Frederick Douglass, the Orator - Monroe County Library System

Central Library of Rochester and Monroe County · Historic Monographs Collection
CHAPTER XIII.
His HOME. — PERSONAL TRAITS AND CHARAC-
TERISTICS.
THE home of Mr. Douglass is . at Anacostia,
about three miles northeast from the city of
Washington. Its situation is extremely beautiful.
His house stands upon an elevation called Cedar
Hill, which overlooks the Potomac and commands
a fine view of the city and surroundings. The
house of modest pretensions, commodious withal,
is of Southern style of architecture, and, as all
such houses are, was constructed with a view to
comfort and convenience. You enter the front
hall from a veranda extending the entire length
of the house in front. From this veranda one~has
a view of the sunsets, which in this latitude are
unparalleled for grandeur and beauty. On either
side of the hall is a parlor, and back of the east
parlor is a library of well-selected books. This
latter is Mr. Douglass 1 workshop where he prepares
those lectures which delight and thrill so
many audiences. Adjoining the front hall and
west parlor is his dining room, where from time
to time he has entertained many distinguished
guests. In the front hall hang portraits of
Charles Sumner and ex-Senator Blanche K,