Drawing by Chris Lipsey
Modern History of Ravensworth Farm
Homes in the current Ravensworth Farm subdivision were first offered for sale in December, 1959. By 1965 all 790 houses had been built. The development was billed as “Crestwood’s Ravensworth Farm – a country community with a dash of modern convenience.” Crestwood originally offered four models:
The 3-bedroom, 1-bath, no basement Virginian rambler for $16,750. (1,092 square feet, not counting the carport)
The 3-bedroom with basement New Crestwood Rambler for $20,950, (1,334 sq. ft.) An extra $1,550 bought you a fourth bedroom in the basement.
The 4-bedroom rambler with basement $22,950, (1,508 sq. ft.)
The 4-bedroom split level for $21,750. (1,247 sq. ft.)
Corner lots cost an additional $250.
Two split-foyer models were added late in the run as an experiment, which is why there are relatively few of them. Ravensworth Farm is where Crestwood first built split-foyers. (The larger is 3,042 sq. ft.)
Years later, the builder Edward Carr related that in the 1960s the original Springfield house was 1,200 square feet with one bath and three bedrooms. By the early 1970s, the typical house was four bedrooms and probably 2,200 square feet. It normally included a carport or garage.
Thanks go to Robyn Carter who provided the scans of the original Crestwood Realty brochure that you see here as well as much of the information below. Now living in Hagerstown, she has become the unofficial historian of the Crestwood-built neighborhoods in Northern Virginia. Her work includes a book, Post WW2 History of Springfield, Virginia and The Crestwood Construction Corporation, which she wrote in 2016. People interested in the book should request a PDF from Robyn at bettygrbl@aol.com. Place Springfield History Book Request in the subject line of the e-mail.
According to Robyn, the houses in Ravensworth Farm are a refinement of earlier Crestwood designs. The Virginian actually goes back to the famous Levittown development on Long Island. While attending a home show in the Empire State during early 1953, Crestwood’s designers saw the details of the “Levittowner” house, copied the design, and brought it back to Springfield. Re-done in block and brick, this became the Virginian model that remained a staple with Crestwood from September 1953 to about 1971, when the company stopped building single-family homes.
Early versions can still be seen in Crestwood’s Springfield, which Robyn says is “the bedrock subdivision from which all of developed Springfield grew.” It lies on the west side of Backlick Road, running approximately just south of the Beltway overpass, down Highland Street to the west, then to Brookfield Park and back east up Essex Avenue with some sections further south closer to Old Keene Mill Road.
The models were refined later in Edsall Park, North Springfield, Crestwood Manor in Annandale, and then, in 1959, Ravensworth Farm.
Flag Run Estates
65 houses at the far east of Ravensworth Farm were originally part of a different development, Flag Run Estates by Carr. Built in 1964, it has three models that are different from Crestwood’s, including a 5-bedroom split-level. Although developed separately, the 65 houses have long been part of the Ravensworth community, being included in the Ravensworth Elementary school district, the voting precinct, and the Ravensworth Farm Civic Association.