Congressional Cemetery
1801 E Street, Southeast, Washington, DC, 20003
GPS Coordinates:
38.881297, -76.978967
County:
Record count: 495
Ownership: Christ Church, Washington Parish
Directions: Located in the Hill East section of Washington DC, along the banks of the Anacostia River and the John Phillip Sousa Bridge. It is bounded by Potomac Ave SE, 17th St. SE, and Southeast Blvd.
Background: Congressional Cemetery got its start on April 7, 1807 when several members of Christ Church, Washington Parish formed an association to establish a new cemetery. They chose a 4.5 acre square between E and G Streets and Eighteenth and Nineteenth Streets SE. The association's bylaws required that when the association became debt-free, it would turn ownership over to Christ Church. That occurred on March 30, 1812. The cemetery became officially known as Washington Parish Burial Ground.
On July 19, 1807, Uriah Tracy of Connecticut became the first congressman buried in the cemetery.
In 1817, Christ Church set aside 100 burial lots for members of Congress who died in Washington. From this time forward, the nickname Congressional Cemetery has been used, although in 1849 the official name was changed to Washington Cemetery.
By the 1820s, Congressional Cemetery was the traditional burial site of senators, congressmen, and other high-ranking federal officials who died in Washington. In 1823, the church donated an additional 300 gravesites for congressional use, and in 1834 Congress appropriated funds for the erection of a keepers house, planting trees, and placing boundary stones. Since 1849, the piecemeal expansion of additional ground led to its present size of approximately 30 acres.
To date, The U.S. Government oversees 806 burial plots within Congressional Cemetery. The rest of Congressional Cemetery is open to burials for the general public. There are more than 70,000 burials in Congressional Cemetery.
Transcriptions
We have 1 transcription for this cemetery.
- Veterans Affairs Database, compiled by Interment.net, April 17, 2025, (495 records)