The Plains, Virginia
The Plains is a small town in Fauquier County, Virginia. It had 245 residents in 2020 and about 239 in 2022. The town covers about 0.27 square miles of land and sits where VA 55 (John Marshall Highway) and VA 245 (Old Tavern Road) meet, close to I-66. Lori Sisson is the mayor (as of November 2024).
The area was settled in the 18th century and was once called White Plains. The post office opened as The Plains in 1831, and the town was incorporated in 1910. During the Civil War, Mosby’s Raiders used the area. Beverley Mill is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and much of the town is part of The Plains Historic District (listed in 2014).
Things to see and do include Great Meadow, a large venue that hosts events such as the Virginia Gold Cup steeplechase on the first Saturday of May, drawing over 50,000 visitors, and the Team America Rocketry Challenge in the same month. Archwood Green Barns Farmers Market operates Sundays from late April through mid-November, with a Christmas show in December. The Footprint to Change museum at 4243 Loudoun Avenue houses the Afro-American Historical Association of Fauquier County and its library and archives.
Nearby landmarks include Long Branch Baptist Church, about four miles north in Halfway, and Wakefield School just south of town. Actor Robert Duvall once owned a restaurant here, The Rail Stop, and he still has a farm nearby at Byrnley Farm.
The Plains is served by Virginia Routes 55 and 245. Route 55 connects to Gainesville and Marshall, while Route 245 leads to I-66 at Exit 31. I-66 provides access to Washington, D.C. to the east and Front Royal to the west.
The climate is hot and humid in summer and generally mild to cool in winter.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 12:08 (CET).