The founder of Cheverly in 1918, Robert Marshall, adopted the name for his town from a nearby subdivision called Cheverly Gardens. Where the name came from in the first place is obscure, but research suggests that it might have been a centuries-old place in Cambridgeshire, England, called Cheveley. Such niceties did not concern Marshall when he started to build his idea of “Washington’s Ideal Home Suburb” on land first inhabited by the Anacostia Indians and later by tobacco plantation owners and slaves. He described Cheverly in a 1926 sales brochure as “skillfully planned for artistic homes, offering city conveniences and the finer kind of suburban life to discerning people at extremely moderate prices.”

Marshall’s 1926 description of Cheverly is as appropriate today as it was 75 years ago. There are leafy winding streets, well manicured parks and yards, and affordable attractive homes. The only difference now is a greater mix of architectural styles. At No. 1 Cheverly Circle is Mount Hope, a 12-room ante bellum plantation house listed on the National Register of Historic Places; there are 25 historic Sears Roebuck houses representing 20 of the offered styles; there are stone cape cods, eccentric bungalows, and hundreds of red-brick Colonials built by developer Thomas Ashe and others after World War II; interspersed among them all are more recent wood-framed homes.

Cheverly is the home of many federal government workers, but it is by no means a typical bedroom community. Cited twice by Washingtonian magazine as one of the “great neighborhoods” in the Washington area, the town cherishes its closely knit style of life. The residents get—and stay—connected through participation in more than 25 service, social, civic, recreational, and educational clubs and organizations.

How do Cheverly’s citizens themselves describe what makes their town special? They cite Cheverly’s great location, affordable homes, green environs, and intense community spirit. They also mention its responsive town government, low tax rate, and superb public services; its harmonious mix of blue-collar and white-collar professionals of diverse political, ethnic, and religious stripes; and its effective schools. In short, Cheverly’s citizens say their town’s distinctiveness lies in its combination of all the elements that provide people with a great quality of life.