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Est. MCMXCVI · Alexandria, Virginia

Christ Church is an Episcopal church located at 118 North Washington Street, with an entrance at 141 North Columbus Street, in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. It was built from 1765 to 1773 under the supervision of James Parsons, who was sec
Beyond My Ken · via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

Religious · Alexandria, VA

118
North Washington Street

Alexandria’s Georgian-style Episcopal parish church, consecrated in 1773; pew owners included George Washington and, decades later, the Lee family.
Colonial Era Early Republic
38.8059, -77.0471 Claim this place
Year built
1773
Style
Georgian
Status
Extant
Designations
National Historic LandmarkOld and Historic Alexandria District

The marker on the ground

Christ Church — historical interpretation sign

Christ Church

King Street corridor · 725 King St

Narrative

Place narrative

Christ Church was constructed between 1767 and 1773 by builder James Parsons and master mason John Carlyle the younger, on a lot donated by the Fairfax Parish on the outskirts of the then-compact town [1] Source 1 HABS Alexandria survey Government record . Its brick walls, hipped roof, and austere Georgian interior are unusually intact for an American parish church of the period, having escaped the nineteenth-century “improvements” that altered most of its peers.

George Washington Person George Washington b. 1732 · d. 1799 Planter, military commander, and first President of the United States. Master of Mount Vernon from 1761 until his death in 1799, and a regular presence in Alexandria, which he … purchased pew 59 at the church’s 1773 opening and used it, somewhat sporadically, until his death in 1799 [2] Source 2 Powell, History of Old Alexandria, 1928 Book . In later decades Robert E. Lee was confirmed at Christ Church in 1853, and members of the Lee family retained a pew nearby to the Washington pew. Both pews are marked today.

The churchyard contains burials dating to the eighteenth century, including William Ramsay, and the surrounding walled graveyard preserves one of the few intact colonial-era burial grounds remaining in the city [3] Source 3 Miller, Artisans and Merchants, 1991 Book . The congregation has maintained continuous services in the building since its consecration, making it one of the longest continuously worshipping Episcopal parishes in the United States.

A Place in Time

Timeline

8 chronological entries across 4 eras.

· · Colonial Era Antebellum Era Reconstruction and Early Jim Crow Jim Crow Era
Colonial Era · 1669–1775 4 entries
  1. –

    James Wren designed Christ Church in 1767 and supervised its construction through consecration in 1773; he is the architect of record in the parish vestry-book records. [1] Source Fairfax County Historical Society — James Wren [2] Source HABS Alexandria survey

    James Wren builder church
  2. –

    Ramsay was among the original pewholders and is buried in the yard. [3] Source Miller, Artisans and Merchants, 1991

    William Ramsay visitor_notable church
  3. –

    Washington owned pew 59 from the church's opening until his death. [4] Source Powell, History of Old Alexandria, 1928

    George Washington visitor_notable church

  4. Consecration of Christ Church [2] Source HABS Alexandria survey

    construction
Antebellum Era · 1830–1861 2 entries
  1. –

    Robert E. Lee was confirmed at Christ Church in 1853. [4] Source Powell, History of Old Alexandria, 1928 [3] Source Miller, Artisans and Merchants, 1991

    Robert E. Lee visitor_notable church

  2. Confirmation of Robert E. Lee [4] Source Powell, History of Old Alexandria, 1928

    Robert E. Lee news mention
Reconstruction and Early Jim Crow · 1865–1900 1 entry
  1. –

    Confederate Adjutant and Inspector General Samuel Cooper returned to his Cameron estate near Alexandria after the war and is buried at Christ Church. [5] Source Wikipedia, Samuel Cooper (general)

    Samuel Cooper visitor_notable church
Jim Crow Era · 1900–1960 1 entry

  1. Roosevelt-Churchill World Day of Prayer service [6] Source Wikipedia, Christ Church (Alexandria, Virginia)

    news mention

Architecture

The building

Style
Georgian

Images

Gallery

  • Historical-style illustration of Christ Church (colonial-era church).
    Historical-style placeholder of Christ Church, c. 1785. Seed placeholder — KingSt.com, 2026. To be replaced with archival photograph.
  • Stylized illustration of Christ Church (colonial-era church).
    Placeholder illustration of Christ Church. Seed placeholder — KingSt.com, 2026. To be replaced with archival photograph.
  • Secondary illustration of Christ Church (colonial-era church).
    Secondary placeholder view of Christ Church. Seed placeholder — KingSt.com, 2026. To be replaced with archival photograph.

People & organizations

Connected

  • Person · Anchor

    James Wren

    b. 1728 · d. 1815

    Eighteenth-century vestryman and gentleman-architect of Fairfax County, designer of the three surviving colonial Anglican parish churches in Northern Virginia — including in …

    Builder · Church · %!d(float64=1767)–%!d(float64=1773)

  • Portrait of George Washington

    Person · Anchor

    George Washington

    b. 1732 · d. 1799

    Planter, military commander, and first President of the United States. Master of Mount Vernon from 1761 until his death in 1799, and a regular presence in Alexandria, which he …

    Visitor notable · Church · %!d(float64=1773)–%!d(float64=1799)

  • Portrait of William Ramsay

    Person · Notable

    William Ramsay

    b. 1716 · d. 1785

    Scottish-born merchant, one of the original trustees of Alexandria in 1749, and by local tradition the town's first postmaster and first lord mayor. His frame house on King Street …

    Visitor notable · Church · %!d(float64=1773)–%!d(float64=1785)

  • Portrait of Robert E. Lee

    Person · Anchor

    Robert E. Lee

    b. 1807 · d. 1870

    United States Army officer who spent much of his childhood in Alexandria at the house on Oronoco Street before his West Point appointment, and who later commanded Confederate …

    Visitor notable · Church · %!d(float64=1853)–%!d(float64=1861)

  • Person · Notable

    Samuel Cooper

    b. 1798 · d. 1876

    United States Army Adjutant General (1852–1861) who resigned in March 1861 to become Adjutant and Inspector General of the Confederate States Army; by seniority the highest-ranking …

    Visitor notable · Church · %!d(float64=1865)–%!d(float64=1876)

Contemporary

Nearby in time

Geographically

Nearby in space

Current

Now

No current occupant on file. Are you, or someone you know, the present occupant? Claim this place to add operating hours, a current photo, and a short note.

About this street

All Old Town street origins →

Commonwealth Avenue

Named for The Commonwealth of Virginia, c. 1894.

On the ground

Interpretive signs nearby

All 250 city signs →

The City of Alexandria has installed 9 historical interpretive signs within walking distance of this place. Each link below opens the sign's page on this site, with the full image and trail context.

References

Sources

  1. 1.

    Historic American Buildings Survey, Alexandria, Virginia records, National Park Service / Library of Congress.

    Government record

  2. 2.

    Mary G. Powell, The History of Old Alexandria, Virginia, from July 13, 1749 to May 24, 1861, Richmond: William Byrd Press, 1928.

    Book

  3. 3.

    T. Michael Miller, Artisans and Merchants of Alexandria, Virginia 1780-1820, Heritage Books, 1991.

    Book

Corrections welcome

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