Alexander Ray House (Steedman-Ray House; President’s House, George Washington University)
The Steedman-Ray House housed the military and social elite throughout the 19th century and into the early 1900s.
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The Steedman-Ray House, built in 1849, was in keeping with the earlier substantial, freestanding brick homes of the neighborhood. Like these predecessors, it was built for a man of stature, a high-ranking Navy captain named Charles Steedman. During the Civil War years, the structure was used as the Office of the Commissary-General of Prisoners, becoming part of the Union Army headquarters housed in the buildings and houses surrounding the White House.
Following the Civil War, it was occupied by a series of socially and politically prominent people. In keeping with its social stature, the building was converted into an elite, private club in 1933. During the late 1960s, George Washington University acquired the property, and it has been a part of their campus since that time.
DC Inventory: November 8, 1964 (Joint Committee on Landmarks)
National Register: September 21, 1990
