Its land was donated to the United States government by Catherine Filene Shouse, who sought to preserve her former farm as parkland.

[4] The Foundation presents performances in the Filene Center from May through September and year-round at The Barns at Wolf Trap, just outside the park proper.

[9] On May 10, a benefit concert to cover the repair costs of around $650,000 was held at Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C.; it featured Pierre Boulez conducting the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.

It holds several hundred more patrons than the original Filene Center, provides better access for handicapped people, and adds backstage space for performers and crews.

Shouse bought the barns in upstate New York and had them moved to the current site in 1981 using the 18th-century "block and tackle" method of construction.

They bred horses, built a stable and a hay barn, and opened a dog-breeding kennel, producing champion boxers, miniature pinschers, and Weimaraners.

In a letter to Congress that year, Udall argued that Wolf Trap would "augment the park and recreation opportunities in the National Capital region and involve the expenditure of only a minimum of Federal funds.

"[18] On May 28, 1966, Virginia Senator A. Willis Robertson introduced a bill to Congress to create and fund Wolf Trap, which passed with relative ease.

[19] Rep. George H. Fallon of Maryland, for example, opposed the Wolf Trap bill on the basis that it would "only have the effect of dividing a small market" and would be in "direct conflict" with the Kennedy Center and Merriweather Post Pavilion.

[8] The inaugural performance at Wolf Trap occurred on June 1–2, 1971, and featured Van Cliburn, Julius Rudel and Norman Treigle conducting the New York City Opera.

Follow-up performances were conducted by National Symphony Orchestra, Choral Arts Society of Washington, United States Marine Band and the Madison Madrigal Singers.

[8] For the first several performances at the Filene Center, Robert Lewis, founder of the Actors Studio and acclaimed Broadway director, was chosen to conduct the training program and direct the production called Musical Theatre Cavalcade.

[21] In 1976, the Scottish Military Tattoo, a Bicentennial gift from the United Kingdom, performed at the Filene Center for a capacity audience which included Britain's Prince Philip.

[23] Other highlights included Sarah Caldwell's production of Sergei Prokofiev's opera War and Peace, the Royal Ballet, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, the annual US National Symphony Orchestra's 1812 Overture concerts with live cannons and Beverly Sills' 1981 farewell appearance.

After the fire, the United States Postal Service issued a commemorative stamp honoring Wolf Trap on September 1, 1982.

Attendees included opera star and frequent Wolf Trap performer Beverly Sills and then-Virginia Governor Charles Robb, as well as Mrs. Shouse herself.

However, because fewer artists toured in 2009, Wolf Trap only held 86 performances and reported a revenue decrease of about ten percent.

The report raised ethics concerns about the tickets, since United States law generally prohibits government employees from receiving gifts.

[29] Despite the concerns, the National Park Service signed a new agreement with the Wolf Trap Foundation on May 3, 2019, that continued to provide the secretary's eight tickets for each performance for twenty more years.