When Warrenton was founded in the 18th century, it was nothing more than a dusty road and watering hole. It served as a tavern and courthouse for weary travelers on the Falmouth-Winchester and Alexandria-Culpeper roads. As it grew and became the seat of Fauquier County, it was transformed into a magnet for judges and lawyers--many of whom shaped the country's government after the Revolutionary War. Almost a century later, Warrenton changed hands more than 60 times during the Civil War; it experienced Reconstruction and rose from the ashes after a great fire that wiped out almost half the...