:Prospect Hill Cemetery (Washington, D.C.)

File:Concordia German Evangelical Church and Rectory aka United Church.JPG

The German Evangelical Lutheran Church was organized by German immigrants to Washington, D.C., on January 27, 1833.{{sfn|Domer|Alden|1893|page=15-16}} The small Lutheran and Reformed congregation{{Efn|The church was unierte, a German word meaning "merged". Nominally Lutheran, the congregation was not doctrinally very strict and believed in Christian unity and worshipping with other Protestant faiths.}}{{sfn|Franke|1956|page=56}} first worshipped at City Hall{{sfn|Crew|Webb|Wooldridge|1892|page=580}} along with Catholics and Jews.{{cite court|litigants=Ebbinghaus v. Killian|vol=1|reporter=Mackey|opinion=247|court=SCDC|date=1881||pinpoint=250–251|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gNAzAQAAMAAJ&dq=%22Concordia%20Church%22%20DC&pg=PA250|accessdate=July 29, 2014}} In 1853, the Reformed and Lutheran elements of the congregation erected a church building at 20th and G Streets NW{{sfn|Crew|Webb|Wooldridge|1892|page=580}} and changed the name of the congregation to Concordia Church.{{cite court|litigants=Ebbinghaus v. Killian|vol=1|reporter=Mackey|opinion=247|court=SCDC|date=1881||pinpoint=252|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gNAzAQAAMAAJ&dq=%22Concordia%20Church%22%20DC&pg=PA250|accessdate=July 29, 2014}} The growth in the church was due to the burgeoning German community in the city as well as the influence of Reverend Samuel D. Finkle (or Finckel), who assumed the pulpit on December 27, 1846.{{sfn|Crew|Webb|Wooldridge|1892|page=580}} The church had a small burying ground adjacent to it.{{cite news|title=Washington Cemeteries|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=May 11, 1857|page=3}} The congregants soon built a parsonage and parochial school, and established a German Evangelical Church Society in 1847 to assist with administration, fundraising, and other church affairs.{{sfn|Crew|Webb|Wooldridge|1892|page=580}}{{cite court|litigants=Prospect Hill Cemetery v. The German Evangelical Society|vol=22|reporter=Wash. L. Rep.|opinion=122|court=C.App.D.C.|date=1894|pinpoint=122|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aMwZAAAAYAAJ&dq=%22Prospect+Hill+Cemetery%22+evangelical+society&pg=PA122|accessdate=July 29, 2014}}

In 1858, the German Evangelical Church Society decided to purchase a cemetery for Concordia Church.{{sfn|Polmar|Polmar|2010|page=151}} The society bought a site, but then discovered that the title to it was not clear.{{cite news|title=The Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 30, 1887|page=4}} A second site was then sought. Seventeen acres of Moore's Farm, located in the Glenwood neighborhood (now known as Edgewood), were purchased for $7,000 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|7000|1858}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars) on September 23, 1858.{{sfn|Polmar|Polmar|2010|page=151}}{{cite news|title=Dedication of Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=September 27, 1858|page=3}} Title in the land was invested in two members of the German Evangelical Church Society, although the deed of transfer specified that the title should be transferred to an appropriate corporate organization once a charter was obtained from Congress (which, at that time, chartered corporations in the District of Columbia).{{Efn|Church and PHC records show that the title was vested in five men: Christopher Friess, Frederick Heider, Augustus E.L. Keese, John G. Stock, and John Walter.}}{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2007_Winter_Newsletter.pdf|last=Becker|first=Rudy|title=President's Message... Happy 150th Birthday to Our Cemetery|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Winter 2007|page=3|access-date=August 5, 2014}} The whites-only cemetery was dedicated on September 26, 1858, with a parade featuring a band and three German membership associations. Reverend Finkle, who led the ceremonies and blessed the grounds, declared the cemetery open to all classes and members of any religious sect.

File:Looking NW from section Circle-Left South - Prospect Hill Cemetery - 2014.jpg

It is not clear why the cemetery was named Prospect Hill. The name was a common one for cemeteries in the mid-1800s, but the District of Columbia Preservation Review Board suggests that the name was probably inspired by the burying ground's location. Prospect Hill Cemetery is indeed on high ground, and it has excellent views of the United States Capitol and the adjacent neighborhoods of Eckington and Bloomingdale. (It also has a superb view of the Washington Monument, although the monument was not complete at the time the cemetery was founded.){{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=2}}

Prospect Hill was designed as a garden cemetery (also known as a rural cemetery). Until the early 1800s, most burying grounds (the word "cemetery" did not come into use in the United States until the 1840s){{sfn|Worpole|2003|page=141}} were next to churches. They were very overcrowded and unhealthy, with graves stacked upon each other or emptied and reused for new burials.{{sfn|LeeDecker|2009|pages=145, 148}} As a reaction to the urban cemetery, the first "garden" cemetery—Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris—opened in 1804.{{sfn|Thomas|2003|page=32}} The concept quickly spread across Europe.{{sfn|Mickey|2013|page=17}} Garden/rural cemeteries did not have to be outside the city limits. When land within a city could be found, the cemetery was enclosed with a wall to give it a garden-like quality. These cemeteries were often not sectarian, nor co-located with a house of worship. Inspired by the English landscape garden movement,{{sfn|Vercelloni|Vercelloni|2010|page=198}} they often looked like attractive parks. The first garden/rural cemetery in the United States was Mount Auburn Cemetery near Boston, Massachusetts, founded by the Massachusetts Horticultural Society in 1831.{{sfn|Hodgson|2001|page=30}} It was followed by Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia in 1836, and Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn in 1838.{{sfn|Linden-Ward|2007|page=322}} Prospect Hill was designed as a typical garden cemetery, with winding roads and paths, a high stone wall, and (in time) many trees and bushes.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=2}}{{sfn|Historic American Landscapes Survey|2005|page=47}} Its main entrance was on Lincoln Road. The cemetery's most prominent feature was an ellipse, bounded on the outer edge by a road and featuring two paths: one an inner, oval path paralleling the road and the other a straight, cruciform path. The ellipse was aligned with Lincoln Road, and most burials here faced east.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=3}} The District of Columbia Preservation Review Board has described the layout of the cemetery as "characteristic and a relatively early example of the garden cemeteries created in the United States beginning in the 1830s".{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=4}} According to the Historic American Landscapes Survey, Prospect Hill Cemetery, along with Glenwood Cemetery (1854) and Mount Olivet Cemetery (1858), "changed the dynamics of cemeteries in the city" by setting a new standard for cemetery design and layout.{{sfn|Historic American Landscapes Survey|2005|page=47}}

Initially, Prospect Hill Cemetery featured two structures, a small farmhouse (used as the resident superintendent's house) and a barn. Both predated the establishment of the cemetery.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=3}} In 1873, a gatehouse designed by August Schoenborn, a noted German-American architect who lived in the city, was built near the main gate on Lincoln Road.{{sfn|Polmar|Polmar|2010|page=152}}

