Valuable assistance has also been given by Mike Rierson, Fairfax County Park Authority, and W. Brown Morton, III, National Park Service, who contributed useful information on the architectural features and possible age of Salona; and William Elkjer measured and drew up floor plans of Salona. The Rev. William Sengel of the Old Presbyterian Meeting House, Jean Elliot, Frank Gapp, John Gott, Winslow Hatch, Beth Mitchell, and Donie Rieger also contributed information.
Librarians who have provided information and encouragement are Harva Sheeler, Dot de Wilde, and Eric Grundset, Virginia Room, Fairfax County Public Library; Mathilde Williams, Peabody Collection, Georgetown Public Library; the helpful staff at the Archives Division, Virginia State Library; and Ruth B. Lee, Historical Foundation of the Presbyterian and Reformed Church, Montreat, North Carolina.
[Introduction]
At the edge of the busy commercial area of the community of McLean, hidden from the heavy traffic on Dolley Madison Boulevard by a natural screen of trees and shrubs, stands the substantial brick dwelling known as Salona. Only a portion of the original 466 acres surrounds the house; the rest of the land has been converted into church properties, shopping centers, residential subdivisions, and other appurtenances of development.
Originally, the land was part of a large grant of 2,630 acres taken out by Thomas Lee in 1719 from the Northern Neck proprietor, and later named "Langley," a name which persists in the area to the present day.
The Reverend William Maffitt of Maryland purchased the 466-acre parcel in 1812, and he may have been the builder of the brick house at Salona to which President James Madison fled when the British burned the capital in August, 1814.
After the death of Maffitt, the property went through the hands of several northerners who were part of the influx of Yankees just prior to the outbreak of the Civil War. The parcel was divided into several pieces.