Frederick Douglass National Historic Site

The only site next to the Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum kept in pristine condition in this area.
I love this piece of history– so close to home, close to the heart. It’s open to the public and easily accessible.
I’ve only done self guided tours. The movie before the tour is profound. It’s a site I have to visit every so often and take visitors to as a proud Washingtonian (of Anacostia!)

Time to get a history lesson in for the day in DC! So I took the kids to the famous Fredrick Douglas house. There is parking for this site which is plus, esp. for DC. If you book your tickets in advance (online) it is $ 1.00 per person (and there is a fee if you reserve and don’t make it). If you just drop in for a tour it is free, just have to hope they have slots. We had a 9:00am tour, which was the first tour of the day for Saturday. When we arrived on the raining Saturday, at 8:30am (because we were told to arrive 30 minutes prior to our tour), we were waiting outside with one employee in the rain because the employee who opened the doors had not made it there yet. Had I known we could arrive at 9am, I would have stopped and got coffee. Finally, 30 minutes later the employee with the key opened the door and we went in. We were told we could just go to the movie room. We were closed into the movie room, and we looked around at the different photos and information in the room about Fredrick Douglass. Finally after a few minutes we watched an informative 15 minute short film that went through the life of Fredrick Douglas and his importance in history. After the movie we were told to head up the hill and someone would meet us at the house to give us our tour. We walked up the hill and stood out the door for a while and no one came. We finally decided to knock on Mr. Douglass’ door and someone came to the door and let us in. Our tour took about 35 minutes or so. We were lucky to have a private tour that day and our tour guide was pretty good. Majority of the artifacts in the house are Mr. Douglass’ because his second wife worked to preserve his legacy right after he died. The house is very nice and in good shape for the era it was built it in. After we got done exploring the house we went back down the hill to the main office and the historic site. You can look at a few more artifacts here or purchase a souvenir. I had a few more questions for the park police at the main building and they gave us more interesting facts about Mr. Douglass and his family. This was an amazing history lesson and I suggest this field trip to everyone if you are nearby.

Excellent gem well preserved thanks to his 2^nd wife. They have an informative film that’s appropriate for the period. Not sure why ppl complain @ it bring old but it’s a good synopsis of his path from slave to free man.
House is in the hill with great views. Parking lot and if u go for 1^st tour just show up @ 9 when they open. Guides r helpful & have wealth of info.

This was a wonderful tour. The house is well maintained. The tour which is guided was very informative. We arrived late (about 10 minutes) and were lucky enough to go on the tour inside the house anyways because there is a video first. So they were kind to let us go on the tour with the other guests and come back to watch the video. The video was kind of old schooled and probably could be modernized, but it was also informative. Our tour guide was a perfect gentleman and very patient especially considering my husband was taking so many pictures. He allowed us the opportunity to stop, ask questions and take pictures. You are stepping back in time in the home of one of the greatest leaders of our time. It is off the beaten path, and I would recommend taking a cab or driving. Do not go on public bus unless you cant afford a cab. Otherwise, a must see!

I always read about the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site on the list of things for locals to do in DC. Because I was in Anacostia for Unilocal!10-​year anniversary party, I decided to visit other places in Anacostia. I’m glad I did.
I did some advanced work and reserved tickets online. Even though the tour itself is free, there was a $ 1.50 fee for reserving the tickets. I look at this as a donation to the National Park Service, so I was fine with it. I’m very glad I did reserve the tickets, because while they do except walk-​ins, the tour was full when we arrived.
I’ve been to a lot of these old historic homes, and the best part about this one was massive amounts of air conditioning! I don’t know how much of the house they needed to change, but having a cool environment allowed me to focus on what the tour guide was saying instead of being uncomfortably hot in a stifling old house.
As was explained to me, there are a lot of original artifacts in this house because of the caretakers; I enjoyed that because seeing «replicas» is not as fun or interesting to me. They had the tambourine that Frederick Douglass used at church in the 1880s — that is pretty cool.
The actual visitor center is rather negligible. They had a video, but if you end up taking the tour, you don’t need to watch the video. We basically only stayed at this house for the tour, and then left. There is adequate parking.
Overall, I’m glad I went here, and it’s an area of DC that I rarely venture into. The views from the hilltop are great!

I arrived almost at closing time and they stayed open for me! I got an excellent one on one tour of the house and the visitors center! I felt honored to walk around his house! It’s bigger than George Washington’s mansion. A must see.

