Loudoun Valley
| Loudoun Valley | ||
|---|---|---|
| location | Virginia (USA) | |
| Waters | Goose Creek, Panther Skin Run, Little River | |
| Mountains | Catoctin Mountain , Bull Run Mountains , Blue Ridge Mountains | |
| Geographical location | 39 ° 13'58 " N , 77 ° 44'6" W | |
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Loudoun Valley is a small but historically important valley in Loudoun County , in northwestern Virginia .
geography
The green, productive valley lies between Catoctin Mountain and the Bull Run Mountains in the east and the Blue Ridge Mountains in the west. It stretches 12 to 19 kilometers in width. The most important watercourses are the Goose Creek, Panther Skin Run and the Little River. The main road through the valley is US Route 50 , which runs from Aldie in the east to Ashby's Gap in the west. The elevation of the Loudoun Valley ranges from 105 m to 220 m . The climate in the region is subtropical and humid, with annual rainfall of 1000 to 1300 mm and an annual average temperature between 10 and 13 ° C. A region of the Loudoun Valley is also Between the Hills . It describes the area of the Loudoun Valley west of Short Hill Mountain and east of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
history
After the Treaty of Albany in 1722, which required Indian tribes to stay west of the Blue Ridge Mountains , settlers slowly began to migrate to the Loudoun Valley. The area became a leading center for agriculture, specifically wheat, oats, rye and corn. Many of the residents who settled early were immigrants from southern Pennsylvania : Quakers , Scots from Northern Ireland, and Germans interested in starting small farms. The Quakers had considerable influence in the central Loudoun Valley, settling in and around the parishes of Waterford , Hillsboro , Goose Creek (now Lincoln ), and Unison . Its stone buildings are a great feature of the Loudoun landscape. Germans settled in the northern part of the Loudoun Valley, specifically in the Lovettsville area , where they left a multitude of log houses as an architectural legacy. Unlike the settlers in the east of the valley, none of these groups believed in slavery , so they established a division that would become important in the years leading up to the Civil War .
There was considerable fighting in Loudoun Valley during the Civil War, especially in 1862 and 1863. During the Gettysburg campaign , a series of cavalry clashes between James Ewell Brown Stuart and Alfred Pleasonton took place at Aldie , Middleburg , Goose Creek and Upperville. Stuart successfully prevented the Federal Army from entering the adjacent Shenandoah Valley and discovering Robert E. Lee 's main army.
After the war, the region remained a major source of agricultural products. Agriculture remained the main occupation for several generations. Nowadays parts of the scenic area are threatened by urban expansion.