march 10–16, 2025
What's New
Featured Event - Lecture: Hidden Nurses
Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum
201 South Washington Street
Thursday, March 27
7- 9 p.m.
$12, $10 Historic Alexandria members
Purchase tickets.
Join Dr. Victoria Tucker, Nurse and Public Historian, for a powerful presentation on the history of African American nursing students in Albemarle County, Virginia. While pursuing a Ph.D. in Nursing at the University of Virginia, Dr. Tucker uncovered the inspiring story of African American nurses who were barred from attending UVA but pursued their careers through the segregated J.P. Burley High School. Dr. Tucker’s research, which involved archival materials, oral histories, and material culture, sheds light on their struggles and triumphs. Her work has led to a public apology from UVA, and a memorial bench and natural space have been dedicated in their honor.
Alexandria Archaeology Summer Camp - Registration NOW OPEN!
Alexandria Archaeology Summer Camp
Monday - Friday, June 23-27
9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Ages 13 - 15
$400, with scholarships available
Registration is limited; apply here
Help City archaeologists excavate a real archaeological site and preserve Alexandria's historic resources! Campers, ages 13 - 15, will learn scientific excavating and artifact processing methods.
Registration opened on Tuesday, March 4. Registration is limited and applications are processed on a first-come, first served basis. The week-long camp is $400 with scholarships available. Sign up by first making a payment for the camp at The Alexandria Shop or by calling 703.746.4399, and then sending in an application online or picking up forms from the Alexandria Archaeology Museum, 105 N Union St., #327. Refunds cannot be made after May 2, 2025. Camper space is not guaranteed until payment is made.
Upcoming Events
View the Historic Alexandria Calendar
Discovering Alexandria Architecture Walking Tour
Tour begins at Carlyle House, 121 N. Fairfax Street
Saturday, March 15
10 a.m. - 11 a.m.
$20
Reservations Required.
Alexandria has grown from a small town in the 18th century to a bustling small city in the 21st century. Join us for a tour of Alexandria as we explore looking at the various Architecture styles that adorn the city streets and make it one of the best places to live and work.
Reservations are required as space is limited. Please wear comfortable shoes for this 1.5 hour guided tour. Tour is held rain or shine unless there is severe weather.
Having trouble registering? Please call 703-549-2997 or email carlyle@nvrpa.org
The Hammond-Harwood House: An 18th Century Jewel
Alexandria Association Lecture Series
Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum, 201 South Washington Street
Monday, March 17
7 p.m, light refreshments, 7:30 p.m. Lecture
$10 at the door, Members free, alexandriaassociation.org
Lucinda Dukes Edinburg, Curator of the Hammond-Harwood House in Annapolis, Maryland, will talk about this National Historic Landmark. It was built in 1774 and was the final work of the architect William Buckland. The program focuses on this extraordinary five part Anglo-Palladium mansion which features some of the best woodcarving and plasterwork in America and its collection of fine and decorative arts.
Membership Information and the Association's Calendar are available at: alexandriaassociation.org
Specialty Tour: Midwifery
Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum, 105-107 South Fairfax Street
Friday, March 21 (SOLD OUT) and Saturday, March 22
6:30 p.m. (Please arrive between 6:15 and 6:30 p.m.)
$15, $12 Historic Alexandria members
Purchase tickets.
Midwives did more than deliver babies! Explore the role, knowledge, and challenges of Midwives through the lens of the Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum and its collection of historic medicines and archives. Content note: this tour will cover the complex history around contraception, abortion, and miscarriage; recommended for ages 18 and older. Tour begins promptly at 6:30 p.m. and late guests will not be able to be admitted. Please note the tour includes ascending and descending stairs.
French Flow Yoga
Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum, 201 South Washington Street
Saturday, March 22
11 a.m.
$15
Purchase tickets.
With over 321 million French speakers globally, International Francophonie Day celebrates the diversity and richness of French language and culture. The Alexandria-Caen Sister City Committee will celebrate this day with a French Flow Yoga Class. Refresh Alexandria will guide us through an hour of flowing movement and stretching paired with French musical selections from around the world. Refreshments, provided by Wegmans, will be available after class. Participants will need to bring their mats and water.
