Ashburn

Originally called Farmwell, the area now known as Ashburn was permanently renamed in 1896. This Eastern Loudoun town was rural and thick with dairy farms until Dulles Airport opened in the 1960’s, and rapid residential development ensued.

Rich in science and technology jobs, dotted with parkland, and developed primarily into major and minor subdivisions, Ashburn is ideal place to live, work, and play. The Loudoun County Department of Parks, Recreation & Community Services is headquartered in Ashburn and operates several facilities in Ashburn, including playgrounds, picnic pavilions, multi-use trails, sports fields, and even a roller hockey rink.

Ashburn attractions include Redskins Park, practice fields for the Washington NFL team, Ashburn Ice House, home to amateur figure skaters and ice hockey enthusiasts, and the Brambleton Golf Course. Most of the major homeowners associations host regular events within the subdivisions. Popular examples include the Brambleton Sizzlin’ Summer Concerts, Broadlands Flicks in the Sticks, and the Ashburn Village Fireworks Display.

Two large town-center-like developments, Kincora and One Loudoun, are still in various phases of construction but will ultimately include a soccer and baseball stadium, a cinema-drafthouse, a children’s science center, and more!

Runners, walkers, cyclists, skaters, and even horseback riders will enjoy the section of the W&OD trail which crosses the town. The Washington and Old Dominion trail is a 45-mile long, 100-foot wide multi-use rail-trail owned and operated by the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority. The park is open from dawn to dusk and is even used by some area bicycle commuters as a route across Loudoun County and beyond.

Two open-air Farmers’ Markets operate in the Ashburn area from may through October, one in Ashburn proper, and one in Brambleton. Both are growers markets, meaning vendors are also growers/producers, and all must be from within a 125-mile radius of Loudoun County. These markets are an ideal place to buy locally grown foods and locally produced products, meet the farmers and small businesspeople, and mingle with the community.