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Washington, D.C.’s 16 oldest houses, mapped

The city’s oldest dates back to 1754

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Editor's Note: This post was originally published in July 24, 2017 and has been updated with the most recent information.

Despite the many cranes and construction projects that perpetually pop up all over Washington, D.C., the nation’s capital continues to retain much of its historicity and charm.

As seen with The White House, The Lindens, and the Old Stone House, there are a variety of residences in the District that have remained largely unchanged.

It is worth noting that many of the oldest properties in the city have certainly undergone restorations and renovations, but without these repairs many of these buildings would not have air conditioning or structural foundations due to some of them being constructed before the Revolutionary War.

Below, take a look at 16 of the District’s residences, compiled by the D.C. Office of Planning and mapped from oldest to youngest.

[UPDATE 7/25/17: Six additional residences were added to the map.]

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The Lindens

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Year built: c. 1754

In Kalorama, a neighborhood already known for housing the rich and famous, such as Barack Obama and Ivanka Trump, one can discover Washington, D.C.’s oldest residence ever built. Despite being known as the oldest residence in D.C., the property was actually originally built in Danvers, Massachusetts.

The first owner was a leading shipowner and merchant in Marblehead, Massachusetts, called Robert "King" Hooper. After losing much of his wealth and stature due to sympathizing with the British during the run-up to the Revolutionary War, two antique dealers in the 1930s purchased the property.

These antique dealers later sold the residence to a prominent District couple at the time, called George and Miriam Morris. In six railroad boxcars, the property was shipped piece by piece to this couple.

The Lindens has experienced two restorations, but still retains some stunning, historic features, including a Hancock staircase with carved balustrade, scenic wall coverings printed in France, and original wood paneling.

Photo via HomeVisit

Old Stone House

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Year built: c. 1765

Behold, the oldest unchanged building in the nation’s capital, dating back before the Revolutionary War. This residence was constructed in three phases and at one time served as a car dealership. When it was originally built, though, it was both a home and a shop for a cabinetmaker, known as Christopher Layman, according to an application filed with the National Register of Historic Places.

At one point, there was a plaque on the building that claimed that the property once served as George Washington’s “Engineering Headquarters,” but this claim was never substantiated.

In 1953, the U.S. Government purchased the property for $90,000. After the National Park Service restored the building, it was reopened as a “house museum” in 1960, offering visitors a glimpse at pre-Revolutionary architecture and furnishings.

The museum is free and open to the public every day of the week between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m., except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and January 1.

Old Stone House Photo via Wikimedia Commons/Hu Totya

Beall-Peter-Dick House

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Year built: c. 1770-1777

Thomas Beall constructed many houses in Georgetown during the 18th century, including the Newton D. Baker House at 3017 N Street NW (which was later owned by Jackie Kennedy), the Beall-Washington House at 1647 30th Street NW, and this property.

In c. 1872, wings were added, and it was eventually remodeled, according to the D.C. Inventory of Historic Sites.

Photo via Google Street View

Prospect House

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Year built: c. 1788-1793

The first Architect of the Capitol, William Thornton, is the same designer behind this Georgetown residence. Thornton is also known for being the first Superintendent of the U.S. Patent Office and the architect of the U.S. Capitol.

The builder behind the home was James McCubbin Lingan, who served as an officer of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War and was one of the 19 original proprietors who signed the agreement for the establishment of the District of Columbia, according to an application filed with the National Register of Historic Places.

The first Secretary of Defense James Forrestal was once an owner of this building. The home was also later owned by Congressman Richard Thurmond Chatham and his wife Patricia Firestone, who remodeled the property in the 1950s.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons/AgnosticPreachersKid

Forrest Marbury House

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Year built: c. 1788-1789

This property is named after two former owners: Uriah Forrest and William Marbury.

Forrest was a Revolutionary War leader, mayor of Georgetown, and one of the 19 original proprietors of the District. He also constructed one of Washington, D.C.’s oldest residences, known as the Rosedale Farmhouse.

During the early 1800s, when Marbury lived in this home, he purchased large tracts in the Anacostia neighborhood. His arguments with President Thomas Jefferson over President John Adams's federal appointments also resulted in the U.S. Supreme Court case, Marbury v. Madison, in 1803. This case helped define the boundaries between the executive and judicial branches of the U.S. government.

