|
David Anderson
I thought some might enjoy this from the Washington Post (John Kelly) this past weekend. I'm sure many of you have fond memories of Walnut Hill. I do.
"Can you tell me anything about the estate known as Walnut Hill, which was in Annandale, Va., on Annandale Road between Graham Road and Gallows Road? I believe it was once owned by O. Roy Chalk, a businessman who owned the old bus line that was a precursor to Metro. The estate had a glorious long hill that started near the house and ended near Annandale Road. It was perfect for sledding, and in the late 1950s to early ’60s neighborhood kids and parents used to gather there for afternoons of sheer delight. — Libby Kephart, Falls Church, Va."
Before there was Walnut Hill, there was Holly Hill. That was the name of the house built by a family called the Masons, who owned the property in question from the 1850s to 1912, when its journey through a series of different owners began. In 1927, Thomas E. Waggaman — a Washington real estate man and antiques collector — bought the 30-acre parcel. A year later, the Holly Hill house burned to the ground, taking much of Waggaman’s collection with it.
It’s in 1941 that the property becomes associated with local transportation. That’s when it was purchased by Joseph and Antoinette “Toni” Arnold, who are apparently the ones who built a large, 12-room mansion there. The name Walnut Hill applies to both the house and the property. Joseph Arnold was the son of Leon Arnold, who in 1927 founded what was officially known as the Washington, Virginia & Maryland Coach Co., but which everyone called the Arnold Bus Lines. Leon Arnold oversaw a network of buses that crisscrossed the region. He was killed in a car crash in 1946. By then, his son had assumed control of the family business. Transit was a messy world back then. Newspapers were full of stories of fare hikes, driver strikes and government probes. Things were no different for the Arnold Lines. Perhaps the Arnolds found respite at their impressive Annandale mansion. According to a 2010 story by M. Callahan in the Annandale Chamber of Commerce’s Endeavor magazine, the house was built to resemble Tara, the house from “Gone With the Wind.” It had only three bedrooms, but each was the size of a basketball court. A guest lodge behind the main house could seat 200 in its dining room. The grounds of Walnut Hill boasted a 12-stall stable, a track for equine workouts, a clover-shaped swimming pool and a duck pond.
Walnut Hill was the scene of frequent parties and fundraisers. Toni Arnold — nee Biazzi (she was born in Milan and came to the District at age 7) — hosted war bond rallies and fundraisers for the Metropolitan Police Boys Club. She also raised St. Bernard dogs. Joseph Arnold died in 1953. Toni — who held a law degree from Columbia College, now George Washington University — took over the bus company. In 1955, she married George Faraco, a designer and builder of swimming pools. When Toni died in 1962, control of the company and the house passed to Faraco. By 1964, he had sold both to O. Roy Chalk, the controversial transportation magnate. (Faraco would later marry a former Miss Greece and split his time between Middleburg and the Greek island of Kos, which is where he died in 1971.)
While the Arnolds were beloved members of the community, Chalk was not. His streetcar and bus company — eventually known as DC Transit — was frequently embroiled in controversy. He was accused of stripping Walnut Hill of its fine furnishings and moving them to a house he owned in the Caribbean. In 1970, Chalk announced plans to turn Walnut Hill into a private men’s club and conference center. Chalk promised that the “high caliber” club would be limited to a membership of 1,000 “gentlemen of distinction, successful men who have made their mark in life or are about to.” Neighbors were not impressed. If Walnut Hill was going to become anything, they argued, it should be a residential development. Chalk switched gears. In 1972, he inked a deal with a group called Chess International Ltd. that would turn Walnut Hill into a private chess and bridge club. But this project fell apart when it was learned one of Chess International’s executives had signed the papers using a fake name. He was a felon who had served time in prison for transporting a stolen car. Chalk finally sold Walnut Hill in 1985 to the Chrisland Corp.
The following year, the Arnold mansion was torn down and construction began on the single-family homes that grace the property today
Inline Image Not Displayed
Inline Image Not Displayed
|