Most of the early burials at Prospect Hill were reinterments of remains from the Concordia Church cemetery. A marker inscribed with a death date of 1844 represents the oldest burial at the cemetery, but is a reinterment.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=3}} Many of the mausolea and markers reflect the styles of adjacent Glenwood Cemetery, established in 1854.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=4}} The earliest mausolea are the Abner and Baumann structures, which are in the northern part of the cemetery on the slope facing the North Capitol Street gate.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=3}}

On June 13, 1860, Congress approved a corporate charter for the Prospect Hill Cemetery corporation (PHC).{{sfn|Bain|2005|page=62}}{{sfn|Sanger|1863|page=32}} The legislation named eight members of the German Evangelical Church Society as incorporators of "Prospect Hill Cemetery": Christopher Friess, John Guttensohn, Friedrich "Fred" Heider, Augustus E.L. Keese, B. Ostermeyer, George Schultz, John G. Stork, and John Walter. The charter allowed PHC to hold up to {{convert|100|acre|m2}} but not less than {{convert|17|acre|m2}} of contiguous land as a cemetery in perpetuity.{{sfn|Sanger|1863|page=32}} Section 3 of the charter specifically forbade the construction of any new street, alley, or canal through the property.{{sfn|Polmar|Polmar|2010|page=151}} The new corporation was to be led by a president, secretary, and six directors, who were to be elected annually by majority vote of the shareholders. The shareholders included the eight incorporators and each lotholder (who received a single vote, no matter how large their lot). The board of directors had the ability to appoint individuals to vacancies between elections.{{sfn|Sanger|1863|page=32}}

Management of Prospect Hill Cemetery was haphazard in its early years. Only seven directors (which included the president and secretary) were elected rather than the required eight, and the real decision maker governing the burial ground was the German Evangelical Church Society (which changed its name numerous times during the next 30 years). Furthermore, title to the cemetery was not immediately conveyed to the new corporation, as required by the deed of transfer. (Transfer did not occur until June 10, 1873.) Fundraisers to benefit the cemetery were held in June 1865 and May 1866.{{cite news|title=Picnics, Excursions, Etc.|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=June 8, 1865|page=3|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=Picnics, Excursions, Etc.|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=May 18, 1866|page=1}}

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In 1867, PHC reported that it received income of $1,500 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|1500|1867}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars) in the past six months, expended $500 in improvements and repairs, and was in excellent financial condition. The board elected that year included August Meiners, president; John Vogt, vice president; Frederick Schweiring, secretary; Michael Langman, treasurer; and Christopher Freiss, F. Haiden, Christopher Just, H. Kaiser, John Killian, and August Lipold.{{cite news|title=Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=July 10, 1867|page=1}} By 1870, however, the cemetery faced a problem: A significant number of individuals had purchased lots but failed to pay. Beginning on February 9, 1870, PHC announced that lotholders in arrears must complete payment by June 30, or the cemetery would seize their lot and sell to it to someone else.{{cite news|title=Financial and Commercial|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 9, 1870|page=2}} Nearly all lot sales in the past had been to members of the German Evangelical Church Society, but now sales to non-members, including many who were neither German nor Lutheran, expanded rapidly. Throughout most of the 1870s, the cemetery's superintendent was Christopher Buechler.{{cite news|title=Concordia Church Parish|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 17, 1880|page=8}}

Internal struggles at PHC began in the late 1870s, and culminated in 1885. The issue was that Concordia Church and the German Evangelical Church Society controlled the cemetery association, even though few members owned lots. Other lotholders were denied the right to vote at annual meetings, and many suspected that cemetery income was being diverted to church use. These "independent" lotholders marshaled sufficient votes in 1884 to force the appointment of a committee to study the issue and make recommendations to the lotholders the following year.{{Efn|The committee consisted of Hugo G. Eichholtz, A.L. Geiser, John A. Griesbauer, I. Karr, August Schmedtie, George Wagner, and Dr. John Walter.}} The committee failed to report in February 1885, and a resolution was adopted by the lotholders to force it to make a report and recommendations in 1886.{{cite news|title=A Controversy Over A Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 16, 1885|page=1}} In March 1885, an agreement was reached in which Concordia Church and the German Evangelical Church Society conceded that the independent lotholders had the right to vote.{{cite news|title=Condensed Locals|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 18, 1885|page=4}}

Implementing the agreement required a change to the charter, however. Independent lotholder Simon Wolf successfully petitioned Senator John James Ingalls (R-Kansas) to introduce legislation in the 49th United States Congress to amend the PHC charter to reaffirm the rights of lotholders.{{cite news|title=Col. Ludlow Examined|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 10, 1888|page=1}}{{cite news|title=The District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 30, 1886|page=3}} The bill was favorably reported out of the Senate Committee on the District of Columbia on March 30, and passed the full Senate on June 17.{{cite news|title=Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=June 17, 1886|page=3}} The legislation (S. 1187) amended the cemetery's charter so that the cemetery corporation was not permitted to hold more than {{convert|18|acre|m2}} and not less than {{convert|15|acre|m2}}, and affirmed that the core {{convert|15|acre|m2}} of the cemetery could never be sold or used for any purpose other than a burial ground. The bill also affirmed the right of all lotholders (not just those associated with Concordia Church or the German Evangelical Church Society) to vote at annual meetings and hold office, provided new rules for managing the annual meeting and casting votes, directed the cemetery to use its income solely for the benefit of the burying ground, and expanded the board of directors to nine directors (each of which had to be elected annually by a majority of lotholders). Although the Commissioners of the District of Columbia{{Efn|Beginning in 1874, the District of Columbia was run by three commissioners, two of which were appointed by the President of the United States with the approval of the Senate and a third member who was selected by the United States Army Corps of Engineers (and who had oversight over the city's public works). One of the civilian members was chosen to act as president of the city commission.}}{{sfn|Crew|Webb|Wooldridge|1892|page=159}} initially did not oppose the bill, on June 26 they asked the Senate to table the bill and decline to send it to the United States House of Representatives for action. The city was contemplating extending North Capitol Street past Boundary Avenue (now Florida Avenue) to the United States Soldiers' Home (about double its existing length), and the provision of the bill which prevented use of the Prospect Hill Cemetery grounds for any purpose other than a cemetery interfered with the street's proposed route.{{cite news|title=District Government Affairs|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=June 26, 1886|page=5}} The Senate, however, did not table the bill and the House approved it unaltered.{{cite court|litigants=Prospect Hill Cemetery v. The German Evangelical Society|vol=22|reporter=Wash. L. Rep.|opinion=122|court=C.App.D.C.|date=1894|pinpoint=123|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aMwZAAAAYAAJ&dq=%22Prospect+Hill+Cemetery%22+evangelical+society&pg=PA122|accessdate=July 29, 2014}}

In elections held after the charter amendment, five of the board members belonged to the German Evangelical Church Society and three to independent lotholders.

