Grave of VP Elbridge Gerry.

Father of the Gerrymander Grave

Washington, DC

Elbridge Gerry the is only Declaration of Independence signer, and the only U.S. Vice-President, buried in the nation's capital. He died of a heart attack just 19 months after becoming VP.

Gerry's grave was unmarked for about a decade until Senator James Floyd secured congressional funds for a monument. John Frazee of New York sculpted a twelve-foot-high marble memorial with a carved Grecian flaming vase at its apex. To save money, a planned bas-relief likeness of Gerry was scrapped.

There's no mention on Gerry's monument of the thing that he's best remembered for: remapping electoral districts to favor the political party in power. Gerry's original exercise in convoluted cartography resembled a wriggling salamander, and the mocking term to describe it, gerrymander, has survived while Elbridge Gerry has been forgotten.

[Grave report by Kurt Deion]

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Also see: Congressional Cemetery

Father of the Gerrymander Grave

Congressional Cemetery

Address:: 1801 E St. SE, Washington, DC
Directions:: Walk into the cemetery at the intersection of Potomac Ave. SE and E St. SE. The Gerry grave is five rows in from the north fence line of the cemetery, about 100 yards east of the cemetery entrance. Look for the large monument with the decorative top (a marble version of an eternal flame).
Hours:: Daylight daily; gated after hours. Office M-F 9-5. (Call to verify) Local health policies may affect hours and access.
Phone:: 202-543-0539

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