What is "merrybrook"

Merrybrook is the only known remaining home of American Civil War Confederate spy Laura Ratcliffe. The house is located south of Herndon, Virginia, in Fairfax County. She lived here from the earliest days of the Civil War until her death in 1923. The interior, out-buildings and grounds still retain the atmosphere of earlier times.

In early March 2007, the Virginia Department of Historic Resources approved the current owner's application and placed Merrybrook on the Virginia Landmarks Register. The application to put Merrybrook on the National Historic Register is currently awaiting approval from the National Park Service. However, urban encroachment continues, the recent widening of Centreville Road was a near miss for Merrybrook which still survives behind the trees.