Gadsby's Tavern is a complex of historic buildings at 134 and 138 North Royal Street at the corner of Cameron Street in the

Old Town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins. In some cases, newer developments on t ...

district of

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in Northern Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Washington, D.C., D.C. The city's population of 159,467 at the 2020 ...

. The complex includes a c.1785 tavern, the 1792 City Tavern and Hotel, and an 1878 hotel addition. The taverns were a central part of the social, economic, political, and educational life of the city of Alexandria at the time. Currently, the complex is home to Gadsby's Tavern Restaurant, American Legion Post 24, and Gadsby's Tavern Museum, a cultural history museum. The museum houses exhibits of early American life in Virginia, and the restaurant operates in the original 1792 City Tavern dining room, serving a mixture of period and modern foods. The complex was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

in 1963 and was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1966.

Tavern history

Gadsby's Tavern consists of two buildings: one is the tavern, built around 1785, and the other is the 1792 City Hotel. John Gadsby leased and operated them from 1796 to 1808, and it is his name attached to the location.

Early history

Gadsby's Tavern was not the first tavern on its lot. Between 1749 and 1752, Charles and Anne Mason had begun a tavern business they called Mason's Ordinary. In the 1770s, Mary Hawkins opened a tavern on the lot around the corner from what is now the Gadsby's Tavern Museum. The original lot where Hawkin's tavern sat extended from the southwest corner of Royal and Cameron streets to about mid-block on both streets.New Date for Tavern Building Construction
/ref> In 1778, the plot was subdivided, and Edward Owens purchased the lot on the corner of the two streets. With the end of the Revolutionary War, and the booming economy that followed, Marylander John Wise purchased the plot in 1782 from Owens, and built the existing Georgian-style tavern ca. 1785, and the Federal City Tavern in 1792. Englishman Gadsby leased the City Tavern, the most prominent tavern in Alexandria in 1796. He renewed the lease in 1802 to include the smaller 1785 tavern from Wise, and operated both until 1808 when he moved to Baltimore, Maryland. John Wise died in 1815, and with his death the buildings went through different hands, being run as a hotel, lawyers' offices, and auction houses. It remained a hotel during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. In 1816, a 23-year-old woman succumbed to a disease at the city tavern after she travelled to Alexandria with her husband. On her deathbed, she made the people surrounding her swear an oath that they would never reveal her identity. The promise was kept; her grave, a table-like structure in St. Paul's Cemetery is marked "

Female Stranger The Grave of the Female Stranger is a famous historical oddity, local landmark and visitor's attraction in the St. Paul's Cemetery (Alexandria, Virginia), cemetery of St. Paul's Episcopal Church (Alexandria, Virginia), St. Paul's Episcopal Churc ...

". Her ghost is said to haunt the cemetery and Room 8 of Gadsby's Tavern, the room in which she died. The unusual monument and story surrounding it have long been noted as a peculiar oddity of the town.

19th and 20th century

In the 1890s, Frederick Schwab (a veteran who had served in the Alexandria Artillery also known as Kemper's Battery) was proprietor of a saloon located in the original 1785 tavern portion of Gadsby's Tavern at 132 N. Royal Street (See 132 street number with “Sal.” for Saloon at the site of the 1785 tavern in the 1891, 1896, and 1902 Sanborn Maps of Alexandria, VA.). He lived there with his family until his death in 1901. By the turn of the 20th century, the building no longer operated as a

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

. Once considered one of the finest establishments of its kind in the country, the building had fallen into complete disrepair. The rooms that had been the setting for political dinners, grand balls, and elaborate public affairs were relegated to housing odd shops and rental apartments. On May 21, 1917, the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

purchased some of Alexandria's most important pieces of history, the ballroom woodwork. In doing so, they inadvertently preserved the original historic ballroom when it was moved to New York. The Met negotiated with the owners of the 1792 City Tavern & Hotel to purchase architectural elements from the hotel. The Met purchased the unique musicians gallery,

cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative Moulding (decorative), moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, ar ...

