The Octagon House

I really liked this place, creaking floorboards, artwork, history, architecture and it’s free. I think one should leave an hour to self tour.

Most haunted building in Washington, DC – I’m in! Absolutely loved the Octagon House.
The Octagon House is currently owned by the American Institute of Architects and it was designed by the first architect of the United States Capitol. Located in Foggy Bottom, this is one of Washington’s oldest and most historic homes. In fact, President James and First Lady Dolley relocated to the Octagon House after the British burned down the White House.
While the tour is relatively short and certainly self-​guided it was very interesting to me to see this historic structure. This is defnitely a low tech tour but they are laminated sheets on door knobs throughout the house giving you the back story on the house and the historic events that occured within it. The home is beautiful and the moulding is largely original which is even more fascinating to me.
This is an interesting and fun home tour. It does not take much time. It’s definitely off the beaten path and especially fun if you are a fan of specters and haunts. Highly recommend this tour for adults only — most kids under 15 will be … yawn … bored.

I’m giving this a 4-​star rating only for history buffs. It’s a free museum and if you like history, it’s worth the visit. It’s one of the oldest homes in DC and this is where the White House was set up after the White House burned down in the War of 1812. It’s a self-​guided tour through three of the four floors and will take you only 20 minutes to see it all.

Really cool little museum and hardly noticed by anyone. I believe they have the only Tiffany glass windows in DC but have to be viewed by appointment only. Another one of those rare little finds in DC that the tourists never know about.

I was disappointed to find out that the Octagon Museum is not open to the public. This was mentioned nowhere on their website. You can schedule a tour for a group in advance, but unscheduled visitors are not allowed in. In fact, the building is locked.
They have a gift shop in the building behind it, which is open to the public during business hours. I find this a little annoying since the museum itself isn’t open to the public, but I’m giving the Octagon Museum two stars instead of one, because the gift shop was actually pretty good.

This is a really nice to place to visit, as the traffic here (or at least when I was there) is very light. We practically had the tour all to ourselves! It’s a pleasant old house, rich in history. The tour guide was very friendly, and answered all the questions I had about the ghost stories surrounding the place. Unfortunately, he told me that that’s all they are — stories, nothing more. This was disappointing, as I was all ready to go ghost hunting! :) I got a book, some postcards, and a lead model of the Octagon House in the nice gift shop they have.

This building houses the American Architectural Foundation. The Octagon Museum is the oldest museum in the country. Kind of neat– a building that was constructed in the late 1700’s still standing and functional right here in DC.
This museum often flies the fifteen stars and stripes flag. The building itself was where President Madison lived when the British burned down the White House.
Right now, there is a really cool exhibit celebrating the Willard InterContinental’s 20^th anniversary. The show features 30 or so color and black and white pics of the hotel at various stages of development and age.
SPOOKY TIP: This place is one of DC’s famous «haunted houses.» It is said that Madison’s wife hangs out here as well as one of the original owner’s daughters.