Special House Tour: The Women of Lee-Fendall
Lee-Fendall House Museum & Garden, 614 Oronoco Street
Saturday, March 22
11a.m. - 12 p.m.
$10, Free for Members of Lee-Fendall House
Purchase tickets
This special house tour will take you through the lives of some of the women who lived and worked in the Lee-Fendall House over the years as a private home and even when it became a museum in 1974. Learn about their struggles and achievements as women, wives, educators, workers, mothers, performers, and activists.
Members of Lee-Fendall House are free but must call or email to make a reservation.
Sew and Tell: A Trunk Show Presented by the Uhuru Quilters Guild
Alexandria Black History Museum, 902 Wythe Street
Saturday, March 22
11 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Included in cost of museum admission–free for City residents, $3 per person otherwise
Join us for an engaging and interactive show (sew) and tell! This event will highlight the intricate art of quilting. Members of the Uhuru Quilters Guild will showcase some of their most creative pieces, sharing their artistic process and the innovative approaches they use to create these masterpieces. The Uhuru Quilters Guild is an African American Quilting guild based in Prince George’s County.
Women's History Walk led by Alexandria Celebrates Women
Meet at Alexandria Visitor’s Center, 221 King Street in the garden
Saturday, March 22
Noon-3 p.m.
Free
Register Online.
Did you know Alexandria was home to one of the most revered female fundraisers of the American Revolution, or that President Woodrow Wilson sent an Alexandria woman on a mission aboard a U.S. battleship? If you have wondered how women helped put our city on the map, now is your chance to learn about them! As part of America’s 250th anniversary, Alexandria Celebrates Women (ACW) will be leading Women’s History Walks monthly, March through October. The walk is three-miles and takes approximately two hours. Participants should register through Eventbrite to guarantee their space and meet at the Alexandria Visitor’s Center, 221 King Street in the garden by noon. Don’t forget comfortable shoes and water!
Lecture Series: Braddock’s Tars: Common Sailors and the Braddock Expedition
Carlyle House, 121 N. Fairfax Street
Sunday, March 23
1:30 p.m.-2:30 p.m.
$12
Purchase tickets.
A little known party of thirty-three Royal Navy sailors marched with Braddock's army in the 1755 expedition to attack Fort Duquesne that ended as a disastrous failure on the banks of the Monongahela. In Braddock's Tars: Common Sailors and the Braddock Expedition, Kyle Dalton will use their story as a lens to look at the larger picture of common sailors in the British Atlantic World and tell us what we can learn from ordinary people in extraordinary situations.
Specialty Tour: Guided Tour of Fort Ward Museum & Historic Site
Fort Ward Museum, 4301 W Braddock Road
Saturday, March 29
10-11 a.m.
$15, $12 Historic Alexandria members
Purchase tickets.
This guided tour highlights the Defenses of Washington and one veteran’s efforts to preserve its story. The tour begins inside with the special exhibit, “Lewis Cass White: Preserving the Legacy of Fort Stevens,” then continues outside to see the preserved earthwork fort. Please note this tour involves walking on outdoor paths and takes place rain or shine.
Specialty Tour: Poisons at the Apothecary Museum
Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum, 105-107 South Fairfax Street
Saturday, April 13
11 a.m. - 12 p.m. (Please arrive between 10:45-11 a.m.)
$15, $12 Historic Alexandria members
Purchase tickets.
Come explore the sinister side of medicine on the Apothecary Museum’s Poisons Tour. This one-hour tour explores several different types of poisons, their historic uses at the Apothecary, and what we know today. Recommended for ages 18 and up.
Specialty Tour: A Magical Apothecary
Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum, 105-107 South Fairfax Street
Sunday, March 30 (SOLD OUT) and Saturday, April 19
11 a.m.-noon on March 20 and 10 a.m.-11a.m. on April 19
$15, $12 Historic Alexandria members
Purchase tickets.