The City Commissioners, however, were undeterred in their desire to extend North Capitol Street. Although they knew federal law prohibited the use of cemetery land, on November 5, 1886, the commissioners claimed to have contacted the lotholders, a large majority of whom were said to favor the donation of cemetery land for the road. The commissioners had city legal counsel study whether they could condemn the land and accept it as a donation (as Congress had appropriated no money for the city to pay for the property).{{cite news|title=Another Proposed Extension|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=November 6, 1886|page=5}} The city's chief attorney, Albert G. Riddle, reported that federal law barred the city from condemning the property. The only alternatives were for every single lotholder to give their approval for a donation of land or for the city to ask Congress to revise the corporation's charter. With neither option likely to happen, Commissioners William B. Webb and Samuel E. Wheatley agreed to cancel the extension of North Capitol Street.{{cite news|title=North Capitol Street Extension|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 23, 1887|page=1}}

Control over Prospect Hill Cemetery began to be contested in December 1886. Dissatisfaction with the 1885 agreement grew among members of the German Evangelical Church Society (now known as the German Evangelical Society), many of whom supported the extension of North Capitol Street.{{cite news|title=Right of Way|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 29, 1887|page=1}} This group subsequently decided to seize control of the cemetery. They incorporated a "German Evangelical Society of Prospect Hill Cemetery" (GESPHC) on December 16, 1986,{{cite news|title=The Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 25, 1888|page=5}}{{Efn|The documents for incorporation were filed by George F. Schaffer, president; William Scherger, treasurer; Sebastian Toepfer, secretary; and Fred Heider, Louis Kettler, and George C. Walker, directors.}}{{cite news|title=North Capitol Street Extension|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 29, 1887|page=5}} and the following day met with trustees John Walter and Frederick Heider of Prospect Hill Cemetery. Walker and Heider conveyed title to the cemetery to the GESPHC that same day. On March 17, 1887, the GESPHC filed a plan with the city to subdivide the cemetery. The {{convert|7|acre|m2}} west of the proposed North Capitol Street route was severed from the cemetery, and the GESPHC further subdivided this section into building lots. This not only subjected these {{convert|7|acre|m2}} to taxation, but allegedly made it legal for the city to condemn the route through it needed to extend North Capitol Street. With no burials having been made in plots which could be condemned by the city, the GESPHC trustees believed that the subdivision cleared the way for the city to build the street. (More than 4,000 burials had occurred east of the planned street.)

Despite these actions, the city did not act on the North Capitol Street extension until the end of the year. In the fall of 1887, the city proposed taking a {{convert|130|ft|m|adj=on}} wide strip of land through the cemetery to extend North Capitol Street.{{cite news|title=North Capitol Street Extension|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 17, 1887|page=5}}{{Efn|The process for extending city streets required that the commissioners advertise their intent, hold a hearing at which landholders could voice their views or objections, and then formally approve a street or extension.}} The city's hearing on the extension occurred on November 11, 1887, and PHC directors Fred Heider, H. Lereker, William Scherzer, Sebastian Toepfer, and George C. Walker attended the hearing.{{cite news|title=District Government Affairs|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=November 11, 1887|page=5}} There were no objections raised to the route or extension. There were, however, local landowners who did not approve of the street extension. On December 14, Mrs. Annie E. Barbour, whose {{convert|2.9|acre|m2}} of property lay adjacent to the south side of the cemetery, filed suit against the city—arguing that the city commissioners did not have the funds to pay for her land, and that the city intended to take her property without due process or compensation.{{cite news|title=Extension of North Capitol Street|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 14, 1887|page=5}} Alarmed that the city was ignoring federal law barring the construction of roads through their property, PHC also filed for an injunction to stop the city from taking action. PHC claimed it had not voiced opposition to the road extension because it assumed the commissioners knew an act of Congress prevented the road from going through cemetery land. It also pointed out that three burial plots had already been sold on the west side of the planned route.

The superior court granted the PHC's injunction on December 17.

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On December 14, City Engineer Commissioner Colonel William Ludlow issued verbal orders to George M. Beale, D.C. superintendent of roads, to begin work on extending North Capitol Street. Three days later, the D.C. Superior Court issued an injunction stopping all work on the road.{{cite news|title=By Col. Ludlow's Order|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 3, 1888|page=1}} Although subsequent events are unclear, later congressional testimony suggested that the injunction was served only on Commissioner Webb, not all three commissioners. Webb may have referred the injunction to the District's assistant counsel, H.E. Davis, but neither individual informed Ludlow. On December 23, seven workmen entered the cemetery and tore down fences, chopped down 12 trees, and uprooted shrubs. The cemetery superintendent, Henry Winckelman, attempted to stop them but was unable to do so. Davis allegedly told Ludlow of the injunction late in the afternoon on December 23, and Ludlow verbally told Beale to stop work a few hours later. Officers of the PHC complained to city officials, and on December 29 Commissioner Wheatley issued a written order to Beale to stop work.

After the city's desecration of the cemetery, independent directors on the PHC board learned of the formation of the GESPHC and the transfer of the cemetery's title by the other board members. They were outraged. Independent board member John Vogt asserted that the trustees had no authority to file for a subdivision, and that lotholders were almost unanimous in opposing the transfer of title. At a special meeting of the Prospect Hill Cemetery lotholders held on January 5, 1888, the 400 lotholders present elected a new president (Charles A. Bickwedde) and a new secretary (Leonhardt Eckert). With title to the cemetery in question, lots could not be sold and income plummeted. A financial committee, consisting of members Jacob J. Appich, W. Grisbauer,{{Efn|This may be John A. Griesbauer.}} Charles Groff, Frederick Reh, and Charles Schneider, was established to support the cemetery. It immediately raised $500.50 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|500.50|1888}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars) in donations. A second committee, consisting of members William Dietz, Jacob Rupid, Charles Schneider, L.H. Schneider, August Schmedtie, and George Wagner, was appointed to provide support and advice to the board of directors. A committee on resolutions was also formed, consisting of members Frederick Imhoff, L.H. Schneider, and George Wagner. At the end of the special meeting, the committee on resolutions reported out a series of resolutions denouncing the city's desecration of the cemetery; declaring the city's action illegal and taken in support of a real estate syndicate which sought to profit from the street extension; asking the PHC board of directors to sue the city commissioners civilly and criminally; and establishing a committee to meet with House and Senate District Committees, the President of the United States, and the city commissioners to inform them of the events of the past two years. L.H. Schneider successfully amended one resolution to denounce the six men who filed incorporated the GESPHC and subdivided the cemetery. Each resolution passed overwhelmingly.{{cite news|title=Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 5, 1888|page=3}}

The board of directors of the PHC filed suit against GESPHC, John Walter, and Frederick Heider on January 25, 1888. They accused the organization and two men of seeking to seize the cemetery's revenues, conflicts of interest, illegally transferring title to the cemetery, and illegally subdividing the cemetery. The GESPHC countersued, arguing that the PHC had never been duly organized under the charter of 1860. Even if it had, the GESPHC said, the PHC's actions were tainted and irregular due to the voting rights given to individuals who were not members of the German Evangelical Society.

