In the area of what is today known as Midland, was the settlement of Germantown, Fauquier County’s first permanent settlement. The settlement was founded in the early 1700’s by German miners brought to the Rappahannock River Valley by Alexander Spotswood, the then Lieutenant Governor of Virginia.

The Lt. Governor brought the miners to the area to excavate iron ore found on his property. As the name suggests, it was home to a large group of German immigrants whose names survive in the County today. The settlers, at least until the American Revolution, made their fortune growing and selling tobacco. As the economy of the country changed, however, the Germantown families soon turned to growing corn and wheat and raising livestock.

The population of Germantown shifted around during the 1800’s, following the popularity of the new Warrenton Road.   In 1985, the United States Soil Conservation Service dammed up the Licking Run to help control flooding and created Fauquier County’s largest body of water. It was along this lake in 1987 that Crockett Park was created.

The lake, located in Crockett Park, was named Germantown Lake in honor of that early settlement.   John Marshall, the longest-serving Chief Justice in Supreme Court history, was born near the area of  Midland. The John Marshall Birthplace  Park honors his birthplace, with a  marker placed where his home once stood. Cows-N-Corn, and the  Warrenton-Fauquier Airport are also located in Midland.