Jackie Spainhour
President, Historic Congressional Cemetery
From our president
In 2023, we worked to strengthen those community ties and make a measurable impact. We engaged our neighbors through a year of programs focused on death literacy, brought art to the big white chair out front, and offered a new holiday market featuring local artisans and elementary schools. Having met our endowment the previous year, we used those funds to start an ambitious project to preserve and upright fallen stones on our property, spending substantially more on these efforts than ever before. Our grounds bloomed and thrived, as did our relationships with the board, volunteers, and neighbors. I was proud to begin to fully implement the vision I have for this cemetery as a true community cornerstone where all our neighbors can find something of value.
As we delve into 2024, a year bringing with it our first foray into public art and the expansion of our educational offerings, I urge you to come along for the ride. Better yet, grab a front seat. Attend an event, watch a movie, take a tour, and help share with your family and friends the evidence that we are DC’s Greatest Undertaking.
Our nonprofit organization is on a mission to preserve, protect, and promote our historic and active burial ground.
With its first burial in 1807, Historic Congressional Cemetery is among the oldest institutions in Washington, DC, and is the final resting place of over 70,000
individuals. Their stories are American history in microcosm, all in 35 acres of the nation’s capital. Still an active burial ground, it is the only place in Washington where individuals can be buried at a site directly on Pierre L’Enfant’s 18th century city plan.
Historic Congressional Cemetery was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2011 and continues to build upon the legacy of over 200 years of American history. The cemetery is administered by the nonprofit Association for the Preservation of Historic Congressional Cemetery and owned by Christ Church + Washington Parish. The association is constantly striving to maintain the historic, cultural, and aesthetic qualities of this natural landscape along the Anacostia River. Hundreds of volunteers each year help preserve the cemetery and further its nonprofit mission.
