Biohazard Cleanup Near Malbrook Lake Barcroft, VA

Lake Barcroft is a census-designated place (CDP) in eastern Fairfax County, Virginia, built around a privately owned lake of the same name in the Cameron Run watershed, about nine miles from downtown Washington, D.C.

Lake Barcroft had a population of 9,770 at the 2020 census, up from 9,558 in 2010, and Census Bureau survey data for 2020-2024 counted about 3,982 households.

The lake is named for Dr. John W. Barcroft, who owned and operated a mill on Holmes Run during the mid-19th century.

The Lake Barcroft Dam was built by the Alexandria Water Company between 1913 and 1915 to create a drinking-water reservoir for the city of Alexandria, initially holding about 620 million gallons.

In 1942, 24 gates installed at the top of the dam raised the spillway by five feet and increased the reservoir to about 800 million gallons.

After Alexandria switched its water supply to the Occoquan Reservoir, developers led by Col. Joseph Barger bought the lake, dam, and 680 surrounding acres for $1 million in 1950 and built the residential community in the early 1950s.

Residents bought the lake, dam, and common grounds themselves in 1970 for $300,000, and in 1992 the community's associations merged into the single Lake Barcroft Association.

Hurricane Agnes in 1972 sent water three feet over the top of the dam and eroded its earthen shoulder; the lake sat dry for about two years while the dam was rebuilt, funded through a special watershed improvement district residents voted to create.

The roughly 135-acre lake is reserved for residents, who share access through five sandy beaches, and it supports a self-sustaining largemouth bass population along with catfish and sunfish.

The Lake Barcroft CDP covers about 2.7 square miles, of which roughly 0.2 square miles is water, and is bordered by Seven Corners, Bailey's Crossroads, Lincolnia, and Annandale.