheme, but rather to weigh its advantages and defects, supporting the first and challenging the second. A declaration of ideological warfare against liberalism is by its nature profoundly unconservative. It meets perceived radicalism with a counterradicalism of its own.

South of the mason dixon? Yes.

Southern? Not anymore. Too many yanks moved in. That said, you don't have to drive too far to see "the rest" of Virginia.

We are still southern but there are bunch of minorities that have moved in and ruined NOVA.

Technically no one lived in Washington DC, so it was "neutral" territory. Many of the farms south of DC were conservative southerners. Nowadays most people here scoff at the idea that south of DC would be "South". We are Mid-Atlantic meaning...No Identity.

Hell yes we are southern! We live in VIRGINIA. We seceded from the Union in April 1861. I still fly my rebel flag with pride.

Definitely the south. Whenever I walk around Tysons, I feel like I'm in the heart of Dixie! It's a slow-paced way of life where most people are focused on going to church and making sweet tea. Most of the people living here talk exactly like Foghorn Leghorn!

TheMeeper Wrote:
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> Definitely the south. Whenever I walk around
> Tysons, I feel like I'm in the heart of Dixie!
> It's a slow-paced way of life where most people
> are focused on going to church and making sweet
> tea. Most of the people living here talk exactly
> like Foghorn Leghorn!


Ummm...people in the North also go to church.

And I make a pitcher of sweet tea every morning (yes, I drink a pitcher a day).

.
Attachments:

Virginia starts to feel southern around Richmond, Culpeper or Staunton. Anything north of those regions is just suburbia of DC.

Brick Wrote:
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> Virginia starts to feel southern around Richmond,
> Culpeper or Staunton. Anything north of those
> regions is just suburbia of DC.



Actually Virginia starts feeling south once you get to around Manassas.

Manassas? That hell hole is just a boulevard full of retail stores.

I will Gladlee pay yew Tewzday fer a chezburger Tewdayz!

A very genteel Southern lady was driving across the Shenandoah River Bridge in Virginia one day. As she neared the top of the bridge, she noticed a young man fixin' to (getting ready to) jump.

She stopped her car, rolled down the window and said, "Please, don't jump; think of your dear mother and father."

He replied, "Mom and Dad are both dead; I'm going to jump."

She said, "Well, think of your wife and children."

He replied, "I'm not married and I don't have any kids."

She said, "Well, think of Robert E. Lee"

He replied, "Who's Robert E. Lee?"

She replied, "Well, bless your heart, just go ahead and jump, you dumb-ass Yankee."

What flavor you want? Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Manassas? That hell hole is just a boulevard full
> of retail stores.

I was just four miles south of Manassas last week in a small town called Aden. There is only 1 building in the entire town and its a general store. It felt like the south out there. Felt like it was 200 miles away from Fairfax.

How about we call it "post-southern" since adding "post-" to stuff makes it sophisticated.

the new mason-dixon line is rt. 234. Everyone south of it either has a heavy drawl, missing teeth and a cousin named Darryl.

The cannons at the FFX courthouse point north, nuff said.

A little Civil War history might be used as data to answer the question - for most of the Civil War the Army of the Potomac (also known as the Army of NorthEastern Virginia) was located throughout Northern Virginia (Fairfax, Vienna) while the Army of Northern Virginia was a leading force in the Confederate Army (Centerille, Aquia, Shenendoah, etc) which totally explains why Northern Virginia as we know it today was both in the North and the South. Confused yet? Check out the Civil War sites around our area and you can see that a huge part of the Civil War was right here in our backyard. They stared at each other from Fairfax/Vienna to Centreville/Chantilly for most of the war. Raids into the City of Fairfax are famous parts of the Civil War and in fact the first skirmish of the Civil War occurred on Main Street in Fairfax. Get out and see the history around us!

Mosby's fairfax raid on March 9, 1863 also shows how Fairfax was a union stronghold.

Fairfax City was a union garrison town.

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The function of conservatives is not to meet every liberal program or scheme with a denunciation or a destructive counterscheme, but rather to weigh its advantages and defects, supporting the first and challenging the second. A declaration of ideological warfare against liberalism is by its nature profoundly unconservative. It meets perceived radicalism with a counterradicalism of its own.

I would give Northern Va to the Union. Linclon knew he needed to heavily defend DC so South of the Potomac he built a series of strong hold forts(along George Washignton Parkway) and massed Union troops in Arlington.

The South knew to avoid the DC area and went West of the DC area on major attacks to the North. Much easier to make flank attacks into WV and PA then attack in NoVa with massive Union troops in Arlington. Fairfax County was tossed back and forth during the war, but mainly Union.

I wouldn't use Mosby's raiders as a good example as Mosby was admired by BOTH the North and South as a black knight and moved freely. Rumors have it he was a lady's man and that's the reason he was able to sneak into Fairfax. Bitch setup the Union officers. Rumors also have it that Mosby's men would secretly drink with Union soilders in Fairfax City on occasion. That would make Fairfax City nomans land.

