If I’m being completely honest – which I’ve decided to be – Tombs and Tomes book club was started on a whim. My former colleague Margaret and I wanted to be a part of a book club, and after perusing programming and events at other cemeteries, I discovered that there was in fact precedent for [...]
We could go on and on about why you should run Dead Man's Run, a race which is now in its SEVENTH year. Caps lock because we can't believe it either. But if you won't take our word for it, we hope you listen to one of our veteran runners, Catherine Collins. She's been running [...]
Do you love interesting stories about our Cemetery’s “residents?” Of course you do! You’re following the Congressional Cemetery blog. You’re in great company, because so does Liz Ruskin, a woman who works in public radio, brings her dog Lola to the Cemetery, and has put together a truly engaging audio tour. This exclusive tour, aptly [...]
For the past five years, we've hosted a Halloween gala in the cemetery called Ghosts and Goblets. It's a fantastic and quirky event, but for a number of reasons, we decided to retire the party. Never fear (we know we have some die-hard G&G fans out there), it's not going away completely. This year, we decided [...]
I asked Eric deWaardt to write a blog post telling everyone a little bit more about the Notes from the Crypt concerts that he organizes monthly for the cemetery. He wrote the below post, but in true Eric fashion, he is far too humble in his explanation, which prompts me to properly introduce him. Eric is a [...]
Why does a cemetery need or choose to have events? Isn’t having ___________ (fill in the blank with an event) disrespectful to the dead? Cemeteries should be serene, peaceful spaces reserved for contemplation and mourning. As a historic yet active cemetery, we sometimes receive the above remarks and questions, along with similar commentary, in response [...]
Boston, we know. We've got nothing on you here in DC. But by anyone's standards, it is brutally cold here in the nation's capital. The wind is howling outside the cemetery gatehouse, and the staff feel lucky to be able to hunker down and view the beauty of the cemetery from the comfort of our [...]
It's that time of year! As we approach fall here at Congressional Cemetery, like many other DC sites we are heading straight for the busy event season. We absolutely must take advantage of the good weather, and that means you'll be hearing from us a lot: whether it be about the upcoming Day of the [...]
Vice President Margaret Puglisi and Doug Graves at their nerdiest. And when we say "nerds," we most certainly mean it as a compliment. This comes directly from the cemetery staff members who have had in-depth conversations about their dream tombstones, hold firm opinions about their favorite "residents" in the cemetery, and whose idea of a good [...]
Guest post from author Garrett Peck (check out his website). Did you miss out on getting tickets to Savor? Never fear: Historic Congressional Cemetery is throwing a Maibockfest on Saturday, May 10 from 3:00 - 6:00pm - and you’re invited. George Beckert (far left) may have been the first to brew lager in DC. He and [...]