During the 1980s, this residence was converted into a nightclub. A decade later, the property was restored and remodeled before later serving as the offices of the Embassy of Ukraine.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons/APK

Thomas Sim Lee Corner House

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Year built: c. 1787-1791

The buildings located at 3001-3009 M Street in Georgetown are known as the Thomas Sim Lee Corner because the second State Governor of Maryland Thomas Sim Lee constructed and owned a portion of them.

According to the Library of Congress, Lee constructed one single dwelling at 3001-3003 M Street NW in 1794 in order to have a “winter residence” in Georgetown. Later, Lee sold the adjoining land to Andrew Ross and Robert Getty who went on to build another one of the District’s oldest residences, known as the Ross & Getty House.

Photo via Library of Congress

William Brown House

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Year built: c. 1791

This home was restored in the 1940s and retains many of its original details today. The Historic American Buildings Survey reported that William Brown, the former owner of this home, was from a distinguished Scottish family. Brown’s grandfather, Gustavus, immigrated to Maryland in order to practice medicine and later was ordained in the Church of England. In the 1770s, William Brown served as a surgeon to the Second Virginia Regiment during the American Revolution.

Another later owner of this property was Mary Bibb. Bibb’s husband, George, was the Chief Justice of the Kentucky Court of Appeals and later the Secretary of the Treasury. George also was able to develop a variety of lettuce, known as Bibb lettuce, according to the Historic American Buildings Survey.

Photo via Library of Congress/Jet Lowe

The White House

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Year built: 1792

The home of the U.S. President is not only one of the most famous houses in the nation, but one of the oldest as well.

Of course, the building was burned in 1814 by British troops and had to be reconstructed. Furthermore, there have been many changes to the architecture over the past few centuries.

For example, the West Wing was added in 1902 and expanded in 1909, the Truman Balcony was constructed in 1948, and the interior of the building was completely rebuilt between 1949 and 1952 due to inadequate foundations.

Rosedale Farmhouse

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Year built: c. 1793

Known as Rosedale Farmhouse—or simply Rosedale—this property was constructed by Uriah Forrest, a Revolutionary War leader, civic leader, and one of the 19 original proprietors of the District, according to an application filed with the National Register of Historic Places.

Forrest served as mayor of Georgetown in 1792 before later serving as a Representative from Maryland between 1793 and 1794. From 1801 to 1805, he worked as an appointed clerk of the circuit court of the District of Columbia.

A former renter of this home was also Assistant Secretary of Defense John N. Irwin, II, in 1959.

In the parlor of this home, Agustín Cosme Damián de Iturbide y Arámburu, a Mexican army general, politician, and the original designer of the first Mexican flag, married Alice Green, whose family occupied the home until 1917.

The National Cathedral School for Girls has also used the property as a faculty residence.

Both the interior and exterior of this home have been modified over the years, so the features date from many periods. In December 2012, Curbed DC reported that the listing sold for $4.45 million.

Photo via Redfin

Thomas Law House

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Year built: c. 1794-1796

Known as the Honeymoon House, this property was originally constructed for Thomas Law and his wife Eliza Parke Custis, First Lady Martha Washington’s eldest granddaughter. The two only lived in the building during their honeymoon while they awaited the completion of another home.

During the Civil War, the property served as a hotel, then a hospital and medical clinic, and finally an amenity to the co-op development, Tiber Island Cooperative Homes. The home was also owned by former Congressman Richard Bland Lee.

The home is now on the market for $2.5 million.

Photo courtesy of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage

The Maples

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Year built: 1795

This Georgian-style manor was once the home of Francis Scott Key, the author of "The Star Spangled Banner." Currently, this development houses 20 flats, duplexes, and townhomes, but during the War of 1812 it was used as a hospital for wounded soldiers. In 1936, the property sold to the Friendship House Association and later provided social services until 2010.

After a renovation by architects Cunningham and Quill and developer Altus Realty Partners, the manor is now a residential development with prices ranging from $489,900 to $719,900.

Photo via The Maples

Wheat Row

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Year built: 1795

Behold, some of the oldest residential homes in Washington, D.C., originally purchased by land speculator James Greenleaf, who also owned half the federal government's salable land in the District of Columbia. The architect behind Wheat Row is up for debate with some sources saying it was James Clark and other sources saying it was architect William Lovering.

