Whittemore House
National Register of Historic Places

Whittemore House

Washington, District of Columbia County, District of Columbia
Listed
July 15, 1973
Type
Building
Period
Colonial
Ref No.
73002126

About this property

Whittemore House (also known as the Walter D. Wilcox House and the John C. Weeks House) is an historic building located at 1526 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W., in the Dupont Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C. The former private residence, whose previous occupants include a musician, several politicians, and a mountain explorer, now serves as a historic house museum and headquarters of the Woman's National Democratic Club (WNDC). The Shingle style home was designed by local architect Harvey L. Page in 1892 and completed two years later. The original owner was opera singer Sarah Adams Whittemore, the daughter of Reverend Henry Adams, a descendant of President John Adams. In addition to Whittemore, past occupants include Senator John F. Dryden (1903), railroad entrepreneur and chairman of the Isthmian Canal Commission Theodore P. Shonts (1906-1907), and Representative John W. Weeks (1907-1911). In 1907, Canadian Rockies explorer Walter Wilcox inherited the house, and lived there from 1911 to 1926. The following year the home was purchased by the WNDC. In 1967, the addition of a ballroom on the Q Street side of the building was completed. The concrete Modernist expansion was designed by architect Nicholas Satterlee, whose work includes Holmes Run Acres. The Whittemore House was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, and is designated as a contributing property to the Dupont Circle Historic District. In addition to serving as the WNDC's clubhouse, Whittemore House is home to the Woman's National Democratic Club Museum, which features memorabilia from various Democratic political campaigns, photographs, antique furnishings from the Gilded Age, and art exhibits. National Register of Historic Places listings in the upper NW Quadrant of Washington, D. C. democraticwoman.org, official site of the Woman's National Democratic Club

Location

1526 New Hampshire Ave., NW.
Washington, District of Columbia County, District of Columbia
38.91096, -77.04268

Categories

POLITICS/GOVERNMENTARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Dupont Circle Historic District (Boundary Increase)
Colonial
0 mi
Washington Club
Civil War
0.1 mi
Dupont Circle Historic District (Boundary Increase)
Listed
0.1 mi
Sulgrave Club
Early Republic
0.1 mi
Belmont, Perry, House
Industrial
0.1 mi

Questions about this property

When was Whittemore House listed on the National Register?

Whittemore House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 15, 1973.

What type of historic resource is Whittemore House?

Whittemore House is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Whittemore House?

The period of significance for Whittemore House is recorded as the colonial era, specifically around 1526.

Can I research the history near Whittemore House?

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