Learn about the muggle botanical science that inspired the potions and herbology of Harry Potter's wizarding world on a tour of this 19th century apothecary, and make your own magical potion! Recommended for ages 8 and up.
Glimpses of Historic Alexandria: A Carol Stalun Exhibition
Lee-Fendall House Museum & Garden, 614 Oronoco Street
Open through Sunday, April 27
Learn more.
Lee-Fendall's newest exhibit, Glimpses of Historic Alexandria, showcases a collection of photographs by local Alexandria photographer, Carol Jean Stalun. This special exhibition brings together many of Stalun's works that are focused on historic sites around the city of Alexandria. Learn the history of these sites as you walk around the Lee-Fendall House that was built over 200 years ago. Admission into the exhibit is included with general admission.
Support Historic Alexandria
Historic Alexandria receives City operational funding to support its mission; however, these resources do not cover the full scope of the department’s strategic goals and projects. Donations, special revenue, and grant funding help supplement staff, conservation work, and educational programs. Please consider making a gift today.
Historic Alexandria Museum Hours
Alexandria Archaeology Museum
Tuesdays–Fridays, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m., Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays, 1 – 5 p.m.
Alexandria Black History Museum
Thursdays & Fridays, 11 a.m.– 4 p.m., Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays, 1– 5 p.m.
Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum
Thursdays & Fridays, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m., Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays, 1 – 5 p.m.
Fort Ward Museum
Thursdays & Fridays, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m., Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays, 1 – 5 p.m.
Freedom House Museum
Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays, 1 – 5 p.m.
Friendship Firehouse Museum
Saturday, March 29, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Gadsby’s Tavern Museum
Thursdays & Fridays, 11 a.m.– 4 p.m., Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays, 1– 5 p.m.
Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum
Wednesdays–Fridays, 11 a.m.– 4 p.m., Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sundays 1 - 5 p.m.
Visit our website and follow us on social media to discover new things about your hometown. For more information, visit alexandriava.gov/Historic. Admission to City of Alexandria museums is complimentary for city residents.
For reasonable disability accommodation, contact Nicole Quinn at historicalexandria@alexandriava.gov or call 703.746.4554, Virginia Relay 711.
This Week in Alexandria's History
On March 10, 1965 construction began to implement the controversial Gadsby’s Urban Renewal Project in the heart of downtown Alexandria. It had been approved by City Council in a close 4-3 vote. In the early 1960s, “urban renewal” in the United States focused largely on the demolition and reconstruction of deteriorated downtown areas rather than the restoration of historic buildings to revitalize city centers, a concept that emerged a decade later. In Alexandria, renewal was originally proposed for a twelve block area further west along King Street, but ultimately moved east, centered on the area around Gadsby’s Tavern, City Hall and Market Square. Ultimately, the project involved excavation of entire blocks at and near Market Square, as well as demolition of 18th- and 19th-century buildings considered at the time as contributing to blighted conditions in what would come to be known as “Old Town.” Although the project resulted in the demolition of dozens of early buildings in the nation’s third oldest historic district, the economic impact of the development soon reversed years of decline.
Upcoming Commission and Committee Events
Commissions Supporting Historic Alexandria
March 10 Alexandria-Caen Sister City Committee
City Hall, 301 King Street, Sister Cities Room 1101
7-9 p.m.March 12 Alexandria Historical Restoration and Preservation Commission
Lloyd House, 220 N. Washington Street
8-9:15 a.m.March 12 ACRP’s Steering Committee
Alexandria Black History Museum, 902 Wythe Street
5:30 p.m.March 14 Sister Cities Subcommittee for Professional and Commercial Exchanges - Dundee and Helsingborg
Junction Bistro, 1508 Mount Vernon Avenue, #1718
8-9 a.m.March 17 Sister Cities Committee (SCC) - Dundee and Helsingborg
Lloyd House, 220 N. Washington Street
7-8:30 p.m.March 18 Historic Alexandria Resources Commission
Lloyd House, 220 N. Washington Street
7-9 p.m.March 19 Alexandria Archaeological Commission
Lloyd House, 220 N. Washington Street
7 p.m.