According to Mary Ellen Hayward and Charles Belfoure in their 2001 publication, “The Baltimore Rowhouse,” Wheat Row was the first example in the District of the terraced house, or the rowhouse. Wheat Row was named after John Wheat, a prominent landscape designer and a messenger employed by the U.S. Congress

This row of homes was added to the National Register of Historic Places in July 1973. They are currently part of the Harbour Square apartment cooperative.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons/AgnosticPreachersKid

Dumbarton House

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Year built: c. 1799

This Federal-style mansion in Georgetown was first owned by Joseph Nourse, the first Register of the Treasury.

Since 1932, it has served as a “house museum” with a collection of decorative furniture, paintings, textiles, silver, and ceramics dating back to 1789 to 1825. It also serves as a national headquarters for the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons/AgnosticPreachersKid

Sewall-Belmont House & Museum

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Year built: c. 1800

The architect behind this historic home is still unknown, but the Historic American Buildings Survey believes it was presumably Baltimore-based designer Leonard Harbaugh, who also designed the original Treasury Building and the first building on the campus of Georgetown University, known as Old North.

Currently, the house serves as a museum dedicated to women's suffrage and acts as the headquarters for the National Woman’s Party. The organization purchased the building in 1929.

This historic house was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972 and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1974. Since it was constructed, it has undergone many restorations and renovations.

The property is named after Robert Sewall, who purchased one of the lots for $429.33 in October 1790 and two of the lots for $600.29 on January 1799. The property is also named after Alva Belmont, who was a prominent multi-millionaire American socialite and a major figure in the women's suffrage movement.

The exterior of the Belmont-Paul Women’s Equality National Monument. The facade is red brick with a grey roof and multiple windows. Photo via Wikimedia Commons/AgnosticPreachersKid

The Octagon House

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Year built: c. 1800

The Octagon House, also known as the Colonel John Tayloe III House, was constructed for Tayloe, who served in the Virginia state legislature, and ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 1800. At first, the home was supposed to be a “winter residence” for Tayloe’s family, but they lived in the property year-round between 1818 and 1855.

Similarly to other houses on this list, this property was constructed by William Thornton, the first Superintendent of the U.S. Patent Office and the architect of the U.S. Capitol.

The American Institute of Architects purchased the property in 1902. It later opened as a museum in 1970 and was restored to its original appearance in the early 1990s. In 1960, it was declared a National Historic Landmark.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons/Steveturphotg

Ross & Getty House

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Year built: c. 1810-1812

This building serves as an example of early 19th century commercial architecture and continues to stand today thanks to the work of Georgetown residents. According to the Historic American Buildings Survey, there were plans to raze the building in 1952 in order to make room for a parking lot, but locals formed an organization, called Historic Georgetown, Inc. The organization purchased the property in order to save it.

In 1955, extensive remodeling was done.

The home is named after Andrew Ross and Robert Getty who constructed the building.

Photo via Library of Congress

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The Lindens

Year built: c. 1754

In Kalorama, a neighborhood already known for housing the rich and famous, such as Barack Obama and Ivanka Trump, one can discover Washington, D.C.’s oldest residence ever built. Despite being known as the oldest residence in D.C., the property was actually originally built in Danvers, Massachusetts.

The first owner was a leading shipowner and merchant in Marblehead, Massachusetts, called Robert "King" Hooper. After losing much of his wealth and stature due to sympathizing with the British during the run-up to the Revolutionary War, two antique dealers in the 1930s purchased the property.

These antique dealers later sold the residence to a prominent District couple at the time, called George and Miriam Morris. In six railroad boxcars, the property was shipped piece by piece to this couple.

The Lindens has experienced two restorations, but still retains some stunning, historic features, including a Hancock staircase with carved balustrade, scenic wall coverings printed in France, and original wood paneling.

Photo via HomeVisit

Old Stone House

Year built: c. 1765

Behold, the oldest unchanged building in the nation’s capital, dating back before the Revolutionary War. This residence was constructed in three phases and at one time served as a car dealership. When it was originally built, though, it was both a home and a shop for a cabinetmaker, known as Christopher Layman, according to an application filed with the National Register of Historic Places.

At one point, there was a plaque on the building that claimed that the property once served as George Washington’s “Engineering Headquarters,” but this claim was never substantiated.

In 1953, the U.S. Government purchased the property for $90,000. After the National Park Service restored the building, it was reopened as a “house museum” in 1960, offering visitors a glimpse at pre-Revolutionary architecture and furnishings.

The museum is free and open to the public every day of the week between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m., except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and January 1.