Now technically speaking Northern Va, DC and MD were considered part of the South and the Mason Dixon line would put Northern Va in the South(Land South of Pennsylvania).

As for Manassas today>>> LOL that area can't be classified in any survey other than the bar scene from Star Wars.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/12/2009 03:08AM by Lurker..

Thurston Moore Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> To really blow your mind, you should spend a week
> in Austin Texas.
>
I kept having to pick my eyeballs up off the sidewalk on 6th Street. One beautiful woman after another walking around.

Thurston Moore Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Spunky or Meade are still trying to reconcile
> their "southerns" roots with living in NOVA?
> Really?
>
> Fairfax is a suburb of Washington DC.
>
> It is neither northern or southern.
>
> It is "suburban cosmopolitan", an educated,
> professional community that would not have existed
> during the age of "north versus south" that some
> people are unable to let go of.
>
> Whoever wants to label NOVA as "southern" should
> go and take a look at Raliegh-Durham, or even
> Atlanta, anymore.
>
> To really blow your mind, you should spend a week
> in Austin Texas.
>
> And, Miami and South Beach are truly NOT
> "southerns".


In Florida, the "South" ends around Stuart.

Northern Virginia is most certainly NOT the South. Heck, when some of my family was moving back to VA, and then they were informed of where to, they exclaimed: "THAT's not Virginia". Yes, we are "Virginia", but we are not "True" Virginia in the sense that we live in a VERY transient area full of New Yorkers and others.

Northern Virginia is Southern Historically, Mid-Atlantic Geographically, and Northern Politically.

fairfaxhome Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> A little Civil War history might be used as data
> to answer the question - for most of the Civil War
> the Army of the Potomac (also known as the Army of
> NorthEastern Virginia) was located throughout
> Northern Virginia (Fairfax, Vienna) while the Army
> of Northern Virginia was a leading force in the
> Confederate Army (Centerille, Aquia, Shenendoah,
> etc) which totally explains why Northern Virginia
> as we know it today was both in the North and the
> South. Confused yet? Check out the Civil War
> sites around our area and you can see that a huge
> part of the Civil War was right here in our
> backyard. They stared at each other from
> Fairfax/Vienna to Centreville/Chantilly for most
> of the war. Raids into the City of Fairfax are
> famous parts of the Civil War and in fact the
> first skirmish of the Civil War occurred on Main
> Street in Fairfax. Get out and see the history
> around us!


Most people don't know that Reston Parkway used to be called "Ridge Road", and Robert E. Lee marched down it and was involved in a skirmish along it as well. It was a VERY strategic location, and when driving by the Spectrum portion of Town Center, with the visible clear view west to the Blue Ridge, you can understand the reason why.

This subject has been talked about a lot here. It's clear that Fairfax is part of the Pacific Northwest.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/14/2015 11:04PM by WingNut.

Lurker. Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

> As for Manassas today>>> LOL that area can't be
> classified in any survey other than the bar scene
> from Star Wars.


You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.

Song of the South Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hell yes we are southern! We live in VIRGINIA.
> We seceded from the Union in April 1861. I still
> fly my rebel flag with pride.


Arlington County was part of DC at the sart of the War. Right before the war started, Union forces moved in and secured Alexandria,for the North. Fairfax was confedate, but it was mainly farmland.

FUNdamental Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Song of the South Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Hell yes we are southern! We live in VIRGINIA.
>
> > We seceded from the Union in April 1861. I
> still
> > fly my rebel flag with pride.
>
>
> Arlington County was part of DC at the sart of the
> War. Right before the war started, Union forces
> moved in and secured Alexandria,for the North.
> Fairfax was confedate, but it was mainly farmland.

Nope, Arlington was part of VA at the start of the Civil War. Congress returned Arlington to VA in 1846. You're right that it was occupied quickly once VA seceded though.

http://www.arlingtonva.us/departments/cphd/planning/data_maps/cphdplanningdataandmapsprofile.aspx - Scroll down to "History"

North or South Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Was talking to a left-coaster the other day here,
> and the subject came up: is northern Virginia a
> northern or southern area. Won't tell you where
> either side ended up, but it got me thinking, do
> we consider ourselves Southern, Northern, or
> possibly in-between?
>
> Geographically we are Southern, but we are not
> Mississippi. Then again, we are not
> Massachussetts either. Being from Robert E Lee's
> AND George Washington's area, what would you say?

----Geographically, Fairfax County is below the Mason Dixon Line which makes it in the South.

Historically, Fairfax County conformed to the Southern way of life which meant the poll tax,a dual school system until the mid 1960s, limited hiring of blacks, and celebration of Confederate holidays over those of the North.

Look it up. Memorial Day was not on the school calendar until the mid to late 1960s because it originated in the North. Fairfax County began to celebrate Memorial Day when it became a federal holiday.

Today, the case can be made that only three Southern states exist: Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia. Virginia, Maryland, and Delaware are basically Mid-Atlantic in attitude. North Carolina and South Carolina are in their own world as they are overrun with tourists and transplanted Yankees playing golf.

