About Front Royal, Virginia:
After the Virginia Colony surveyed the land in the late 1720s, settlers then colonized what is now the city of Front Royal and introduced a ferry and an inn to the area. A few years later, in 1744, the Iroquois Confederation sold all of the land east of the Alleghenies to the Virginia Colony at the Treaty of Lancaster.
The Treaty of Lancaster allowed more than 1,000 European immigrants to settle in what is now eastern West Virginia between 1745 and 1755 unopposed by the Iroquois and other tribes. After the Treaty of Lancaster, the area around the Shenandoah River quickly grew into a space for livestock wranglers and boatmen, earning the nickname “Helltown” due to the mainly rowdy behavior of the men passing through.
As for the transition of the name from “Helltown” to “Front Royal,” there are several versions of the story……the real one remains unknown.
Today, Fort Royal draws families due to its relatively low cost of living and its family-friendly reputation (“Hell Town” is long gone). It has also been dubbed “The Canoe Capital of Virginia,” thanks to the many opportunities for canoeing, tubing, kayaking, rafting and fishing on the Shenandoah River. It offers a number of places that are of interest to Catholics.
Catholic Places of interest in Front Royal, Virginia:
Christ the King Chapel at Christendom College
Padre Pio Academy (a hybrid school combining in-person education with home schooling)
Saints Joachim and Anna Ukrainian Catholic Church
Saint John the Baptist Catholic Church (historic church with Adoration Chapel)
Note: There is also Saint Dominic’s Monastery of cloistered Nuns in nearby Linden, but it is not open to the public. You can view their website here (external link)
Traveling to Front Royal, Virginia:
Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Front Royal is located at the confluence of the north and south forks of the Shenandoah River and approximately 76 miles (122 km) west of Washington, D.C.,
The nearest airport to Front Royal is Washington Dulles (IAD), which is 40.4 miles away. Other nearby airports include Charlottesville (CHO) which is 55.9 miles away, Reagan Washington (DCA) which is 62.4 miles away and Baltimore-Washington International (BWI), which is 84.3 miles.