Old Stone House Photo via Wikimedia Commons/Hu Totya

Beall-Peter-Dick House

Year built: c. 1770-1777

Thomas Beall constructed many houses in Georgetown during the 18th century, including the Newton D. Baker House at 3017 N Street NW (which was later owned by Jackie Kennedy), the Beall-Washington House at 1647 30th Street NW, and this property.

In c. 1872, wings were added, and it was eventually remodeled, according to the D.C. Inventory of Historic Sites.

Photo via Google Street View

Prospect House

Year built: c. 1788-1793

The first Architect of the Capitol, William Thornton, is the same designer behind this Georgetown residence. Thornton is also known for being the first Superintendent of the U.S. Patent Office and the architect of the U.S. Capitol.

The builder behind the home was James McCubbin Lingan, who served as an officer of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War and was one of the 19 original proprietors who signed the agreement for the establishment of the District of Columbia, according to an application filed with the National Register of Historic Places.

The first Secretary of Defense James Forrestal was once an owner of this building. The home was also later owned by Congressman Richard Thurmond Chatham and his wife Patricia Firestone, who remodeled the property in the 1950s.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons/AgnosticPreachersKid

Forrest Marbury House

Year built: c. 1788-1789

This property is named after two former owners: Uriah Forrest and William Marbury.

Forrest was a Revolutionary War leader, mayor of Georgetown, and one of the 19 original proprietors of the District. He also constructed one of Washington, D.C.’s oldest residences, known as the Rosedale Farmhouse.

During the early 1800s, when Marbury lived in this home, he purchased large tracts in the Anacostia neighborhood. His arguments with President Thomas Jefferson over President John Adams's federal appointments also resulted in the U.S. Supreme Court case, Marbury v. Madison, in 1803. This case helped define the boundaries between the executive and judicial branches of the U.S. government.

During the 1980s, this residence was converted into a nightclub. A decade later, the property was restored and remodeled before later serving as the offices of the Embassy of Ukraine.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons/APK

Thomas Sim Lee Corner House

Year built: c. 1787-1791

The buildings located at 3001-3009 M Street in Georgetown are known as the Thomas Sim Lee Corner because the second State Governor of Maryland Thomas Sim Lee constructed and owned a portion of them.

According to the Library of Congress, Lee constructed one single dwelling at 3001-3003 M Street NW in 1794 in order to have a “winter residence” in Georgetown. Later, Lee sold the adjoining land to Andrew Ross and Robert Getty who went on to build another one of the District’s oldest residences, known as the Ross & Getty House.

Photo via Library of Congress

William Brown House

Year built: c. 1791

This home was restored in the 1940s and retains many of its original details today. The Historic American Buildings Survey reported that William Brown, the former owner of this home, was from a distinguished Scottish family. Brown’s grandfather, Gustavus, immigrated to Maryland in order to practice medicine and later was ordained in the Church of England. In the 1770s, William Brown served as a surgeon to the Second Virginia Regiment during the American Revolution.

Another later owner of this property was Mary Bibb. Bibb’s husband, George, was the Chief Justice of the Kentucky Court of Appeals and later the Secretary of the Treasury. George also was able to develop a variety of lettuce, known as Bibb lettuce, according to the Historic American Buildings Survey.

Photo via Library of Congress/Jet Lowe

The White House

Year built: 1792

The home of the U.S. President is not only one of the most famous houses in the nation, but one of the oldest as well.

Of course, the building was burned in 1814 by British troops and had to be reconstructed. Furthermore, there have been many changes to the architecture over the past few centuries.

For example, the West Wing was added in 1902 and expanded in 1909, the Truman Balcony was constructed in 1948, and the interior of the building was completely rebuilt between 1949 and 1952 due to inadequate foundations.

Rosedale Farmhouse

Year built: c. 1793

Known as Rosedale Farmhouse—or simply Rosedale—this property was constructed by Uriah Forrest, a Revolutionary War leader, civic leader, and one of the 19 original proprietors of the District, according to an application filed with the National Register of Historic Places.

Forrest served as mayor of Georgetown in 1792 before later serving as a Representative from Maryland between 1793 and 1794. From 1801 to 1805, he worked as an appointed clerk of the circuit court of the District of Columbia.

A former renter of this home was also Assistant Secretary of Defense John N. Irwin, II, in 1959.

In the parlor of this home, Agustín Cosme Damián de Iturbide y Arámburu, a Mexican army general, politician, and the original designer of the first Mexican flag, married Alice Green, whose family occupied the home until 1917.

The National Cathedral School for Girls has also used the property as a faculty residence.

