Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 09/08/2004
NRHP Listing Date 12/02/2005
NRHP Reference Number 05001344
The subdivision comprising the Arlington Forest Historic District, a commuter suburb of Washington D.C., reveals the innovative trends for suburban planning and house designs of the World War II era advocated by the Federal Housing Administration. Begun in 1939, completed in 1946, Arlington Forest incorporated curvilinear streets and cul-de-sacs, ample lots, community parklands, and a neighborhood shopping center. Homeowners were enjoined to restrictive covenants. The Arlington Forest community was developed by Meadowbrook, Inc., a leading mid-20th-century builder in the Washington, D.C., area, under the direction of Monroe Warren. Meadowbrook collaborated with locally prominent architect Robert O. Scholz to design orderly rows of modest-sized, two-story, brick homes with minimal Colonial Revival detailing, differentiated by alternating roof shapes, placement of main entrances and porches, the mixed use of brick and weatherboard, and dissimilar fenestration. In 1948, the last section of the Arlington County subdivision, Broyhill’s Addition, was completed by another well-known regional builder, M.T. Broyhill & Sons. M.T. Broyhill & Sons teamed up with local architect J. Raymond Mims, to create homes in the Arlington Forest Historic District compatible to those of Meadowbrook in materials, form, and architectural style.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Updated: April 24, 2023
