How to Research Your Historic DC Brick Home

If you own one of the many historic brick rowhouses in the Washington DC neighborhoods, you are probably curious about who built your home and when. Thanks to the Capitol Hill Restoration Society (CHRS), a free resource is available to guide homeowners in the research of that history. 

The Beyond the Boundaries research project expands the information on historic buildings to include those outside the Capitol Hill Historic District.

Historic DC Brick Homes

In 2011, CHRS engaged volunteers and architectural historians to document and photograph 6,402 properties in the 105 squares outside the Capitol Hill Historic District. The Beyond the Boundaries area is bordered on the west by the Capitol Hill Historic District Boundary (generally 12th and 13th Streets, NE and SE), H Street, NE on the north, 19th Street, NE and SE on the east, and the Anacostia River on the east and south. The area includes Hill East and Rosedale. To research your house, follow these steps:

• Navigate to the Beyond the Boundaries map.
• Find the square where your house is located. The map shows streets and squares, so it should be easy to find your square.
• After you find your square, click on the square on the list of squares to the right of the map. Information on your square will open up, and then navigate to your lot.
• You will find an architectural survey, address, date of construction, owner who constructed the building, architect, builder, architectural style and building type. Please see excerpt from a sample report for 701 14th Street, SE, built in 1907 by Harry Wardman. Reports contain a photograph.

Historic DC Brick Rowhouse Neighborhoods

CHRS also engaged architectural historians to write a history of the Beyond the Boundaries area that includes information about the early geography and landowners of the federal period, as well as the educational, religious and cultural history of the area.

Renaissance Development, a leader in brick restoration and historic preservation, specializes in the repair and restoration of historic DC brick homes. We love old homes and are committed to preserving their historic charm and value. If your historic home renovation plan includes masonry or brick repair, contact us for a free site visit and project quote.