St. George's Cemetery

St. George’s Episcopal Church, which is the centerpiece of the Fredericksburg skyline, was originally constructed at its location on Princess Anne St. in the 1730’s (the current building was erected in 1849). George Washington and his family attended services there, and the original pew they sat on is on display inside. The little church cemetery contains such noteworthy gravesites as those of John Paul Jones' brother William, and Col. John Dandridge (Martha Washington’s father), as well as other notable townspeople of the day. Originally, the boundaries of the cemetery were much larger, so there are actually a number of people buried under what are now adjacent streets and sidewalks, and Fielding Lewis (GW’s brother-in-law) and three of his children are buried beneath the church steps. Here’s more information about who’s buried there than you are likely to ever need.



Above is the view of the cemetery from the street. At the left is the marker for William Jones; closeup below:



Another view:



Just outside the cemetery gate is this saint, painted by the Sunday school children of St. George's to watch over the workers currently doing renovations to the church building. She seems to have a screw through her armpit and what looks like a buzzer for a nipple. Ouch.


(click to enlarge)