Fort Willard, a Civil War Fort, was constructed in 1862 as part of the defense system for Washington, D.C. It was donated by the developers of Belle Haven, Gene and Helen Olmi, Sr. and Gene and Natalie Olmi, Jr. Now Fort Willard is a Fairfax County Park Authority (FCPA) Historic Site near Alexandria, Virginia.

 

The Olmi Family Foundation recently made a significant contribution to the Fairfax County Park Foundation (FCPF) for improvements at Fort Willard Circle. FCPA cultural and natural resource staff will oversee Site Stabilization including tree work and invasive plant species management. The generous gift will also fund an Archeological Study to confirm location and condition of Fort structures and to enhance access to educational opportunities at the site.

FCPF Executive Director, Bobbi Longworth, presented a Certificate of Appreciation to Geno Olmi and Nenita Castillo–Olmi for their Family Foundation’s generous gift of appreciated stock.

Join the Olmi Family to enrich Fairfax County parks by donating to FCPF today!

The following Olmi Family history was shared by Geno Olmi.

Our grandfather, Eugene J. Olmi, Sr. (Gene Sr.), came over from Italy in 1906 when he was three and settled in Philadelphia, PA. His father was a stonemason and they were not at all affluent. He taught himself to type and landed a job as a secretary with a steel company. It was there that he met Helen Jones, who became his wife until his death in 1979. They had one child, a son, Eugene J. Olmi, Jr. (Gene Jr.) - father to Tali (Natalie) and me. Gene Sr. went into the building business and was successful - building row houses in Philadelphia among other things.

He and Helen lost almost everything they owned in the 1929 financial crash. They took what they had left and moved to Alexandria, VA, bought property and started building again. He built row houses in Old Town Alexandria but is better known for his work with the Belle View Apartments and Shopping Center, and, of course, Belle Haven.

Gene Jr. went to George Washington High School but left early to join the U.S. Coast Guard during the Second World War. After the war, he joined his father in the building business, including Belle View and Belle Haven. Fortunately, they chose not to develop over Ft. Willard, but set it aside for its historical significance.

In 1949, Gene Jr. married Natalie Lyon, who was a schoolteacher. They had two children - Natalie S. Olmi (Tali) and Eugene J. Olmi III (Geno). We lived at 2100 Windsor Road in Belle Haven through high school and visited often afterward. Geno is married to Marilyn (Mel) Oberg-Olmi.

In 1978, the Olmi family transferred the Ft. Willard Historic Site to the Fairfax County Park Authority.

"Gene Olmi, Jr. created the Olmi Family Foundation to support the preservation of historical and educational aspects of the Ft. Willard Historic Site. We are proud that the family kept intact the site and has provided support for its improvement through the Fairfax County Park Foundation." ~ Geno Olmi, grandson of Eugene J. Olmi, Sr.