In 1978, we purchased our first new home in the Washington DC suburb of Centreville, VA for $76,000. I was a new home sales person working for a home builder, so I was able to buy a brand new single family home with the company discount and since I was a veteran was able to purchase it with no money down…what a deal!

Today, Centreville is a popular DC suburb where everyone wants to live. Back when I bought my home, it was an exit on I-66, with a McDonalds, a shopping center and right next door to the Civil War Battlefields of Manassas.

The community we lived in was called Newgate Forest and it was actually a former Civil War encampment for the Confederate Forces. When they developed the site many Civil War artifacts were unearthed, cannon balls, buttons, bullets, muskets, you name it. Can you imagine today building a subdivision on a Civil War battlefield…I don’t think so!

My wife and I selected the Enfield which was a 2 story center hall colonial with 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 1 car garage and full brick front. Ahh… the brick front. Newgate forest was planned as an “aluminum city” as most of the entry communities were back then. Since I worked for “the builder” I asked if I could have a brick front on my home. The company agreed however they told me that they would not be putting brick fronts on any other Enfields in the community even if a buyer was willing to pay for it. That didn’t bother me since I was not selling in this community and I would not have to deal with it. Well…we lived in Newgate Forest for 5 years and yes we had the only Enfield with a brick front. Every social gathering or encounter with a neighbor was a little uncomfortable at first since we would hear the stories of how they wanted a brick front and weren’t allowed! We were forever known as the “brick front” people of Newgate Forest.

The most vivid memory of this home besides it being our first home was that we came close to losing it. It was my day off from selling, my wife was working and I was standing at the kitchen sink, when all of sudden I saw smoke and flames from the window. I grabbed a fire extinguisher that was in the kitchen ran out back and the electrical meter was on fire. I was able to douse the flames and then called 911. The fire department came; guys were piling out with hoses and axes ready to start tearing into the walls. I convinced them that I had put out the flames and pleaded with them to take it easy on my new home. There was a little siding damage and that was about it. The cause of the fire was determined to be the electrical meter sinking into the ground and cutting into the main electrical line to the house. The fire department said had I not been home, it would have been much worse and that we could have lost the house. The on-site builder responsible for construction ended up being my “best friend” and anything I needed done on my home was done with a smile.

The most lasting memory I will ever have form our first home is when my parents made their first visit. The look on their face when they came into our new but sparsely furnished new home was one of pride that their son did what they were never able to, own their home!