Within days of the PHC lotholders' special meeting, Representative John J. Hemphill (D-South Carolina) introduced a resolution to have the House Committee on the District of Columbia investigate the matter and report to Congress any attempts to violate federal law. The resolution was favorably reported out of the House Committee on the District of Columbia, and adopted by the full House.{{cite news|title=The District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 2, 1888|page=1}} A special subcommittee of the District of Columbia Committee was established to oversee the investigation.

File:Prospect Hill Graves.JPG

The special subcommittee met for the first time on March 3, 1888, and heard testimony in the matter its first day. PHC director L.H. Schneider testified about the organization's 1860 charter, the 1886 amendments to the charter, and Section 3's bar against the construction of roads in the cemetery. Schneider also testified that the city commissioners were well aware of Section 3's prohibition on new roads. City Commissioner Webb reviewed for the subcommittee the city's initial attempt to extend North Capitol Street in late 1886. He noted that the commissioners did not approve construction at that time, as federal law appeared to bar it. Webb claimed that the GESPHC approached the city with news of the subdivision and their willingness to allow the city to cut the road. The city commissioners told the GESPHC that the organization had no authority to subdivide the cemetery or donate any burial ground, and that the city commissioners had never approved the street's extension. Webb claimed that Colonel Ludlow had illegally issued orders sending work crews into the cemetery. Superintendent of Roads Beale testified that Colonel Ludlow verbally ordered him to begin work on December 14, that no countermanding order was ever received, and that work began on the cemetery grounds on December 23. The work ceased at the end of that day when Ludlow phoned to tell him to stop. Beale also told the subcommittee that it was not until December 29 that Commissioner Wheatley issued a written order to stop work.

The special subcommittee heard from Colonel Ludlow on March 9. Ludlow flatly contradicted Commissioner Webb, and produced documentation showing that the three commissioners had formally taken action in early December to approve the road extension. Although Webb claimed he verbally informed Ludlow about the injunction the day it was issued, Ludlow denied knowing about it until Davis verbally informed him of its existence on December 23. When asked why the city commissioners took action despite clear congressional instructions prohibiting road-building on Prospect Hill Cemetery's land, Ludlow said that the actions of the GESPHC seemed to dispose of that bar. Simon Wolf, who petitioned Congress to make the 1886 charter amendments, testified that a man claiming to be from a "Philadelphia real estate syndicate" approached him at the U.S. Capitol, threatened him, and told him to not seek the charter amendments. Ludlow, however, categorically denied knowledge of any such syndicate. George Schaffer testified last, admitting that he prepared the paperwork creating the subdivision just prior to the end of his term as PHC president, and that such filings were properly undertaken under his authority as president. Unable to determine which faction truly represented the PHC, and not wishing to interfere in the court proceedings then ongoing, the subcommittee took no more testimony.

A report was ready to be presented to the full House District Committee on April 3, 1888. The report absolved the city commissioners of any wrongdoing, and refused to take a side in the litigation. But a quorum of subcommittee members did not exist, and the report was not presented.{{cite news|title=The House District Committee|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=April 3, 1888|page=5}} A quorum was reached on April 6. But no vote to accept the report was taken, as there were concerns as to whether the December 17 injunction had been properly served on the commissioners.{{cite news|title=The House District Committee|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 6, 1888|page=5}} This legal question was resolved, and on April 20 the full committee voted to accept the report.{{cite news|title=Meeting of the House Committee|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 20, 1888|page=5}} No further action was taken, however.

Dueling boards of directors were elected by the PHC and the GESPHC in March 1988,{{cite news|title=Special Notices|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 9, 1888|page=1|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=Special Notices|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 17, 1888|page=1|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=Special Notices|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 19, 1888|page=1}} but the Court of the District of Columbia in Equity enjoined the GESPHC from taking any action regarding the property, income, or title of Prospect Hill Cemetery.{{cite news|title=The Prospect Hill Cemetery Litigation|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 21, 1888|page=6}} The PHC continued to elect a board of directors, however, in 1889, 1890, 1891, 1892, and 1893.{{cite news|title=Condensed Locals|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 20, 1889|page=8|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=Officers of Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 12, 1890|page=8|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 11, 1891|page=8|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 9, 1892|page=9|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=Special Notices|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 21, 1893|page=1}}

After nearly four years of court hearings, testimony, and motions, the Court of the District of Columbia in Equity found in favor of the PHC on November 22, 1892.{{cite news|title=Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=November 22, 1892|page=6}} It declared the transfer of title in December 1886 illegal, and ordered the March 1886 subdivision filing dissolved. The court also dismissed the GESPHC's countersuit.

The German Evangelical Society appealed the decision to the Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia. It gave three grounds for appeal: 1) That the court in equity had erred in finding the PHC properly incorporated under the 1860 charter; 2) that the court in equity had erred in denying a November 17, 1892, motion to amend the countersuit; and 3) that the court in equity had erred when it found that non-members of the Society were voting members of the PHC. The Court of Appeals, however, dismissed the first and third grounds. Under the rules of the court, the Society (as appellant) was required to have printed the testimony and proceedings of the initial court. The Society had declined to do so, and the court of appeals concluded that it could not find in favor of the appellant without any printed record. The key question in answering the remaining issue, the court of appeals said, was whether the 1886 entity calling itself the "German Evangelical Society" was, in fact, the same voluntary, unincorporated body which formed the PHC in 1860. The court said it was not and could never be, since as a matter of law it was a completely new entity.{{cite court|litigants=Prospect Hill Cemetery v. The German Evangelical Society|vol=22|reporter=Wash. L. Rep.|opinion=122|court=C.App.D.C.|date=1894|pinpoint=123–124|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aMwZAAAAYAAJ&dq=%22Prospect+Hill+Cemetery%22+evangelical+society&pg=PA122|accessdate=July 29, 2014}} The charter of 1860, as amended, gave no voting rights to any outside organization, only to lotholders. Nor did the charter require lotholders to be members of the German Evangelical Society, whether the society of 1860 or the newly incorporated body of 1886. The court in equity, then, was right in denying the November 17, 1892, motion to amend, for this motion would have given the 1886 body voting rights and standing in the PHC annual meeting. The Court of Appeals affirmed the judgment of the Court of the District of Columbia in Equity on February 5, 1894.{{cite court|litigants=Prospect Hill Cemetery v. The German Evangelical Society|vol=22|reporter=Wash. L. Rep.|opinion=122|court=C.App.D.C.|date=1894|pinpoint=124|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aMwZAAAAYAAJ&dq=%22Prospect+Hill+Cemetery%22+evangelical+society&pg=PA122|accessdate=July 29, 2014}}

File:Prospect Hill Cemetery map 1890.jpg

The 51st United States Congress ran from March 4, 1889, to March 3, 1891. Regarding the extension of North Capitol Street, the key issue facing Congress was amending the Prospect Hill Cemetery charter to either allow the cemetery association to donate land to the city or permit the city to condemn the land. On April 22, 1890, the Senate added an amendment to the District of Columbia appropriations bill which would allow a land transfer.{{cite news|title=Over Six Million Dollars|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=April 23, 1890|page=7}} The House District of Columbia Committee favorably reported a standalone bill on April 24.{{cite news|title=Many District Measures|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=April 25, 1890|page=5}} The Senate refused to act on the standalone bill because the House had refused to act on the D.C. appropriations bill.{{cite news|title=District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=June 14, 1890|page=5}} To get movement on the legislation, the city commissioners held a hearing to generally discuss and consider street extensions throughout the city. PHC representative George Wagner accused the commissioners of trying to win public support for the North Capitol Street extension by cloaking it as a "general hearing", and the PHC board showed up in force at the hearing to protest the extension of North Capitol Street.{{cite news|title=The German Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 15, 1893|page=2}} No further action was taken on the bill in the remainder of the 51st Congress, and it died at the end of the session.

