Editing Loudoun County, Virginia (section)

==Economy==
Traditionally a [[Rural area|rural]] county, Loudoun's population has grown dramatically since the 1980s. Having undergone heavy suburbanization since 1990, Loudoun has a full-fledged [[service economy]]. It is home to world headquarters for several Internet-related and [[high tech]] companies, including [[Verizon Business]], [[Telos (defense company)|Telos Corporation]], and [[Orbital Sciences Corporation]]. Like Fairfax County's [[Dulles Technology Corridor|Dulles Corridor]], Loudoun County has economically benefited from [[Washington Dulles International Airport]], the majority of which is in the county along its border with Fairfax.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://biz.loudoun.gov/2017/09/13/loudoun-domestic-tourism-worth-nearly-1-7-billion/ |title=Loudoun Domestic Tourism Worth Nearly $1.7 Billion - Loudoun County Economic Development, VA |date=September 13, 2017 |work=Loudoun County Economic Development, VA |access-date=June 4, 2018 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://biz.loudoun.gov/2018/02/26/another-record-year-dulles-international-airport/ |title=Another Record Year at Dulles International Airport - Loudoun County Economic Development, VA |date=February 26, 2018 |work=Loudoun County Economic Development, VA |access-date=June 4, 2018 |language=en-US}}</ref>{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}

Loudoun County retains a strong rural economy. The [[Equestrianism|equine]] industry has an estimated revenue of $78 million. It is home to the [[Morven Park]] International Equestrian Center which hosts national [[horse trials]]. In addition, a growing wine industry has produced several internationally recognized wines. Loudoun County now has 40 [[Winery|wineries]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.visitloudoun.org/Experience-Loudoun/Wine-Country/Wineries-Tasting-Rooms |title=Loudon Is DC's Wine Country |publisher=Loudoun Convention and Visitors Association (Visit Loudoun) |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130529011525/http://www.visitloudoun.org/Experience-Loudoun/Wine-Country/Wineries-Tasting-Rooms |archive-date=May 29, 2013}}</ref> and over 25 active farms. Loudoun has rich soil and was in the mid-19th century a top [[wheat]]-producing county in the fourth largest wheat-producing state.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.loudounhistory.org/history/agriculture-mills-and-wheat.htm |title=Early 19th-Century Milling and Wheat Farming |work=The History of Loudoun County, Virginia |quote=Since its settlement in the mid-1700s, Loudoun County has been acclaimed for its fertile soil. In the 1850s and 1860s, Virginia was the fourth largest wheat producing state, and Loudoun was one of the state's top-producing counties.}}</ref>

[[MCI, Inc.]] (formerly WorldCom), a [[subsidiary]] of [[Verizon Communications]], is headquartered in [[Ashburn, Virginia|Ashburn]], Loudoun County. It announced it would move its headquarters to Ashburn in 2003.<ref name="HQInfo">{{cite web |url=http://www.secinfo.com/dr8Pp.25j.htm |title=Schedule 13D. Amendment to General Statement of Beneficial Ownership |author=MCI Inc |publisher=Securities and Exchange Commission |date=March 14, 2003 |access-date=September 25, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2003/BUSINESS/04/14/worldcom/ |title=WorldCom to emerge from collapse |work=CNN |edition=international |date=April 14, 2003 |access-date=September 25, 2009}}</ref> [[AOL]] had its headquarters at 22000 AOL Way in [[Dulles, Virginia|Dulles]] in unincorporated Loudoun County.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://corp.aol.com/about-aol/company-overview |title=Company Overview |publisher=AOL |date=February 8, 2008 |access-date=May 7, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090218213649/http://corp.aol.com/about-aol/company-overview |archive-date=February 18, 2009}}</ref> In 2007 AOL announced it would move its headquarters from Loudoun County to [[New York City]]; it would continue to operate its Virginia offices.<ref name="GoldfarbHQMove">{{cite news |last=Goldfarb |first=Zachary |author2=Diaz, Sam |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/17/AR2007091700415.html |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |title=AOL Moving Executives, Headquarters to New York |date=September 18, 2007 |page=A01 |access-date=May 7, 2009}}</ref> [[Orbital Sciences Corporation]] has its headquarters in Dulles.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.orbital.com/About/Contact/ |title=Contact Information |publisher=Orbital Sciences Corporation |access-date=September 25, 2009}}</ref>