, door frames, and mantelpieces from the

ballroom A ballroom or ballhall is a large room inside a building, the primary purpose of which is holding large formal parties called ''balls''. Traditionally, most balls were held in private residences; many mansions and palaces, especially histori ...

. Two mantelpieces from the City Hotel dining rooms and the exterior doorway were also sold. On November 11, 1924, the American Wing of The Metropolitan Museum of Art — featuring the permanent installation of the recreated Gadsby's Tavern Ballroom with original woodwork (now named the "Alexandria Ballroom") — opened to the public

Famous guests

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

frequently visited the taverns, and twice attended the annual Birthnight Ball held in his honor. Other prominent customers of the tavern included

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before Presidency of John Adams, his presidency, he was a leader of ...

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...

James Madison James Madison (June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison was popularly acclaimed as the ...

, and

James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American Founding Father of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. He was the last Founding Father to serve as presiden ...

. Thomas Jefferson was feted in 1801 with a banquet in the ballroom of the City Tavern. The

Marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette, Marquis de La Fayette (; 6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (), was a French military officer and politician who volunteered to join the Conti ...

was also guest to festivities at the City Tavern during his tour of the United States in 1824.

The Tavern Museum restoration

Threatened with demolition in the early 20th century, the buildings were saved and preserved by efforts first undertaken by F. Clinton Knight and carried on by the

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States, U.S. war veterans headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It comprises U.S. state, state, Territories of the United States, U.S. terr ...

, Post 24, along with other patriotic groups. The buildings were reopened in 1976, after extensive renovation, by the City of Alexandria as a museum dedicated to preserving and interpreting the social and cultural heritage of Alexandria by teaching the public about the site and its significant contributions.Gadsby's Tavern Museum Mission Statement
/ref> Clint Knight, a former city councilman, postmaster, and commander of Post 24 mortgaged his home to help purchase the Tavern. The renovators reproduced on the second floor of the Tavern the woodwork of the ballroom that the Metropolitan Museum of Art had earlier acquired. It was declared a

in 1963. and

The Tavern Museum today

Today, the City of Alexandria continues their preservation and interpretation through Gadsby's Tavern Museum and by leasing the restaurant space, in the 1792 hotel building, to a private

restaurateur A restaurateur is a person who opens and runs restaurants professionally. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who owns a restaurant, traditionally it refers to a highly skilled professional who is proficient in all aspe ...

. The original ballroom woodwork can still be seen at Metropolitan Museum of Art in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. The museum offers self guided and guided tours, and group tours by appointment. Self guided tours are $5, and guided tours are $8. Admission is free for city of Alexandria residents and employees, as well as active duty military and veterans. The museum is part of the

American Whiskey Trail The American Whiskey Trail is the name of a promotional program supported by the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States that promotes the distilled beverage industry in the U.S.Anderson, Mary Ann (June 24, 2007)Tipple-toe your way along th ...

, which provides an educational journey into the history and cultural heritage of

distilled spirit Liquor ( , sometimes hard liquor), spirits, distilled spirits, or spiritous liquor are alcoholic drinks produced by the distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar that have already gone through alcoholic fermentation. While the w ...

s in American society.

References

External links

* *
Gadsby's Tavern RestaurantThe American Legion Post 24, Alexandria, VA
{{Authority control Drinking establishments on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia Brick buildings and structures in Virginia Commercial buildings completed in 1785 Hotel buildings completed in 1792 Archaeological sites in Virginia George Washington History museums in Virginia Museums in Alexandria, Virginia National Historic Landmarks in Virginia Virginia culture Institutions accredited by the American Alliance of Museums Georgian architecture in Virginia Taverns in Virginia National Register of Historic Places in Alexandria, Virginia Historic American Buildings Survey in Virginia Hotel buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia Old Town Alexandria Reportedly haunted locations in Virginia