As we all know, D.C. has an abundance of things to do, see, and eat. It’s definitely the thing I love most about the city. It’s an epicenter of culture with museums, festivals, and international cuisine offerings. If you can’t find something to do here, you’re doing it wrong. That being said, this is my fourth time living here, and while it’s fun to revisit the big sites, it’s even more exciting to stumble across a previously undiscovered gem–gems like the O Street Mansion near Dupont Circle.
Normally, this is the part where I tell you what it is, but that’s complicated. The short version is it’s a mansion-turned-museum/hotel/event space with over 100 rooms–each stuffed to the gills with various themed items. Think safari, or log cabin, or The Beatles. The kicker is that to access many of these rooms, you have to find secret doors like out of a horror movie. Except, they don’t tell you where the secret doors are, or give you a map, or offer any guidance beyond “have fun” and “everything is for sale.” Here are a few examples of what I mean by themed:
Beyond the delight of finding secret doors, the Mansion itself has a fascinating history. In 1892 it was originally designed as a series of three interconnected townhomes by U.S. Capital architect Edward Clark. The townhomes were for himself, his brother James (Speaker of the House during Teddy Roosevelt’s tenure) and a third brother Champ, referred to simply as “the artist.” After the Clark family, the Mansion housed FBI Agents during Hoover’s tenure, protest movement leaders in the 1960’s, and Rosa Parks herself lived there from 1994 to 2004. Random, right?!
A female artist named H.H. Leonards then bought the mansion in 1980 with the intent to restore it to its former glory and turn it into a B&B. She also had visions of it being an artistic hub; a haven for artists of all types. In the 80’s and early 90’s, she acquired two additional adjacent townhouses and began renovations to connect the five. When all was said and done, the mansion measured 30,000 square feet, and its 100 rooms spanned four floors.
H.H. went to great lengths to showcase a wide variety of architectural, artistic and design periods from history within the Mansion. In fact, no two ceilings are alike. Here’s one of my favorites.
In 1998, H.H. turned the Mansion into a Museum and Event Center, while still keeping it as a B&B. So, yes, you can stay overnight here, including in a couple of rooms hidden behind secret doors.
Here’s where it gets even more interesting. Remember how I mentioned the docents said, “everything is for sale?”Well, most everything in the Mansion has been donated and nearly all of it is for sale, with all profits going to support H.H.’s non-profit charity. Every room was bursting with objects, all of which you were encouraged to pick up, look at, and, if interested, buy. That included chairs, pool tables, signed guitars, an African spear, Simpsons’ memorabilia, acres of artwork, and even pinball machines. In fact, you were encouraged to linger in the rooms and have fun while exploring. This wasn’t a “no touching” museum, though fair warning for those going with kids–you break it, you buy it.
I would be remiss in not mentioning the bathrooms (all 35 of them), which, like everything else in the house, were all different. Here are a few I deemed photo-worthy.
Fun, huh? I’m sure you’re wondering if we found all the secret doors (there were 70 total). We went with one of Nia’s good friends and her family and despite two hours of rigorous searching, we only managed to find 16! Perhaps you can do better than us?? It’s well worth a visit next time you’re in D.C.