Loudoun County houses over 60 massive [[data center]]s, many of which correspond to [[Amazon Web Services]]’s (AWS) us-east-1 region.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://datacenterfrontier.com/amazon-plans-epic-data-center-expansion-in-northern-virginia/ |title=Amazon Plans Epic Data Center Expansion in Northern Virginia |date=November 6, 2017 |website=Data Center Frontier |language=en-US |access-date=February 14, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Regions and Zones |url=https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/using-regions-availability-zones.html |access-date=July 8, 2022 |website=AWS Documentation}}</ref> These data centers are estimated to carry 70 percent of global web traffic.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.washingtonian.com/2016/09/14/70-percent-worlds-web-traffic-flows-loudoun-county/ |title=70 Percent of the World's Web Traffic Flows Through Loudoun County {{!}} Washingtonian (DC) |date=September 14, 2016 |website=Washingtonian |language=en-US |access-date=February 14, 2019}}</ref> Loudoun County's "Data Center Ally" is the world's largest concentration of data centers with over 25 million square feet of data centers.</ref>{{Cite web |title=Data Centers |url=https://biz.loudoun.gov/key-business-sectors/data-centers/ |access-date=May 16, 2025 |website=AWS Documentation}}</ref>

Before its dissolution, [[Independence Air]] (originally [[Atlantic Coast Airlines]]) was headquartered in Dulles.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.atlanticcoast.com/company__information.shtm |archive-url=https://archive.today/20010811200720/http://www.atlanticcoast.com/company__information.shtm |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 11, 2001 |title=Company Information |publisher=Atlantic Coast Airlines |date=August 11, 2001 |access-date=September 25, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=4220709 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120924142856/http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=4220709 |url-status=dead |archive-date=September 24, 2012 |title=Independence Air, Inc. |magazine=[[Bloomberg Businessweek]] |access-date=September 25, 2009}}</ref> At one time Atlantic Coast Airlines had its headquarters in [[Sterling, Virginia|Sterling]].<ref>{{citation |title=SKEEN, K. B. |journal=Standard & Poor's Register of Corporations, Directors and Executives |volume=2 |publisher=[[Standard & Poor's Corp.]] |year=1998 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xtdIAAAAYAAJ&q=%22Atlantic+Coast+Airlines%22+%22Sterling,+VA%22 |page=1012 |access-date=January 31, 2011 |quote=Atlantic Coast Airlines Inc., One Export Dr., Sterling, VA 20164}}</ref> Before its dissolution, [[MAXjet Airways]] was headquartered on the grounds of [[Washington-Dulles International Airport]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.maxjet.com/contactUsAction.do |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060718083041/http://www.maxjet.com/contactUsAction.do |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 18, 2006 |title=Contact Us |publisher=MAXjet Airways |date=February 18, 2007 |access-date=September 25, 2009}}</ref>

===Top employers===
According to the county's [[comprehensive annual financial report]]s, the top employers in the county are:<ref>{{Cite web |title=Loudoun County Annual Comprehensive Financial Report - Year Ended June 30, 2023 |url=https://www.loudoun.gov/DocumentCenter/View/180080/FY-2023-Loudoun-ACFR-Website |access-date=18 May 2024 |website=Loudoun County, Virginia Government Website}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable sortable" border="1"
|-
! #
! Employer
! # of employees (2020)<ref>[https://www.loudoun.gov/DocumentCenter/View/163183/Fiscal-Year-2020-Comprehensive-Annual-Financial-Report ''Loudon County, Virginia: Comprehensive Annual Fiscal Report, Year Ended June 30, 2020''], p. 217 (table N).</ref> 
!Percentage of Total County Employment
|-
|1
|[[Loudoun County Public Schools]]
|12,804
|7.11
|-
|2
|County of Loudoun
|4,453
|2.58
|-
|3
|[[United States Department of Homeland Security|U.S. Department of Homeland Security]]
|2,500-5,000
|2.17
|-
|4
|[[Verizon Business]] (formerly [[MCI Worldcom]])
|2,500-5,000
|2.17
|-
|5
|[[Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems]] (formerly [[Orbital ATK]])
|1,000-2,500
|1.01
|-
|6
|[[United Airlines]]
|1,000-2,500
|1.01
|-
|7
|[[Inova Health System]] (Loudoun Hospital Center)
|1,000-2,500
|1.01
|-
|8
|[[Raytheon Technologies]]
|1,000-2,500
|1.01
|-
|9
|[[Dynalectric|Dynalectric DC]]
|1,000-2,500
|1.01
|-
|10
|[[Amazon (company)|Amazon]]
|1,000-2,500
|1.01
|}