The 52nd United States Congress opened on December 7, 1891, and ended on March 3, 1893. Initially, no legislation was introduced in Congress. The commissioners of the District of Columbia tried to force the issue by holding hearings on the street extension issue on May 22, 1891.{{cite news|title=Special Notices|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=May 1, 1891|page=1}} The PHC's attorney, Henry Wise Garnett, reminded the commissioners of the bar in federal law preventing any action,{{cite news|title=North Capitol Street Extension|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=May 22, 1891|page=5}} and the commissioners decided to wait until Congress acted.{{cite news|title=District Government|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=May 25, 1891|page=3}} In the waning days of 1891, a new bill, S.1307, was introduced with substantially the same language as the 1890 bill. This bill was drawn up by the Washington Board of Trade (a business group). On January 25, the city commissioners held a hearing on the bill. George Wagner and August Schmedtie, representatives of the PHC, objected to any congressional action until the court ruled on which organization held title to the cemetery.{{cite news|title=Providing for Street Extension|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 26, 1892|page=5}}

Congress, however, was not deterred. Two new bills, S.2637 and H.B.7407, were introduced in Congress in July 1892.{{cite news|title=District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=July 14, 1892|page=5}} Senator John Sherman (R-Ohio) authored the Senate legislation, which allowed the cemetery land to be condemned, the price of the condemnation to be paid from the United States Treasury, and the grading of the road to occur (although the construction cost was capped at $10,000).{{cite news|title=North Capitol Street|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=June 24, 1892|page=6}} The House bill was substantially the same. The Senate passed a resolution asking the city to estimate the cost of construction for the street extension. Captain William Trent Rossell, the Engineer Commissioner, reported that the city needed {{convert|254189|sqft|m2}} of land for the road, of which {{convert|126789|sqft|m2}} belonged to the cemetery. Rossell estimated the value of the land at 30 cents per square foot, or $38,036.70 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|38036|1892}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars). Grading of the land would require another $69,286 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|69286|1892}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).{{cite news|title=North Capitol Street Extension|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 26, 1892|page=5}} The PHC, for its part, was in good financial shape (despite sharply lower lot sales and interments due to the ongoing lawsuit). Many lotholders no longer felt the cemetery was in danger of being moved or wiped out, and there was some support for letting the road go through. A committee of three, led by director Charles Schneider, was appointed investigate the matter and report back to lotholders.{{cite news|title=Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 9, 1892|page=9}}

Meanwhile, condemnation proceeded against other property owners in the area. At this time, the eminent domain procedures governing the District of Columbia required the city to condemn land, and for the landowner to fight the condemnation in court before a jury. The jury then determined if the condemnation was required, and what compensation should be awarded the property owner. In two separate proceedings, juries found land to be worth just 1 cent per square foot. Senator James McMillan (R-Michigan), chair of the Senate District of Columbia Committee, brought S.2637 to the floor of the Senate on June 24. McMillan argued that the cemetery trustees were not opposed to the road, just to the price to be paid for the condemned land. Senator George Graham Vest (D-Missouri) asked that the bill be temporarily tabled, and it was. On July 14, Senator Matt Whitaker Ransom (D-North Carolina) presented the Senate with a petition from 1,000 cemetery lotholders opposed to the Senate and House bills. (PHC director George Wagner later characterized the dispute over lotholder support as one Senator lying to another.) The objections raised by Vest and other senators were seemingly resolved by July 24, when McMillan again called the bill for a vote on the Senate floor. One change to the bill had been made, providing for federally-financed construction of a retaining wall on cemetery property if one was needed. But once more the bill was put on hold. Senator David Turpie (D-Indiana) objected to the bill overall, and Senator Francis Cockrell (D-Missouri) wanted a cap put on the price of the compensation.{{cite news|title=District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=July 25, 1892|page=1}}

File:Looking NW out main gate - Prospect Hill Cemetery - 2014.jpg

On November 22, 1892, the District of Columbia Court in Equity ruled in favor of the PHC trustees.

In December 1892, Charles Schneider's investigative committee reported back to the lotholders. He reported that the board of directors was still opposed to the construction of North Capitol Street across cemetery land. If Congress acted and stripped the cemetery of its rights, however, the investigative committee urged that the lotholders seek a fair price for the land (one much higher than the 1 cent per square foot offered other property owners). At a special meeting on December 7, the lotholders voted in favor of the report and to support the board of directors.{{cite news|title=Meeting of Prospect Hill Cemetery Lot Holders|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 8, 1892|page=10}}

In a desperate attempt to win passage of the stalled legislation, the city commissioners held yet another hearing in the waning days of the 52nd Congress.{{cite news|title=To Extend North Capitol Street|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 11, 1893|page=9}} The January 15th hearing was cancelled when the commissioners were unexpectedly called to Capitol Hill to testify. But PHC representatives noted that lobbyists for real estate syndicates showed up in large numbers for the hearing. The hearing was eventually held on January 23, but there was no new evidence or testimony offered and the stalemate continued.{{cite news|title=District Government|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 23, 1893|page=5}}

Meanwhile, Congress approved an amendment to the charter of the Eckington and Soldiers' Home Railway, an electric streetcar company providing service in the Eckington neighborhood. The first electric streetcar company in the city, it began at the intersection of New Jersey Avenue NW and New York Avenue NW, ran north on New Jersey Avenue to Rhode Island Avenue NW, and then up 4th Street NW to Michigan Avenue NW (passing between Howard University and the McMillan Reservoir). Legislation to permit the streetcar company to extend its line along New York Avenue to North Capitol Street and then up North Capitol to the Soldier's Home was first introduced in Congress in December 1889, and was finally approved in February 1893.{{cite news|title=Electric Railroads|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 28, 1889|page=2|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=Local Legislation|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 10, 1890|page=1|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=The Electric Road|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=May 21, 1890|page=5|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=The District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 20, 1891|page=5|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=District Day|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 8, 1892|page=6|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=A Quorum Today|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=June 27, 1892|page=1|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=District Legislation|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 27, 1893|page=9|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=Not Necessary|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 18, 1895|page=1}}

