Cedar Hill
1411 W Street, S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20020

Phone: 202-426-5961
Fax: 202-426-0880

www.nps.gov/frdo

Online exhibit of items from Frederick Douglass' life

From 1877 to 1895, this was the home of Frederick Douglass, the Nation's leading 19th-century African American spokesman. Visitors to the site will learn more about his efforts to abolish slavery and his struggle for Human Rights, Equal Rights and Civil Rights for all oppressed people. Among Frederick Douglass' other achievements, he was U.S. minister to Haiti in 1889. Authorized Sept. 5, 1962, as Frederick Douglass Home; redesignated Feb. 12, 1988 as the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site.

Currently, all of the artifacts within the Frederick Douglass home are in storage due to ongoing repair work. Park rangers will lead tours of the Douglass home grounds. While this is certainly a different type of tour, rangers are still relating the important stories about Frederick Douglass. Large format images of the furnished rooms are available for viewing, as well as historic photographs of the Douglass home. This enables visitors to see the progression of changes in the preservation of the home and learn about why additional work is necessary at this time. The artifacts will not return to the home until 2007.

- text from the web site of the National Park Service

Douglass was nearly 60 years old on September 1, 1877, when he moved with his wife, Anna, to this 1850s brick house that he named Cedar Hill.  For 40 years he had battled for human rights, and Cedar Hill provided a welcome respite.  There was time to exercise or to linger at the dining table for lively discussions about politics.  Here he displayed his belongings that measured success:  Abraham Lincoln's cane given by Mrs. Lincoln after the assassination; a leather rocking chair from the people of Haiti; a hand carved German clock. gift of admirer Ottilia Assing.  His books were his most beloved treasure, and Douglass spent much of his time in the library or in the outdoor "Growlery" reading about politics, philosophy, and law.  Anna died in 1882, and 18 months later he married Helen Pitts, friend and co-worker.  After Douglass died in 1895, Helen vigoursly preserved Cedar Hill as a memorial.  She organized the Frederick Douglass Memorial and Historical Association in 1900; it joined in 1916 with the National Association of Colored Women's Clubs.  In 1962 the care of Cedar Hill was entrusted to the National Parks Service.

- from a brochure handed out on site by the National Park Service

Here stood Frederick Douglass' rustic retreat from domestic society, where he could think, read, and write undisturbed.  Evoking the image of a lion's lair, he called his hideaway The Growlery.  It was simply furnished with a lounge, a high desk, and a stool.  The present building is a reconstruction.

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