The juncture of the Manassas Gap and the Orange & Alexandria railroads in the 1850s created the hamlet of Manassas. During the Civil War this tiny junction became a bloody pawn between the two contending armies.

Fought over and burned, Manassas was a key to the heart of Virginia and the site for hospitals, fortifications, and supply depots for both the North and the South.

When the war ended, the railroad became the basis of the town's economy, which today is spurred by the growth of the Washington metropolitan area.