The 53rd United States Congress opened on August 7, 1893, and ended on March 3, 1895. Democrats now held a majority in the Senate, and on August 30, 1893, Senator Isham G. Harris (D-Tennessee) (the President pro tempore of the United States Senate) introduced a new condemnation bill similar to S.2637.{{cite news|title=District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=August 30, 1893|page=1}} A slightly different bill was offered in the House. The House bill officially required the city to extend North Capitol Street through cemetery land. Although Congress had revamped the eminent domain process the previous year, the House bill forced the city to use the old process for condemning the property. Half the funds to pay for the land were appropriated from the U.S. Treasury, with the other half coming from District of Columbia revenues. Construction costs were capped at $10,000. On October 17, the House District of Columbia Committee recommended approval of this bill.{{cite news|title=District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=October 18, 1893|page=1}} The House legislation received a favorable reception in the Senate, and the Senate District of Columbia Committee approved it on December 7.{{cite news|title=Local Legislation|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 8, 1893|page=1}} The bill passed both chambers by voice vote on December 21, 1893.{{cite court|litigants=Ross v. United States ex rel. Prospect Hill Cemetery|vol=24|reporter=Wash. L. Rep.|opinion=98|court=C.App.D.C.|date=1896|pinpoint=98|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0csZAAAAYAAJ&dq=editions%3AnMrTHnCxGlEC&pg=PA98|accessdate=August 1, 2014}}{{cite news|title=To Compel Action|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=October 5, 1895|page=7}}

With federal law no longer a bar to condemnation of cemetery land, the PHC announced it would cease to oppose the extension of North Capitol Street and allow a jury to determine an appropriate condemnation award.{{cite news|title=North Capitol Street Extension|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 23, 1893|page=1}}

By mid-February 1894, the D.C. Supreme Court{{cite news|title=Of Local Interest|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 18, 1896|page=11}}{{Efn|The D.C. Supreme Court sat as a federal district court for the purposes of eminent domain.}} was close to naming a board of appraisers to determine the price of the Prospect Hill Cemetery land. PHC officials, however, were upset because the Panic of 1893 had depressed land values. Had Congress acted with more speed, the transaction would have been finalized years ago and the PHC would have received a better price.{{cite news|title=Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 13, 1894|page=6}}

The board of appraisers issued their report on March 16, 1894. The appraisers valued the land at $45,724 and assessed damages of $5,962 to the cemetery's remaining land, for a total compensation award of $51,686 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|51686|1894}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).{{cite news|title=Court of Appeals|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 5, 1895|page=12}} The price was more than 40 cents per square foot. Shocked at the high level of the award, the city appealed to the D.C. Supreme Court. But on June 24, 1894, the D.C. Supreme Court upheld the board of appraisers' award. The commissioners then appealed to the Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia. Work on North Capitol Street, then under way, ceased after reaching the border of the cemetery.{{cite news|title=District Government|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=July 23, 1894|page=1}}

The city commissioners immediately sought the help of Congress. They proposed passage of legislation setting aside the appraisers' award, and to seek condemnation under the new eminent domain procedure enacted as part of the 1891 D.C. highway act (approved August 30, 1890).{{cite court|litigants=Ross v. United States ex rel. Prospect Hill Cemetery|vol=24|reporter=Wash. L. Rep.|opinion=98|court=C.App.D.C.|date=1896|pinpoint=98–99|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0csZAAAAYAAJ&dq=editions%3AnMrTHnCxGlEC&pg=PA98|accessdate=August 1, 2014}} This bill was introduced in the Senate, and reported favorably by the Senate District of Columbia Committee on July 1, 1894.{{cite news|title=District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=July 2, 1894|page=2}} The Senate Appropriations Committee attached the bill to the D.C. appropriations legislation for 1895. The amended appropriations bill passed the Senate, and went to a House–Senate conference committee. The conference committee agreed on August 2 to retain the Prospect Hill Cemetery amendment.{{cite news|title=How They Stand|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=August 2, 1894|page=5}} The legislation passed Congress on August 7, 1894.

The city filed a motion with the D.C. Supreme Court on August 13, asking that the appraisal be vacated. The court refused, declaring the Act of August 7, 1894, to be an unconstitutional interference in due process and the courts.{{cite news|title=Not Straight Lines|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=April 18, 1895|page=2}} The city appealed to the D.C. Court of Appeals.{{cite court|litigants=Ross v. United States ex rel. Prospect Hill Cemetery|vol=24|reporter=Wash. L. Rep.|opinion=98|court=C.App.D.C.|date=1896|pinpoint=99|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0csZAAAAYAAJ&dq=editions%3AnMrTHnCxGlEC&pg=PA98|accessdate=August 1, 2014}} While the appeal was being heard, the city attempted to condemn a second piece of cemetery property. But the PHC sued to stop this condemnation proceeding, and on December 23, 1894, the D.C. Superior Court issued an injunction against the city which prevented any second condemnation until the appellate court ruled.{{cite news|title=North Capitol Street|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 24, 1894|page=9}} The Court of Appeals consolidated both appeals.

On March 4, 1895, in District of Columbia v. Prospect Hill Cemetery, 5 C.App.D.C. 497 (1895), the D.C. Court of Appeals affirmed the ruling of the D.C. Supreme Court in both cases, and upheld the D.C. Supreme Court's holding that the Act of August 7, 1894, was unconstitutional. It ordered the city to pay the full $51,686 if it proceeded with condemnation.{{cite news|title=The Courts|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 5, 1895|page=3}} At the annual meeting of the Prospect Hill Cemetery lotholders in March, the lotholders voted to cease their opposition to the extension of North Capitol Street and drop all existing appeals.{{cite news|title=Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 13, 1895|page=11}}

The following month, however, the city commissioners again approached members of Congress to find a way to have the appraisal ruling overturned. More alarming to cemetery lotholders was a new city street map, which failed to show the cemetery and instead showed extensive subdivisions on the cemetery property. In May, the city went even further and published a street extension map showing an extension of Albany Street NW through the northern part of the burial ground.{{cite news|title=The Second Section|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=May 16, 1895|page=7}}

File:N Cap Street wall N of main gate - Prospect Hill Cemetery - 2014.jpg

Events came to a head on October 4, 1895, when the city commissioners ordered North Capitol Street opened. The order, however, made no mention of any payment to Prospect Hill Cemetery. On October 5, PHC legal counsel filed a motion in the D.C. Supreme Court for a writ of mandamus ordering the city commissioners to pay the required $51,686. The city commissioners replied that they were under no obligation to do so, as they had not sought the land and no injury or loss of possession had occurred at Prospect Hill Cemetery. This argument proved unpersuasive to the court, and the writ was issued.{{cite news|title=Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=November 16, 1895|page=2}} The city appealed to the D.C. Court of Appeals.

