Inscription
In 1897 Henry Copperthite, a Georgetown businessman, purchased Silas Burke's farm. In 1907 he constructed, according to a newspaper account, the "very best" harness racing facility "of its kind in the country." The grandstand, which opened on 4 July 1908, held 2,000 people. Horse, motorcycle and car races were also featured. Special trains from the Washington, D.C. area brought visitors to Burke, where they could stay at the new hotel. Families enjoyed fairs, Fort Myer cavalry drills, balloon ascensions, baseball games, athletic contests and dances the pavilion. For nearly a decade, thousands were entertained at the Copperthite racetrack and fairground.
Details
| HM Number | HM1RQ3 |
|---|---|
| Tags | |
| Historical Period | 20th Century |
| Historical Place | Other |
| Marker Type | Historic Object |
| Marker Class | Historical Marker |
| Marker Style | Free Standing |
| Year Placed | 2015 |
| Placed By | The Fairfax County History Commission |
| Marker Condition | No reports yet |
| Date Added | Sunday, April 17th, 2016 at 9:03pm PDT -07:00 |
Pictures
Photo Credits: [1] STOUT
Locationbig map
| UTM (WGS84 Datum) | 18S E 302950 N 4296041 |
|---|---|
| Decimal Degrees | 38.79111667, -77.26883333 |
| Degrees and Decimal Minutes | N 38° 47.467', W 77° 16.13' |
| Degrees, Minutes and Seconds | 38° 47' 28.0200" N, 77° 16' 7.8000" W |
| Driving Directions | Google Maps |
| Area Code(s) | 703 |
| Can be seen from road? | Yes |
| Is marker in the median? | No |
| Which side of the road? | Marker is on the right when traveling East |
| Closest Postal Address | At or near 9403-9405 VA-652, Burke VA 22015, US |
| Alternative Maps | Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap |
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Maintenance Issues
- Is this marker part of a series?
- This marker could use another picture or two.
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