Bummed. Would have loved to see this from the inside. We (gf and I) arrived with plenty of time, around 1pm on a cold day and were told we would not be able to see the house and do the tour, at all (open till 5). But we could check out the grounds. The views are nearly 5 star but coming from quite a distance, it is not so cool to hear you can not see, especially since there is no indication on the site that you need to reserve ahead. We’ve gotten into the Archives, Library of Congress and Supreme Court with no reservation, spur of the moment, and those see tons more people, no issue. I mean the tours consist of about a dozen people, according to the tour list the lady showed me – there are not many people who come ’round in the average hour span or so, you can’t add two more? Truly a bummer in that regard.
One reviewer, JK, mentioned some negative things about the neighborhood and she could not be more incorrect. Anacostia is an up and coming neighborhood with some true gems to view for anyone willing to make the effort to see and lots of funding being poured into the area. As long as you are aware, it is not an issue to walk around to the major sites during the day, or even explore a little. She exagateres too much. In my visits to the neighborhood (a small slice of Southeast, east of the river) I have had more strangers giving me genuine friendly «hellos» in half a day that I do from all the stuck ups around where I live in upper NW in a year… Please don’t discourage people with your irresponsible reviews, JK. not everywhere can be Dupont, but they can still be nice or better yet, with character.

I’m not even that much of an American history lover but visiting this house, with the amazing tour from the ranger, was a highlight of my visit to DC. The ranger did a great job of putting Douglass’ accomplishments in context and seemed completely conversant with a wide range of aspects of his life and the building when questions came up.

Loved this place! If you have two hours to spare and want to learn something about American history this is your place. I suggest that you call figure out the tour times, then come early to watch the short video of his life about 17 to 20 min long. Look at his quotes. Make your way up to the house, take a sec to look out at the neighborhood. Enjoy the house tour it’s great!

A tip for getting here if you don’t have a car: During the summer on the weekends, there is a shuttle from the National Mall to the Anacostia Community Museum and to this site.
I arrived at around 3:45 pm without a ticket and luckily there was one ticket left. I would not advise that you do this! You can reserve tix online or by phone, I think, but they cost $ 1.50 each. I suppose you could also show up earlier in the day and hope that you arrive in time.
I checked out the info in the visitors’ center. I had a few minutes to watch the film they have going in there. I saw it near the end and learned that Mr. Douglass’ second marriage was interracial and that he worked on womens’ rights in addition to anti-​slavery and civil rights work. I also checked out the exhibits — a timeline and a bunch of his quotes. There might be other stuff in there but I didn’t have too much time.
I went up to his house and admired the views from there — you can see the Washington Monument and Capitol. I think it’s 87 steps up and I think there’s also a ramp or alternate route up. The tour guide was friendly and knowledgeable. There were a bunch of people on the tour — 15 or so – so it felt pretty crowded. We saw the formal parlor, his study area, the guestrooms, his room. I learned about his wallpaper in his formal parlor (he chose a palm tree theme to reflect his status as the Ambassador to Haiti), that he spoke a bunch of languages, that his first wife helped him escape from slavery, etc.
When I was in 3^rd grade, I remember dressing up as Frederick Douglass and doing a presentation on his life. I thought that I actually knew stuff about him but I hadn’t remembered anything (or I didn’t know much of anything about him, in the first instance). Visiting his house and learning more about him and how remarkable he is has definitely piqued my interest to learn even more!

Great little gem in the middle of the city. The visitor center is small but really informative. The grounds are nice and quiet, you can imagine how it looked 100 years ago with a great view of the City, Anacostia River, and landscape. Lots of info packed in to small spaces. Glad I went.

This is on of the true rare jewels tucked away in the heart of South East DC. In comparison if you go to Mt. Vernon AKA George Washington’s home, you really cant get close to any of the cool artifacts. That’s not the case in Frederick Douglas’s home. The thing I really enjoyed was seeing how this man who lived through one of the ugliest and toughest times in U.S. history was able to rise to the occasion. He lived a full life, he was loved by many on both sides of the color line. A true great glimpse of American History! There is even a tea set that was given to him by Queen Elizabeth. Again this is a must see. I would suggest going for a visit on a sunny day as they don’t turn the lights on in his home to preserve the color of the furnishings
Cheers!!!

Wonderfully done. Enjoyed my visit very much.