On February 4, 1896, the Court of Appeals overturned the writ. The Court of Appeals agreed that the Act of December 21, 1893, clearly ordered the District of Columbia to open North Capitol Street. This command was not discretionary. The question was whether, and to what extent, the Act of August 7, 1895, repealed or altered this intent of Congress. The court was highly critical of the language of the Act of August 7. It was "most unwisely and improvidently drawn by some one who gave but little thought to it, and was undoubtedly passed without consideration; and in our former opinion, when its provisions were pressed upon our attention, we were compelled to disregard them".{{cite court|litigants=Ross v. United States ex rel. Prospect Hill Cemetery|vol=24|reporter=Wash. L. Rep.|opinion=98|court=C.App.D.C.|date=1896|pinpoint=99–100|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0csZAAAAYAAJ&dq=editions%3AnMrTHnCxGlEC&pg=PA98|accessdate=August 1, 2014}} Even so, the court held, the Act of August 7, 1895, acted as a repeal of the Act of December 21, 1893.{{cite news|title=District Relieved|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 4, 1896|page=2}}{{cite court|litigants=Ross v. United States ex rel. Prospect Hill Cemetery|vol=24|reporter=Wash. L. Rep.|opinion=98|court=C.App.D.C.|date=1896|pinpoint=100|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0csZAAAAYAAJ&dq=editions%3AnMrTHnCxGlEC&pg=PA98|accessdate=August 1, 2014}} This left the method of condemnation specified in the second part of the Act of August 7 inconsistent and unenforceable. But with the requirement to open North Capitol Street now repealed, the commissioners were not obliged to take the land.{{cite court|litigants=Ross v. United States ex rel. Prospect Hill Cemetery|vol=24|reporter=Wash. L. Rep.|opinion=98|court=C.App.D.C.|date=1896|pinpoint=101|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0csZAAAAYAAJ&dq=editions%3AnMrTHnCxGlEC&pg=PA98|accessdate=August 1, 2014}} The only way to interpret the Act of August 7, the court of appeals concluded, was to assume that Congress had withdrawn from the attempt at condemnation. No writ should issue, as the city commissioners had the right to refuse to take the land.

The 54th United States Congress began on December 2, 1895. On February 28, 1896, Representative George M. Curtis (R-Iowa) introduced a bill in the House ordering the city to open North Capitol Street though the lands owned by Prospect Hill Cemetery and Mrs. Barbour. The bill was silent as to the means of condemnation, and provided an open-ended appropriation to pay for the property. Construction costs were capped at $10,000, and were to be paid jointly by the federal government and the city.{{cite news|title=District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 29, 1896|page=2}} In the Senate, Joseph Roswell Hawley (R-Connecticut) introduced legislation which was similar to the Curtis bill. However, the Hawley bill specifically appropriated $51,686 from the U.S. Treasury to pay for the Prospect Hill Cemetery land.{{cite news|title=District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 3, 1896|page=2}}

The Senate District of Columbia Committee favorably reported bill the March 12. Although the city commissioners opposed the bill, arguing that it stripped the city of its procedures for securing eminent domain established in the Act of March 2, 1893.{{cite news|title=Street Extension|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 13, 1896|page=13}}{{cite news|title=Street Extensions|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=April 24, 1896|page=9}} Representatives from PHC enthusiastically endorsed it.{{cite news|title=District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 16, 1896|page=11}} Senator McMillan, an initial supporter of the Hawley bill, now opposed it as too expensive.{{cite news|title=Changed His Mind|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 17, 1896|page=1}} This doomed the Senate legislation. A companion to the Hawley bill, H.B.6788, was also opposed by the city commissioners.{{cite news|title=District Affairs|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 25, 1896|page=2}} But on April 23, 1896, the D.C. Court of Appeals struck down the eminent domain assessment procedures established by the Act of March 2, 1893.

With the city bereft of a process for eminent domain, the objection raised by the commissioners no longer applied. Senator Hawley re-introduced his bill (S. 2332){{cite news|title=District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 11, 1897|page=1}} on May 3, 1896.{{cite news|title=District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=May 4, 1896|page=2}} Determined to win passage of the legislation, the PHC hired ex-Representative John J. Hemphill (who had instigated the 1888 House subcommittee investigation) to represent it before Congress.{{cite news|title=District Lawmaking|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=May 1, 1896|page=1}} But despite Hemphill's efforts, the bill languished in the Senate, and no action was taken by December.{{cite news|title=Senate Calendar|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 14, 1896|page=15}}

Hemphill was far more effective in persuading his ex-colleagues in the House to act. On December 17, 1896, the House passed a companion bill (H.B. 6713){{cite news|title=District in Congress|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 8, 1897|page=2}} paying the PHC $51,686 for its land. H.B. 6713 headed for the Senate, where the Senate District of Columbia Committee favorably reported it on January 7. The Senate substituted H.B. 6713 for S. 2332, and on February 11, 1897—with just 20 days left in the 54th Congress—the legislation passed the Senate without discussion.{{cite news|title=Local Measures|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 12, 1897|page=1}} Defeated, the city commissioners asked President Grover Cleveland to sign the bill.{{cite news|title=Favorable Action|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 17, 1897|page=2}} He signed it into law on February 20, 1897.{{sfn|Superintendent of Documents|1897|page=5}}

This ended a 12-year legal battle over the future of Prospect Hill Cemetery.{{sfn|Polmar|Polmar|2010|page=152}} The cemetery's size was reduced by {{convert|3|acre|m2}}.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=2}}

A receiving vault was constructed at Prospect Hill Cemetery some time in the late 1800s. The first mention of the vault came in 1880.{{cite news|title=Died|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=November 18, 1880|page=4}}

A chapel, designed by the D.C.-based architectural firm of Autenrieth and Goenner, was built at Prospect Hill Cemetery in the center of the circle bordering Lincoln Road NE in 1900.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=3}}{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2007_Spring_Newsletter.pdf|title=Meet Our New Superintendent Joe Connell|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Spring 2007|page=5|access-date=August 5, 2014}}

File:W Street resolution - Prospect Hill Cemetery 1906.jpg

The District of Columbia successfully opened W Street NW through cemetery land in a far less divisive way in 1907. The effort to open the street began in January 1903, when the city decided to open W Street NW between 2nd Street NW and North Capitol Street. This would have effectively divided the cemetery's land west of North Capitol Street into equal north and south portions. Congress, however, provided no funds to obtain the land and the city would not initiate eminent domain proceedings. Instead, the city requested that the land be donated, which the cemetery declined to do.{{cite news|title=Want Branch Library|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 27, 1903|page=7}} When the city next raised the issue, a year later, the city's legal counsel said the land must be condemned because the cemetery's charter did not allow it to alienate land.{{cite news|title=Bills for Street Extension|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 27, 1904|page=3}} Subsequently, a bill was introduced in Congress in February 1904 to pay Prospect Hill Cemetery $5,000 for the necessary land.{{cite news|title=To Amend District Bill|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 27, 1904|page=10}} The city then asked to extend Albany Street NW (now Adams Street NW) eastward as well.{{cite news|title=Under Consideration|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 1, 1904|page=16}} The 58th United States Congress ended without action being taken on either issue.

