Great Falls, Virginia
Great Falls is a census-designated place in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. The population as of the 2010 census was 15,427, an increase of 80.5% from the 2000 census. History Colonial farm settlements began to form in the area as early as the late 1700s. Early on, the village was known as Forestville (unofficially, since there was already a Forestville with a Post Office), but was renamed Great Falls in 1955. Geography Great Falls is located at (38.9981653, −77.2883157) at an elevation of . Located on Virginia State Route 7 in Northern Virginia, Great Falls is west-northwest of downtown Washington, D.C., and north of Fairfax, the county seat. Great Falls lies in the Piedmont upland on the right bank of the Potomac River. The Potomac River forms the northern and eastern borders of the CDP, and several of its tributaries flow north and east through the CDP. From north to south, these include Nichols Run, Clarks Branch, and Difficult Run. Difficult Run (along with Leesburg Pike) forms the southern border of the CDP. Two of its tributaries, Captain Hickory Run and Piney Run, flow southeast through the southern part of the CDP. The Great Falls of the Potomac River, the