Both the interior and exterior of this home have been modified over the years, so the features date from many periods. In December 2012, Curbed DC reported that the listing sold for $4.45 million.

Photo via Redfin

Thomas Law House

Year built: c. 1794-1796

Known as the Honeymoon House, this property was originally constructed for Thomas Law and his wife Eliza Parke Custis, First Lady Martha Washington’s eldest granddaughter. The two only lived in the building during their honeymoon while they awaited the completion of another home.

During the Civil War, the property served as a hotel, then a hospital and medical clinic, and finally an amenity to the co-op development, Tiber Island Cooperative Homes. The home was also owned by former Congressman Richard Bland Lee.

The home is now on the market for $2.5 million.

Photo courtesy of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage

The Maples

Year built: 1795

This Georgian-style manor was once the home of Francis Scott Key, the author of "The Star Spangled Banner." Currently, this development houses 20 flats, duplexes, and townhomes, but during the War of 1812 it was used as a hospital for wounded soldiers. In 1936, the property sold to the Friendship House Association and later provided social services until 2010.

After a renovation by architects Cunningham and Quill and developer Altus Realty Partners, the manor is now a residential development with prices ranging from $489,900 to $719,900.

Photo via The Maples

Wheat Row

Year built: 1795

Behold, some of the oldest residential homes in Washington, D.C., originally purchased by land speculator James Greenleaf, who also owned half the federal government's salable land in the District of Columbia. The architect behind Wheat Row is up for debate with some sources saying it was James Clark and other sources saying it was architect William Lovering.

According to Mary Ellen Hayward and Charles Belfoure in their 2001 publication, “The Baltimore Rowhouse,” Wheat Row was the first example in the District of the terraced house, or the rowhouse. Wheat Row was named after John Wheat, a prominent landscape designer and a messenger employed by the U.S. Congress

This row of homes was added to the National Register of Historic Places in July 1973. They are currently part of the Harbour Square apartment cooperative.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons/AgnosticPreachersKid

Dumbarton House

Year built: c. 1799

This Federal-style mansion in Georgetown was first owned by Joseph Nourse, the first Register of the Treasury.

Since 1932, it has served as a “house museum” with a collection of decorative furniture, paintings, textiles, silver, and ceramics dating back to 1789 to 1825. It also serves as a national headquarters for the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons/AgnosticPreachersKid

Sewall-Belmont House & Museum

Year built: c. 1800

The architect behind this historic home is still unknown, but the Historic American Buildings Survey believes it was presumably Baltimore-based designer Leonard Harbaugh, who also designed the original Treasury Building and the first building on the campus of Georgetown University, known as Old North.

Currently, the house serves as a museum dedicated to women's suffrage and acts as the headquarters for the National Woman’s Party. The organization purchased the building in 1929.

This historic house was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972 and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1974. Since it was constructed, it has undergone many restorations and renovations.

The property is named after Robert Sewall, who purchased one of the lots for $429.33 in October 1790 and two of the lots for $600.29 on January 1799. The property is also named after Alva Belmont, who was a prominent multi-millionaire American socialite and a major figure in the women's suffrage movement.

The exterior of the Belmont-Paul Women’s Equality National Monument. The facade is red brick with a grey roof and multiple windows. Photo via Wikimedia Commons/AgnosticPreachersKid

The Octagon House

Year built: c. 1800

The Octagon House, also known as the Colonel John Tayloe III House, was constructed for Tayloe, who served in the Virginia state legislature, and ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 1800. At first, the home was supposed to be a “winter residence” for Tayloe’s family, but they lived in the property year-round between 1818 and 1855.

Similarly to other houses on this list, this property was constructed by William Thornton, the first Superintendent of the U.S. Patent Office and the architect of the U.S. Capitol.

The American Institute of Architects purchased the property in 1902. It later opened as a museum in 1970 and was restored to its original appearance in the early 1990s. In 1960, it was declared a National Historic Landmark.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons/Steveturphotg

Ross & Getty House

Year built: c. 1810-1812

This building serves as an example of early 19th century commercial architecture and continues to stand today thanks to the work of Georgetown residents. According to the Historic American Buildings Survey, there were plans to raze the building in 1952 in order to make room for a parking lot, but locals formed an organization, called Historic Georgetown, Inc. The organization purchased the property in order to save it.

In 1955, extensive remodeling was done.

The home is named after Andrew Ross and Robert Getty who constructed the building.

Photo via Library of Congress