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Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel (Washington, D.C.)
Encyclopedia
The Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel, also known as the Renwick Chapel or James Renwick Chapel, is a historic building in the Georgetown
neighborhood of Washington, D.C.
, United States
. Designed by James Renwick, Jr.
in 1850, Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel is the architect's only known example of Gothic Revival
church architecture in Washington, D.C. It is located on the highest ridge in Oak Hill Cemetery, near the intersection of 29th and R Streets, Northwest. Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel is one of two structures in Oak Hill Cemetery listed on the National Register of Historic Places
; the other being the Van Ness Mausoleum
. The chapel, mausoleum
, and cemetery are contributing properties
to the Georgetown Historic District, a National Historic Landmark
.
William Wilson Corcoran
(1798–1888) purchased Parrott's Woods, a 15 acres (6.1 ha) forest overlooking Rock Creek Park
, from Lewis Washington
, great-grandnephew of President
George Washington
. Corcoran organized a company to establish a cemetery, and on March 3, 1849, the Oak Hill Cemetery Company was chartered by an Act of Congress
.
Architect James Renwick, Jr.
(1818–1895) was chosen to design a small chapel for the new cemetery. Renwick, whose best known works include Grace Church
, St. Patrick's Cathedral
and the Corcoran Gallery of Art (currently the Renwick Gallery
), began designing the chapel soon after he had finished the plans for the Smithsonian Institution Building
. The cost of constructing Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel was $9,400, which was paid by Corcoran.
On March 16, 1972, the National Park Service
added Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel to the National Register of Historic Places.
Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel is considered an excellent example of Gothic Revival architecture
, and often called a "miniature Gothic gem". It features a steeply designed pitched roof
, buttress
es, and stained glass
lancet window
s accented with tracery
. The chapel is a one-story, rectangular building measuring 23 feet (7 m) high and 41 feet (12.5 m) long.
The building materials consist of Potomac
gneiss
, sandstone
, and wood. A cornerstone
, inscribed with the date "1850", is located in a buttress on the chapel's northwest corner. The chapel is accessible by a large, painted door on the west side. The door is protected by a padlocked, wrought iron
gate; the padlock bears the inscription: "Presented/Oak Hill Cemetery Co./By/James L. Norris/March 19, 1895." A rose window
with wooden mullion
s is located above the door.
, a Gothic Revival church built in 1867, is very similar to that of the nearby Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel. Although the architect of Grace Episcopal Church is unknown, there is reason to believe Renwick may have designed the building. If this isn't the case, the person who designed the church was greatly influenced by Renwick's work.
Georgetown, Washington, D.C.
Georgetown is a neighborhood located in northwest Washington, D.C., situated along the Potomac River. Founded in 1751, the port of Georgetown predated the establishment of the federal district and the City of Washington by 40 years...
neighborhood of Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Designed by James Renwick, Jr.
James Renwick, Jr.
James Renwick, Jr. , was a prominent American architect in the 19th-century. The Encyclopedia of American Architecture calls him "one of the most successful American architects of his time".-Life and work:Renwick was born into a wealthy and well-educated family...
in 1850, Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel is the architect's only known example of Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
church architecture in Washington, D.C. It is located on the highest ridge in Oak Hill Cemetery, near the intersection of 29th and R Streets, Northwest. Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel is one of two structures in Oak Hill Cemetery listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
; the other being the Van Ness Mausoleum
Van Ness Mausoleum
The Van Ness Mausoleum was designed by George Hadfield. It is said to be a copy of the Temple of Vesta in Rome.-History:It was constructed in 1833, after the architect's death in 1826, initially for the wife of John Peter Van Ness who died in 1832. The mausoleum was originally on H Street, on the...
. The chapel, mausoleum
Mausoleum
A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or persons. A monument without the interment is a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type of tomb or the tomb may be considered to be within the...
, and cemetery are contributing properties
Contributing property
In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing resource or contributing property is any building, structure, or object which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic district, listed locally or federally, significant...
to the Georgetown Historic District, a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
.
History
On June 7, 1848, businessman and philanthropistPhilanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
William Wilson Corcoran
William Wilson Corcoran
William Wilson Corcoran was an American banker, philanthropist, and art collector.-Early life:Corcoran was born in Georgetown in the District of Columbia, the son of a well-to-do father whom the electors of Georgetown twice chose as mayor. His father, Thomas Corcoran, came to Georgetown in 1788...
(1798–1888) purchased Parrott's Woods, a 15 acres (6.1 ha) forest overlooking Rock Creek Park
Rock Creek Park
Rock Creek Park is a large urban natural area with public park facilities that bisects Washington, D.C. The park is administered by the National Park Service.-Rock Creek Park:The main section of the park contains , or , along the Rock Creek Valley...