The Frederick Douglass house was THE highlight of my visit to Washington D.C. Mr. Douglass is one of the greatest Americans and I was eagerly wanting to see the place he called home in the latter part of his life. I was not disappointed as everything is pretty much how he left it. The ranger, a young man, whose name I did not get, gave a very good tour and was patient as I asked a lot of questions and took a lot of pictures. Compared to the crowds and lines at all the other monuments and museums in D.C., this is like a well-​kept secret, as only my wife and I and a woman with her two children, were on the 9AM tour. What a treat!
One reviewer said to skip the visitor’s center, but that would be a mistake as the cane Mrs. Lincoln gave to Mr. Douglass after the President’s assassination, is in a glass case there, as well as the death mask and cast of Mr. Douglass’ hand that were made after his death in the very house. It would be a shame to miss seeing these items.
As far as getting there, another reviewer said to take a cab. My wife and I are firm believers in public transportation, so we took the Metro instead. It was very convenient to take, it takes you right to Anacostia and then a short bus ride takes you right to the house. The bus driver was kind enough to let us know when to get off. You do need to walk about a half mile back to the bus station, but we didn’t feel we were in any danger at any time. I guess it’s up to your comfort level.
As another reviewer stated the view from the house IS spectacular as you can see the Washington Monument and the Capitol. I highly recommend visiting the Douglass house on your next visit to D.C.

This was the absolute highlight of our trip. First, the tour guide rocked. He was very personable and knew his stuff. I was very moved while there and I could tell others were as well.
We took the train there and decided to walk the ¾ mile to the site. I do not recommend that. Spend the money to take a cab. The area is very impoverished, the worst I’ve seen and I was frightened at times. No one gave us any trouble, however.

i have been here 3 times in the span of 8 years. each time im amazed at this man’s story which is a true american story about an american hero. you learn about him as a human being and a man of imperfections not just legend. it’s ashamed that his story is not in every american school book. also, cedar hill is a beautiful home with a beautiful view of VA-​MD –and the capital

The house and grounds are absolutely spectacular. Restored recently and with painstaking precision! A joy to visit. Tour guides are knowledgeable and friendly. Hours are convenient! Free visitors parking is abundant and right on the property, and a bus line runs right out front.
1 issue: the visitor’s center is below ground and I can appreciate that part– to keep the house & property as OG 19^th century as possible. BUT its dated, small, and smells like urine and school kids. Skip the center until NPS sends some cash their way to upgrade it.

An outstanding, and unfortunately often overlooked, place to visit.
Before your tour, which costs a paltry $ 1.50, you watch a video about the life of Frederick Douglas in the Visitors’ Center. The film is old and seems exactly like what the National Parks Service would produce, but it is still a great video and you come to appreciate just how towering a figure Frederick Douglass was. The gift shop is very slight, so don’t expect to need to stock up on souvenirs.
After the video, a Park Ranger will take you up the hill to the house. Be advised that the hill is steep and tall, so be prepared for a climb. Once you make it to the top of the hill, you’ll find it well worth it. Frederick Douglass, a former escaped slave, had one hell of a view. I enjoyed imaging Frederick Douglass taking in that view, reflecting on his life and laughing at how far he’d come. If his isn’t a success story, I don’t know what is.
Later in the day, I visited Mount Vernon, George Washington’s historic home. The juxtaposition between the two sites could not have been more stark. Without a doubt, Frederick Douglass’ home was a better site. Mount Vernon has nothing on the simple elegance of Frederick Douglass, a man so intelligent that many refused to believe he could have been a runaway slave. A man who, while being beaten by his owner, turned around to return the favor. I can’t help but smile at the audacity of his entire life.

Been wanting to see this one for a while, and it’s a good excuse to explore Anacostia. As with any national park, it’s well preserved and worth the trip. You need a ticket to tour the house, but it doesn’t strike me that hoards of people come through so you can probably just walk-​in. The house has many original items and is surprisingly large given the time of its construction. The view from the porch is spectacular.
I especially enjoyed the 1970s video they show before the house tour.

Frederick Douglass’s home is well worth the visit. You’ll learn a huge amount about Frederick Douglass, you’ll see this beautiful mansion from the 1870s, and you’ll get a great view of DC from the front porch which is atop the ridge line.
Like all Park Service sites, this one is free of charge.
Why not 5 stars?
1. The tour is guided and the other people on our tour stretched it out with way more questions about obscure stuff than we could bear. («Could you tell us more about the wallpaper?»)
2. The film in the center must be at least 30 years old and is in serious need of a re-​make.