Established in 1925, the Gosnell family takes great pride in its contribution to Washington Metropolitan real estate development over the last 100 years. The family businesses’ commercial and residential projects have ranged from post-War affordable housing to commercial buildings still in use today. The Gosnell family built several residential communities in Maryland and Virginia including, River Falls, Piney Glen Farms, Riverside Garden, Waynewood, Westgrove, Marlan Park, Bucknell Manor, Belvedere, and Persimmon Tree. Commercial developments include the East West Towers in Bethesda, MD and Gosnell Properties in Tysons, VA.

Clarence W. Gosnell, “Gude” to friends and acquaintances alike, was a native Washingtonian beginning his career as an entrepreneur during the Great Depression. Between 1924 and the end of the Second World War Gude’s unshakable mission was to meet the tremendous need for affordable housing in Washington, taking a particular interest in supporting our country’s Veterans. At the time President of the Home Builder’s Association of Metropolitan Washington, Gude was quoted stating that Nation Home Week would be dedicated to a “reevaluation of the part home ownership plays in establishing true values of life and citizenship.”

John “Jack” Gude Gosnell, a fifth generation Washingtonian and the son of Gude Gosnell, joined his father and brother Bud in the family building business in 1950. Upon graduating from St. Albans School for Boys in 1944, he proudly served in the United States Navy. After leaving the Service, Jack graduated from Cornell University with a civil engineering degree. During his tenure at Clarence W. Gosnell, Inc., Jack planned and developed many fine communities in Virginia and Maryland, as well as office complexes in Bethesda and Tyson’s Corner. Jack was well recognized in the industry, serving as President of the Washington, DC National Homebuilders Association and as a member of the Board of Directors of NAHB.

Clarence William “Bud” Gosnell, Jr., son of Gude, joined his father and his older brother Jack in the family business, later co-founding Gosnell Properties and Monroe Development Corp. Bud attended the St. Albans School for Boys and went on to graduate from Fishburne Military Academy in 1945 and enlist in the Marine Corps. After leaving the Service, Bud graduated from Duke University and started his life-long career in real estate; investing in and developing nearly one million square feet of office space in Tysons, VA and Bethesda, MD and building hundreds of custom homes in well-known Virginia and Maryland communities. Bud was well recognized in the industry having served as president of the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors.

Gude Gosnell passed away before the majority of the 3rd generation was born leaving sons Jack and Bud, still quite young men, to teach their children the family business. Work was interwoven into the Gosnell’s day to day life. Building a sand castle was more than a fun summer rite of passage. Deciding where to build was an exercise in having a vision and plan to execute; an ideal location open and flat with easy access to water but not where the sand was too wet. Constructing moats, walls and tunnels was one engineering test after the next. And as the hours passed, creativity solved problems and using “teamwork” was continually tested. With the most years of sand castles under their belts, John and Griff Gosnell the eldest sons of Jack and Bud, took on leadership roles in Gosnell Properties Inc. and Monroe Development Corporation (respectively).

John W. Gosnell, son of Jack, would guide the family’s development in River Falls from the late 1970’s through completion. John had worked for his father and C.W. Gosnell, Inc. from the youthful age of 13 – learning all aspects of the building business from the ground up. His father Jack and uncle Bud spearheaded the search for land in southern Montgomery County on which to develop a residential family community. Between 1963 and 1968, Clarence W. Gosnell Inc. purchased several tracts of land in Potomac, MD, then a quite isolated suburb sprinkled with small farms and otherwise covered in thick woods. About 40 houses built a year and four decades later, the landscape of this area would transform into the River Falls we know today.

Monroe Development Corporation, a Gosnell Family Company, built some of Metropolitan Washington’s finest homes in Persimmon Tree, a small residential community on Country Club Drive in Bethesda, Maryland. Bud Gosnell could spot an opportunity like noneother; he identified the 70-acre parcel of land located adjacent to the rolling fairways of Congressional Country Club. Bud and his son Griff Gosnell had worked closely together for over 20 years building almost 100 custom homes between Belevedere and Beallmont, two residential communities in North Potomac. Upon completing Belevedere, by then an award-winning builder, Griff lead the development of Persimmon Tree through its completion in the early 2000’s. Specializing in classic early American architecture, Monroe Development Corp. delivered thirty one custom homes ranging from 15-20,ooo sqft each on a 2 acre lot.

In the early 1980’s, Barry Gosnell, the youngest of Jack’s four children, joined Gosnell Properties Inc. Before joining the family business Barry spent the majority of his career in management consulting.

Members of the 3rd generation are leading a 10.2-acre property development in Clarksburg, MD located in northern Montgomery County, Maryland. The proposed development consists of 87,500 square feet of employment uses and 8,220 square feet of retail uses, including a hotel, 2 bank pad sites, a gas station and a quick mart.