Global InformationCongressional Cemetery information
| Congressional Cemetery | |
|---|---|
 | |
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| Details | |
| Established | April 4, 1807 |
| Location | 1801 E Street, S.E., Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Country | United States |
| Type | Private |
| Owned by | Christ Church |
| Size | 35.75 acres (14 ha) |
| Website | Official Site |
| Find a Grave | Congressional Cemetery |
Congressional Cemetery | |
U.S. National Register of Historic Places | |
Invalid designation | |
    | |
| Coordinates | 38°52′53″N 76°58′40″W / 38.88139°N 76.97778°W |
| Architect | Benjamin Latrobe, others |
| NRHP reference No. | 69000292[1] |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | June 23, 1969[1] |
| Designated NHLA | June 14, 2011 |
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The Congressional Cemetery, officially Washington Parish Burial Ground, is a historic and active cemetery located at 1801 E Street, S.E., in Washington, D.C., on the west bank of the Anacostia River. It is the only American "cemetery of national memory" founded before the Civil War.[2] Over 65,000 individuals are buried or memorialized at the cemetery, including many who helped form the nation and Washington, D.C. in the early 19th century.[3]
Christ Church, an Episcopalian church owns the cemetery. The U.S. government has purchased 806 burial plots, which are administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Congress, located about a mile and a half (2.4 km) to the northwest, has greatly influenced the history of the cemetery.[4] The cemetery still sells plots, and is an active burial ground. From the Washington Metro, the cemetery lies three blocks east of the Potomac Avenue station and two blocks south of the Stadium-Armory station.
Many members of Congress who died while Congress was in session are interred at Congressional Cemetery. Other burials include early landowners and speculators, the builders and architects of early Washington, D.C., Native American diplomats, Washington, D.C. mayors, American Civil War veterans, and 19th century Washington, D.C., families unaffiliated with the federal government.
The cemetery is the resting place of one vice president, one Supreme Court justice, six Cabinet members, nineteen senators, 71 U.S. Representatives, including a former speaker of the House, veterans from every American war, and J. Edgar Hoover, the first FBI director.[3]
The cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 23, 1969, and designated a National Historic Landmark in 2011.[5]
- ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ National Historic Landmark Nomination, p. 4
- ^ a b "Congressional Cemetery Website". Archived from the original on 2021-05-02. Retrieved 2004-12-29.
- ^ Department of Veterans Affairs Archived 2014-11-14 at the Wayback Machine, Congressional Cemetery Government Lots, accessed April 27, 2012.
- ^ "National Register of Historic Places listings for June 24, 2011". National Park Service. June 24, 2011. Archived from the original on August 28, 2013. Retrieved June 24, 2011.