In 1870, the independent City of Alexandria seceded from Alexandria County, and because of the confusion between the city and the county having the same name, a movement started to rename Alexandria County. In 1920, the name Arlington County was adopted, after Arlington House, the home of the American Civil War general Robert E. Lee, which stands on the grounds of what is now Arlington National Cemetery. The Town of Potomac was incorporated as a town in Alexandria County in 1908. The town was annexed by the independent city of Alexandria in 1930.
Arlington County shares with a portion of the independent City of Alexandria (including the former town of Potomac) the distinction of being once in Virginia, then ceded to the US government to form the District of Columbia, and later retroceded to Virginia.
See also
- History of Washington, D.C.
- Arlington County, Virginia
- Retrocession (District of Columbia)
- Lost counties, cities and towns of Virginia
- List of extinct U.S. counties
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Last updated on Thursday February 07, 2008 at 21:57:15 PST (GMT -0800)
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