Wessynton is Mount Vernons mid-century neighbor

It took Julia Miller and her husband, Mark, just one hour to decide on the split-level house in the Wessynton neighborhood the first time they drove up to it in July 2011.

A good friend whos a Realtor knew a house on the water was up for sale, Miller said. We went to look at it, fell in love and moved in.

Nestled in the hilly woodlands of southeastern Fairfax County, about half an hour from downtown, Wessynton is a neighborhood of 156 houses built in the late 1960s and early 70s on land that was once part of George Washingtons Mount Vernon estate.

Twenty-three of those mid-century modern houses are on Little Hunting Creek, a Potomac River tributary that provides all residents with access for fishing, boating and waterskiing. Wessynton Forest, covering much of the 20 acres of common property, runs through the community.

Centuries ago, the Doeg Indians hunted these woods along the Potomac. The land was eventually granted to an English family known by various names, including Wessynton, and the 500-acre Mount Vernon estate was built there.

The Mount Vernon Ladies Association took up the mantle of preserving the first presidents home and estate. In the late 1960s, it sold the 65-acre parcel that is now the Wessynton neighborhood to secure funds for its ongoing maintenance.

Houses blend into landscape: The developments architect, Nicholas A. Pappas, designed its houses to blend with the landscape they are set into the curve of the land along winding roads in the woods, providing seclusion. There are five designs Meadow, River, Forest, Garden and Manor all with large windows, open layouts, redwood ceilings and slate floors.

The architect used a palette of earth-tone colors sand, brown, beige, olive, pale yellow and the occasional muted salmon or rust-red door and today we try to stay within that color range, said Jim Clark, a former president of the homeowners association.

Roofs are the same brownish orange and mailboxes are a uniform brown wooden structure. We have someone in the community manufacture them for us, he said.

An architectural review panel ensures that the houses remain harmonious with nature and the original vision.

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Wessynton is Mount Vernons mid-century neighbor