Parts of Florida are an ecological disaster and others resemble a third world country. Miami is one of only a few U.S. cities with its own foreign policy; i.e, that of militant anti-Castroism.

People live in Northern Virginia from all over the world. Such folks make us far removed from the norms of Old Dixie.

FUNdamental Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Song of the South Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Hell yes we are southern! We live in VIRGINIA.
>
> > We seceded from the Union in April 1861. I
> still
> > fly my rebel flag with pride.
>
>
> Arlington County was part of DC at the sart of the
> War. Right before the war started, Union forces
> moved in and secured Alexandria,for the North.
> Fairfax was confedate, but it was mainly farmland.

Arlington was mostly farmland until the late 1930s and early 1940s.

All of Northern Virginia saw much fierce fighting.

Ever hear of a fellow named Mosby? General Stoughton sure did.

e
>
> Most people don't know that Reston Parkway used to
> be called "Ridge Road", and Robert E. Lee marched
> down it and was involved in a skirmish along it as
> well. It was a VERY strategic location, and when
> driving by the Spectrum portion of Town Center,
> with the visible clear view west to the Blue
> Ridge, you can understand the reason why.

What is your source on Ridge Road?

Thurston Moore Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Mosby's fairfax raid on March 9, 1863 also shows
> how Fairfax was a union stronghold.
>
> Fairfax City was a union garrison town.

"General Stoughton, have you ever heard of Mosby?"

Of course. Have you caught him?

"No, but he has caught you."

L
> as Mosby was admired by BOTH the North and South
> as a black knight and moved freely. Rumors have
> it he was a lady's man and that's the reason he
> was able to sneak into Fairfax. Bitch setup the
> Union officers. Rumors also have it that Mosby's
> men would secretly drink with Union soilders in
> Fairfax City on occasion. That would make Fairfax
> City nomans land.
>

If Federal and Confederate soldiers drank together, how do you explain the skirmish at Billy Gooding's tavern?

GMU Hokie Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> e
> >
> > Most people don't know that Reston Parkway used
> to
> > be called "Ridge Road", and Robert E. Lee
> marched
> > down it and was involved in a skirmish along it
> as
> > well. It was a VERY strategic location, and
> when
> > driving by the Spectrum portion of Town Center,
> > with the visible clear view west to the Blue
> > Ridge, you can understand the reason why.
>
> What is your source on Ridge Road?


I always considered it common knowledge, because I grew up knowing it. I knew some of the original people involved with the forming and governance of Reston, so that's how I came across it. I'm not sure which book would have it in it, but you could always ask an Historian.

GMU Hokie Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> North or South Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Was talking to a left-coaster the other day
> here,
> > and the subject came up: is northern Virginia a
> > northern or southern area. Won't tell you
> where
> > either side ended up, but it got me thinking,
> do
> > we consider ourselves Southern, Northern, or
> > possibly in-between?
> >
> > Geographically we are Southern, but we are not
> > Mississippi. Then again, we are not
> > Massachussetts either. Being from Robert E
> Lee's
> > AND George Washington's area, what would you
> say?
>
> ----Geographically, Fairfax County is below the
> Mason Dixon Line which makes it in the South.
>
> Historically, Fairfax County conformed to the
> Southern way of life which meant the poll tax,a
> dual school system until the mid 1960s, limited
> hiring of blacks, and celebration of Confederate
> holidays over those of the North.
>
> Look it up. Memorial Day was not on the school
> calendar until the mid to late 1960s because it
> originated in the North. Fairfax County began to
> celebrate Memorial Day when it became a federal
> holiday.
>
> Today, the case can be made that only three
> Southern states exist: Alabama, Mississippi and
> Georgia. Virginia, Maryland, and Delaware are
> basically Mid-Atlantic in attitude. North
> Carolina and South Carolina are in their own world
> as they are overrun with tourists and transplanted
> Yankees playing golf.
>
> Parts of Florida are an ecological disaster and
> others resemble a third world country. Miami is
> one of only a few U.S. cities with its own foreign
> policy; i.e, that of militant anti-Castroism.
>
> People live in Northern Virginia from all over the
> world. Such folks make us far removed from the
> norms of Old Dixie.


Virginia and North Carolina are alike, South Carolina, Georgia, and the Northern Half of Florida are similar, while the other Gulf Coast states have their own Deep South Bayou thing going on.

I can often tell which of the above regions someone is from by their accent.

`



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/14/2015 11:04PM by WingNut.

I'm very proud of being from and living in Virginia. It kind of irritates me when people say you have to leave the northern Virginia area to see the 'real' Virginia, because southwestern Virginians are nothing like Virginia Beach Virginians, who are nothing like Winchester Virginians. And no one wants to be from Charlottesville, it's full of scum, Hoos, and Al Groh.

Fairfax lies about its age all the time to buy beer.

--------------------------------------------------------------
13 4826 0948 82695 25847. Yes.

MrMephisto Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Fairfax lies about its age all the time to buy
> beer.

At also lies about it's size.

NURANUS