, from Lewis Washington
Lewis Washington
Lewis William Washington was a great-grandnephew of President George Washington, who is principally remembered as a hostage of abolitionist John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry, Virginia and as a prosecution witness in the subsequent trial of Brown.Lewis Washington was the son of George Corbin...
, great-grandnephew of President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
. Corcoran organized a company to establish a cemetery, and on March 3, 1849, the Oak Hill Cemetery Company was chartered by an Act of Congress
Act of Congress
An Act of Congress is a statute enacted by government with a legislature named "Congress," such as the United States Congress or the Congress of the Philippines....
.
Architect James Renwick, Jr.
James Renwick, Jr.
James Renwick, Jr. , was a prominent American architect in the 19th-century. The Encyclopedia of American Architecture calls him "one of the most successful American architects of his time".-Life and work:Renwick was born into a wealthy and well-educated family...
(1818–1895) was chosen to design a small chapel for the new cemetery. Renwick, whose best known works include Grace Church
Grace Church, New York
Grace Church is a historic parish church in the Episcopal Diocese of New York, located at 800 and 804 Broadway at the corner of East 10th Street, where Broadway bends to the north, with Grace Church School and the church houses – which are now used by the school – behind it at 86-98...
, St. Patrick's Cathedral
St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York
The Cathedral of St. Patrick is a decorated Neo-Gothic-style Roman Catholic cathedral church in the United States...
and the Corcoran Gallery of Art (currently the Renwick Gallery
Renwick Gallery
The Renwick Gallery is a branch of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, located in Washington, D.C., and focuses on American craft and decorative arts from the 19th century to the 21st century...
), began designing the chapel soon after he had finished the plans for the Smithsonian Institution Building
Smithsonian Institution Building
The Smithsonian Castle, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. behind the National Museum of African Art, houses the Smithsonian Institution's administrative offices and information center...
. The cost of constructing Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel was $9,400, which was paid by Corcoran.
On March 16, 1972, the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
added Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel to the National Register of Historic Places.
Architecture
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
, and often called a "miniature Gothic gem". It features a steeply designed pitched roof
Pitched roof
A pitched roof is a roof for which one or more roof surfaces is pitched more than 10 degrees, and alternately a roof with two slopes that meet at a central ridge. Some definitions are even more general, including any roof with a sloping surface or surfaces....
, buttress
Buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall...
es, and stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
lancet window
Lancet window
A lancet window is a tall narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural motif are most often found in Gothic and ecclesiastical structures, where they are often placed singly or in pairs.The motif first...
s accented with tracery
Tracery
In architecture, Tracery is the stonework elements that support the glass in a Gothic window. The term probably derives from the 'tracing floors' on which the complex patterns of late Gothic windows were laid out.-Plate tracery:...
. The chapel is a one-story, rectangular building measuring 23 feet (7 m) high and 41 feet (12.5 m) long.
The building materials consist of Potomac
Potomac River
The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
gneiss
Gneiss
Gneiss is a common and widely distributed type of rock formed by high-grade regional metamorphic processes from pre-existing formations that were originally either igneous or sedimentary rocks.-Etymology:...
, sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
, and wood. A cornerstone
Cornerstone
The cornerstone concept is derived from the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation, important since all other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure.Over time a cornerstone became a ceremonial masonry stone, or...
, inscribed with the date "1850", is located in a buttress on the chapel's northwest corner. The chapel is accessible by a large, painted door on the west side. The door is protected by a padlocked, wrought iron
Wrought iron
thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...
gate; the padlock bears the inscription: "Presented/Oak Hill Cemetery Co./By/James L. Norris/March 19, 1895." A rose window
Rose window
A Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in churches of the Gothic architectural style and being divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery...
with wooden mullion
Mullion
A mullion is a vertical structural element which divides adjacent window units. The primary purpose of the mullion is as a structural support to an arch or lintel above the window opening. Its secondary purpose may be as a rigid support to the glazing of the window...
s is located above the door.
Influence
The design of Grace Episcopal ChurchGrace Episcopal Church (Washington, D.C.)
Grace Episcopal Church, built in 1867, is an historic Episcopal church located at 1041 Wisconsin Avenue, NW, in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C.. Historically known as Grace Protestant Episcopal Church, it was added under that name to the National Register of Historic Places on May...
, a Gothic Revival church built in 1867, is very similar to that of the nearby Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel. Although the architect of Grace Episcopal Church is unknown, there is reason to believe Renwick may have designed the building. If this isn't the case, the person who designed the church was greatly influenced by Renwick's work.
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in the District of Columbia