Collections Highlight: The Washington National Cathedral Construction Sketches

In 2015, the National Building Museum received an incredible gift that opened a new window into one of Washington, D.C.’s most ambitious architectural projects: the Washington National Cathedral. Comprising more than 32,000 historic architectural drawings, the Washington National Cathedral Construction Archives documents over a century of design, craftsmanship, and construction on the Cathedral’s 57-acre campus.

Spanning from 1896 to 2007, the archives trace the evolution of the Cathedral and the many institutions and landscapes around it. Included are drawings for Saint Albans School for Boys, the National Cathedral School for Girls, Beauvoir Elementary School, the Cathedral College, the Cathedral Library, the Deanery, and Olmsted Woods.

The collection offers an intimate look at the building process. Sketches on trace paper are found alongside correspondence between architects, contractors, and master craftsmen. Renderings demonstrate how design ideas evolved over time, while detailed construction drawings capture the precision behind woodwork, ironwork, stone carving, and stained glass.

Among the many voices represented in the archives are some of the most influential architects and landscape architects of the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Ernest Flagg, Bodley & Vaughn, Frohman Robb & Little, and Trevillian Architects each contributed to different phases of the Cathedral’s long construction timeline. Philip Hubert Frohman, the Cathedral’s principal architect for much of the twentieth century, played a particularly significant role in shaping its Gothic Revival identity. The surrounding landscape, designed in part by Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., reflects the same thoughtful integration of architecture and environment that defined the project as a whole.

Complementing the Cathedral materials is the Philip Hubert Frohman Architectural Drawings Collection. This related collection encompasses Frohman’s work on projects across the country, providing broader context for his influence beyond D.C.

While the Washington National Cathedral Collection is still in the process of being fully cataloged and preserved, select drawings are already available for viewing and research through the Museum’s Online Collections Database. As processing continues, additional materials will be added, revealing even more stories embedded in these historic documents.

The Washington National Cathedral Construction Archives stand as a testament to the enduring power of architectural collaboration and craftsmanship. As new materials become accessible, the collection will continue to deepen our understanding of one of the nation’s most significant architectural achievements and the many hands that shaped it.

To conduct research using the Washington National Cathedral Construction Archives Collection, please fill out a Research Request Form. You can learn more about other collections held at the Museum by searching the online database here!