Colvin Run Mill Historic Site

CONTACT INFORMATION: Colvin Run General Store is open Thursday through Sunday, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Ticketed Mill Tours available Saturday and Sunday. The grounds are open daily from dawn to dusk.
703-759-2771 TTY 711
10017 Colvin Run Road
Great Falls, Virginia 22066
Julie Gurnee
Colvin Run Mill Manager

Department Resources

Related Resources

Colvin Run Mill Field Trips

Elementary Students and Chaperones: $8 in Fairfax County / $9 Out-of-county schools
Elementary School - Teachers are FREE

Preschool Students: $8 in Fairfax County / $9 Out-of-county schools. Pre-payment of 10 students required.
Preschools - All adults are FREE

Homeschool Students and Adults: $8 in Fairfax County / $9 Out-of-county schools
Homeschool: Based on FCPA classroom guidelines, one teacher per 30 students is FREE

Payment is due upon arrival. Payment options are cash, check (payable to FCPA/Colvin Run Mill), Visa, MasterCard or Discover.

Maximum Daily Capacity
Simple Machines and Producers & Consumers: 3 classes / 90 students
Motion in the Mill: 2 classes / 60 students
Pre-School Puppet Show: 2 classes / 30 students

Simple Machines Field Trip

Students tour three buildings — the mill, the barn and the general store. Students learn about the site’s rich engineering, commercial and social history. The program closely follows the Virginia Standards of Learning for Force, Motion and Energy. It provides opportunity for students to see and use simple machines. Download Simple Machines Learning Kit.

  • Offered Monday through Friday at 10 a.m. 
  • The program lasts about two hours.
  • Maximum three classes (classrooms) per day.
  • A maximum of 90 students can be accommodated within space and safety limits. 
  • Please do not divide classes without first consulting site staff.

Bring three-to-five adult chaperones per class to assist with hands-on learning centers. Additional drop-in parents may not be able to participate and are discouraged.

Comfortable shoes and clothing appropriate for the weather are necessary. There is walking outdoors among buildings, and the mill is not heated.

Please call 703-759-2771 with questions or concerns, especially regarding an inclusion or ESL class or regarding schools with more than three classes.

Simple Machines Resource Video

Producers and Consumers Field Trip

Students tour three learning centers and learn how local 19th century producers and consumers — the farmer, miller and storekeeper — used natural, human and capital resources to their advantage. The program follows the Virginia Standards of Learning for History, Geography and Economics. Download Producers and Consumers Learning Kit. 

  • Offered Monday through Friday at 10 a.m. 
  • The program lasts about two hours.
  • Maximum three classes (classrooms) per day.
  • A maximum of 90 students can be accommodated within space and safety limits. 
  • Please do not divide classes without first consulting site staff.

Bring three-to-five adult chaperones per class to assist with hands-on learning centers. Additional drop-in parents may not be able to participate and are discouraged.

Comfortable shoes and clothing appropriate for the weather are necessary. There is walking outdoors among buildings, and the mill is not heated.

Please call 703-759-2771 with questions or concerns, especially regarding an inclusion or ESL class or regarding schools with more than three classes.

Motion in the Mill Field Trip

Students receive a special tour of the mill geared towards younger students and visit the general store where they take part in a Then & Now activity. The program emphasizes the Science SOLs of motion and sound, Virginia history, and making connections between the past and present.

  • Offered Monday through Friday at 10 a.m. 
  • The program lasts about 75 minutes.
  • Maximum two classes (classrooms) per day.
  • A maximum of 60 students can be accommodated within space and safety limits. 
  • Please do not divide classes without first consulting site staff.

Bring three-to-five adult chaperones per class to assist with hands-on learning centers. Additional drop-in parents may not be able to participate and are discouraged.

Comfortable shoes and clothing appropriate for the weather are necessary. There is walking outdoors among buildings, and the mill is not heated.

Please call 703-759-2771 with questions or concerns, especially regarding an inclusion or ESL class or regarding schools with more than two classes.

Pre-school field trips for ages 3-to-6 are offered Monday through Friday at 10 a.m. and last about one hour. Comfortable shoes and clothing appropriate for the weather are necessary. There is walking outdoors among buildings, and the mill is not heated. 

Pre-schoolers visit two buildings, the mill and the general store. During a docent-led mill tour, the children meet five puppets: Marvin the Miller, Alvin the Apprentice, farmers Fred and Matilda and their horse Charlie. Children learn how the miller and farmers worked together to produce flour and cornmeal. In the general store, a docent reads "Pancakes, Pancakes" by Eric Carle. Children also will participate in an interactive Then and Now activity.

Field trips are available for homeschool groups and organizations. Any program – Puppet Show, Motion in the Mill, Producers & Consumers, and Simple Machines – is available for homeschool groups as long as all students fit the following age groups:

  • Puppet Show: ages 3-6 
  • Motion in the Mill: ages 5-10
  • Producers & Consumers: ages 7-12 
  • Simple Machines: ages 7-12

For safety reasons, we are unable to accommodate larger ranges in ages. We are able to present only one program per day. 

For questions or comments about the school program, payments, the Learning Kit materials or any other aspect of a field trip, please call the site office any day between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. at 703-759-2771 or email FCPAColvinFieldTrips@fairfaxcounty.gov.


If your schedule permits and you want to bring lunch, there are indoor and outdoor spaces available. In nice weather, we recommend the picnic area adjacent to the parking lot. In poor weather, the group can sit on the floor and eat in the historic barn.

Students should not bring snacks. There is no time to eat during the presentation.

Children try to turn a grinding stone

 

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