PUBLIC "-//Arlington Public Library::Center for Local History//TEXT (US::ViAr::ViAr00325::A Guide to the Brian H. Ford Colonial Village Collection, 1936-2004)//EN" "ViAr00325.xml" A Guide to the Brian H. Ford Colonial Village Collection, 1936-2004 Ford, Brian H., Colonial Village Collection RG 325 Heather Crocetto Arlington Public Library, Center for Local History © 2019 Arlington Public Library, Center for Local History Machine-readable finding aid derived from MS Word, created by Gregory Pierce, 19 August 2020 Description is in English A Guide to the Brian H. Ford Colonial Village Collection, 1936-2004 A Collection in Arlington Public Library, Center for Local History RG 325

Arlington Public Library, Center for Local History 2019 Arlington Public Library, Center for Local History Descriptive Summary Arlington Public Library, Center for Local History Brian H. Ford Colonial Village Collection, 1936-2004 RG 325 2 boxes. English Ford, Brian H. Administrative Information Access Restrictions

The collection is open for research.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Brian H. Ford Colonial Village Collection, Collection # RG 325, Arlington Public Library, Center for Local History

Acquisition Information

Gift of Brian H. Ford.

Historical Information

Colonial Village, built in 1936, was the first apartment complex built in Arlington during the Great Depression. Located near the shopping area of Clarendon and the County's government center in Courthouse, it has long served as a popular residence for Arlingtonians. In the 1970s, Colonial Village was purchased by Mobil Land Corporation and was considered for significant redevelopment. The residents of Colonial Village came together to save their homes, and various committees were formed to list the complex as a local, state, and national historic district. On December 5, 1978, Colonial Village earned its historic designation and continues to be an important landmark in Arlington.

Scope and Content

RG 325 is made up of materials collected and created by Brian H. Ford, a resident of Colonial Village. This collection dates from 1936 to 2004, with the bulk of materials situated in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and measures .83 linear feet. Most of these materials relate to the efforts of residents and the Colonial Village Preservation Committee to add Colonial Village to the National Register of Historic Places and as a local historic district, which can be found in Series 2, Colonial Village Preservation Committee. Series 5, Historical Research, contains Ford's outside research on Colonial Village, focusing on its pre-1970 history. There are also several folders of newspaper clippings from the 1970s that mention Colonial Village and a few personal materials about Brian Ford and his Colonial Village home. There are seventeen black and white photographs of the complex taken in 1978 and several maps.

Arrangement

This collection is arranged into ten series arranged by subject and type of material. Material within each series is sorted chronologically. Series 1, Correspondence, has two subseries: from the Arlington County Board to Colonial Village, and Colonial Village to residents. Folder titles are created by the processor; any portion of a folder title in quotes ("") reference a title to a report or article.

Adjunct Descriptive Data Related Material

RG 372, Nnoka Colonial Village Collection

Index Terms Subjects: Colonial Village (Arlington, Va.) Apartments -- Conservation and restoration Arlington (Va.) Arlington County (Va.) Contents List Correspondence Correspondence to Colonial Village from Arlington County Board Colonial Village - Arlington County Board Correspondence, 1978-1979 1 Correspondence to Residents Correspondence to Colonial Village Residents by Property Owners, 1977-1986 1 Correspondence from Mobil Land Corporation to Colonial Village Tenants, 1978-1979 1 Colonial Village Preservation Committee Colonial Village Preservation Comittee Bylaws and Letterhead, n.d. 1 Colonial Village Preservation Committee Correspondence, 1978 1 Petitions for Colonial Village as an Historic Site, n.d. 1 Correspondence relating to National Register of Historic Places for Colonial Village, 1978-1981 1 Colonial Village National Register of Historic Places Application and Application Materials, 1978 1 Colonial Village Preservation Committee Correspondence, 1978 1 Colonial Village Preservation Committee News Releases, 1978 1 Colonial Village Preservation Committee Bylaws and Contacts, 1978, n.d. 1 Colonial Village Preservation Committee Publications: Urban Land, Architectural Forum and Record, National Geographic, Mortgage Banker, 1938, 1939, 1948 1 Arlington County and the National Register of Historic Places Pamphlet, 2001 1 "Colonial Village: Its Cultural History, Architectural Quality, and Significance" Appendix II, May 25, 1978 1 "Colonial Village - The Cultural and Architectural Heritage" Preliminary Report, May 25, 1978 1 "Colonial Village - The Cultural and Architecural Heritage" Revised, November 10, 1978 1 Colonial Village Site Plan Committee Colonial Village Site Plan, 1978 2 Colonial Village Site Plan Review Committee Materails, 1978-1979 2 Colonial Village Tenants Association Colonial Village Tenants Association Resident Survey, April 1981 2 Publications "Apartment Seekers Guide to Arlington" Booklet 2 Colonial Village Brochures, n.d. 2 Research on Colonial Village Research on Colonial Village before 1970, 1935, n.d. 2 Historic Research on Colonial Village, 1934-1959, 1976 2 Colonial Village Research Citations 2 Photographs Biographical sketch and photograph of Harvey Warwick, Sr., 1982, n.d. 2 Colonial Village Photographs and Negatives 1978 2 Newspaper Clippings/News Newspaper Clippings, 1973-1978 (1) 2 Newspaper Clippings, 1973-1978 (2) 2 Newspaper Clippings about Colonial Village, 1979-1981 2 Reports about Colonial Village Insured Mortgage for Colonial Village 1936-1944 2 Brian H. Ford's Lease for Colonial Village 1977 2 Report - "Changes in Rent at Colonial Village Since 1936" by Fred Berghoefer, 1979 2 Assessment Verification List of Properties in Arlington, February 26, 1979 2 Colonial Village Promotional Materials - Brochure and Site Plan 2 Letter to "Qualified Tenants," May 2, 1989 2 Wesley Housing Development Corporation Summary of Activities, Fiscal Year 1998 2 Report - "Issues with Parnell Apartment at Colonial Village," 2004 2 Maps Photocopied Maps of Colonial Village, n.d. 2 Maps (OV)