Waterford, VA: Traveling Back in Time

UPDATED: 1/22/2023

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I first visited Waterford, Virginia, an hour west of Washington, DC, with my aunts and cousins when I was in high school. Ever since, I have been obsessed with this village.

Due to the aligning of certain factors through history, Waterford ended up being uniquely preserved with many homes and buildings from the 18th and 19th centuries. You can read more about that history on the village’s site.

Each October, Waterford hosts the Waterford Fair, which runs Friday through Sunday and features a tour of homes, crafts, demonstrations, music, and food. The homes tour is my favorite part. These homes are lived in and maintained by private citizens who are committed to maintaining the historical nature of their village. To get a sense of the town map and some of the homes, you can view the 2017 fair map.

Having attended the fair while in high school, I made a trip back in October 2008 with Dustin, his mom, and his step-dad and found it to be just as enjoyable as I remembered. The following fall, Dustin and I drove out to visit, the first and only time I’ve been to Waterford outside of the fair. Seeing the streets empty of vendors and visitors was a completely different experience and in some ways made it feel even more like we’d traveled back in time (well, except for the occasional car).

Now that we live over 3.5 hours from Waterford, it’s a bit more than a day trip, but I do hope to make it back to the Waterford Fair some October in the future!

In the meantime, I do some occasional searching on Zillow and day dream about buying a home and living there…

If you have not made it to this adorable, unique town, definitely add it to your list!

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