Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 01/16/1973
NRHP Listing Date 02/16/1973
NRHP Reference Number 73002209
The early-19th-century Earp’s Ordinary (also known as the Ratcliffe-Logan-Allison House), near the Fairfax County Courthouse in the city of Fairfax, is representative of the simple, vernacular housing once common in Northern Virginia’s towns and villages. It remains one of the few early structures in this now-urbanized Fairfax County seat. Long known erroneously as Earps Ordinary, the house began as a one-room dwelling built in 1812 by Richard Ratcliffe, a landowner who also donated a lot for the county courthouse. The house was purchased in 1820 by Gordon and Robert Allison who expanded it and added the second story. It served as rental property until it was rescued from threatened demolition in 1920 by Dr. Kate Waller Barrett, a Virginia social worker. In 1972 Dr. Barrett’s daughter, Mrs. Charles Pozer, donated the house to the City of Fairfax. Earp’s Ordinary has been restored by the city and Historic Fairfax City, Inc., to serve as a museum interpreting the community’s 19th-century lifestyle.
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: May 23, 2022