New legislation (S. 5119) was introduced in April 1906. This legislation limited W Street NW to just {{convert|80|ft|m}} in width. The legislation permitted the city to seek condemnation of Prospect Hill Cemetery land in the courts, with the compensation award capped at $5,000. The legislation also stripped the D.C. and federal courts of jurisdiction over the case, barring any appeal by the cemetery or city.{{cite news|title=On Local Measures|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=April 13, 1906|page=1}} The bill passed the Senate on June 29.{{cite news|title=Local Bills Passed|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=June 30, 1906|page=13}} Congress, arguing that the street extension would significantly raise the property values of land in the immediate vicinity of W Street NW, taxed local landowners near the street to pay for the extension. These landowners, most of whom belonged to the North Washington Citizens' Association, were furious at what they perceived to be an excessively generous award (or, alternatively, an expensive tax to pay for the road). The citizens' association went on record denouncing the bill.{{cite news|title=Will Give a Banquet|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 4, 1906|page=6}} Nonetheless, the bill passed the House on December 17, 1906.{{cite news|title=To Widen and Extend|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 18, 1906|pages=1, 2}} The land, however, was appraised at just $4,000.{{cite news|title=Meeting of Citizens|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 5, 1907|page=20}} On May 1, 1907, the city moved forward with its condemnation and construction of the street.{{cite news|title=Money for Street Extension|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=May 1, 1907|page=12}}

File:Looking E at section D North from main gate - Prospect Hill Cemetery - 2014.jpg

In December 1907, the District of Columbia placed a property assessment on landowners along North Capitol Street to pay for the installation of sidewalks. Prospect Hill Cemetery officials resisted paying the assessment, arguing that federal law specifically exempted their land from taxation.{{cite news|title=Street Improvement Urged|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 18, 1907|page=10}} The outcome of the dispute is not known.

The extension of North Capitol Street led to significant changes at Prospect Hill Cemetery. A new retaining wall topped by a wrought iron fence and new main gate were constructed on North Capitol Street. Several sets of remains had to be reinterred to accommodate the new construction.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=2}} Changes in the 1910s to Lincoln Road NE required the construction of a new wall and fence on the east side of the cemetery. Most of the original walls were torn down around 1917, and a new wall constructed. Portions of the wall consisted of ashlar granite blocks of various shades and colors, both coursed and randomly set. Other portions consisted of rusticated or rubble rock of various types (such as granite, greenschist, mica-schist, and other rock). The walls were topped with wrought iron fencing and cast iron finials.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=3}}

Prospect Hill Cemetery constructed a new gatehouse at North Capitol Street and W Street NW in 1927. The square structure with fieldstone walls was two stories high. It had an attic and a hip roof, with a hip-roof dormer on the north and south sides.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=3}}

As the Great Depression took hold, fewer changes were made at Prospect Hill Cemetery. With the cemetery not enclosed along V Street NW, the North Capitol Citizens' Association pressed for the cemetery to finish the wall and fence. They were successful, and in April 1933 cemetery officials hired the V.F. Duckett firm to design a $2,000 concrete and brick wall for its south border.{{cite news|title=Building Reaches $120,000 for Week|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=April 22, 1933|page=14|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=40-Year-old Unit Formed to Obtain School Facilities|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=June 10, 1934|page=46}} But with economic conditions worsening, the cemetery put off the work until 1939.{{cite news|title=Capital Building Recovers From Holiday Slump|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=June 10, 1939|page=24}}

The extension of North Capitol Street left {{convert|5|acre|m2}}{{Efn|With 3 acres sold to the city for the street extension in 1897, the cemetery was left with 14 acres. Today, Prospect Hill Cemetery has just 9 acres, which indicates that the western portion consisted of 5 acres.}} of the cemetery on the west side of the street, while the remaining {{convert|9|acre|m2}} (where all the burials were) was to the east. Lots sales were almost nonexistent in the west portion of the cemetery, as individuals did not want to feel cut off from the cemetery. PHC resolved to sell off the eastern {{convert|5|acre|m2}}, and in April 1920 legislation was introduced in Congress to permit the sale.{{cite news|title=Report to Favor Two D.C. Bills|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=April 22, 1920|page=1}} This legislation died when the 66th United States Congress ended on March 3, 1921.

New legislation was introduced in the 67th United States Congress, and was enacted into law by Congress on January 21, 1922.{{cite news|title=Teachers' Pension Act Up Tomorrow|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=December 20, 1921|page=1|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=Committee O.K.'s District Bills|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 12, 1922|page=27|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=Cemetery Gets Right to Sell Property|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 22, 1922|page=2}} The western five acres were sold off later in 1922.

Two major events happened at Prospect Hill Cemetery in 1929. The cemetery—which by now was advertising its nonsectarian nature—opened up two new sections in February, expanding the area for burials.{{cite news|title=Cemeteries|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 27, 1929|page=9}} In April, the government of the District of Columbia and Concordia Church both observed the 100th anniversary of the birth of attorney and newspaper publisher Louis F. Schade, who was buried at Prospect Hill Cemetery in 1903.{{cite news|title=District to Honor Schade's Memory|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 31, 1929|page=6|postscript=none}};
{{cite news|title=Pastor Will Honor Louis Schade Memory|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=April 7, 1929|page=5}}

File:Prospect Hill Cemetery map 2014.jpg

Hard-hit by the Martin Luther King, Jr. assassination riots of 1968, Washington, D.C.—and particularly the neighborhoods around Prospect Hill Cemetery—rapidly declined in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Daniel King, superintendent of the cemetery since 1925, and his family left the superintendent's residence in 1972 after numerous break-ins. Turnover in the superintendent position was heavy during the next 12 years.

Financially strapped due to lack of lot sales and lacking an endowment, Prospect Hill Cemetery entered into a management agreement with adjacent Glenwood Cemetery in 1985. The agreement proved unsatisfactory: A Glenwood employee rented out the Prospect Hill maintenance shed for use as a business, a portion of Prospect Hill was used for trash disposal without PHC permission, the grounds were ill-maintained, building repairs were not made, and PHC was overcharged for leaf removal. PHC officials rented out a portion of the cemetery to the District of Columbia Public Schools for a school bus parking lot, and a proposal was made to utilize part of the grounds as a pet cemetery. When Glenwood Cemetery said in 1992 that it would not renew the contract without a substantial fee increase, the Prospect Hill Cemetery board of directors voted to end the management agreement. With the advice of the Association for the Preservation of Historic Congressional Cemetery, which had helped save and revive Congressional Cemetery in the 1980s, Prospect Hill slowly recovered. The gatehouse (now called the Stone House) was renovated and made livable again, finances improved, and groundskeeping equipment was purchased.

The German-American Heritage Society placed a memorial plaque at the site of the former chapel in 1997, and a local garden club created and began maintaining a garden around it.{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2009_summer_fall_newsletter.pdf|title=Area Garden Clubs to Begin Major Beautification Project Next Month at Prospect Hill|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Summer–Fall 2009|page=1|access-date=August 5, 2014}}

One fund-raising scheme bore fruit, however. In 2006, Prospect Hill Cemetery rented out a small portion of its maintenance yard for the erection of a cell phone tower.{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2006_Winter_Newsletter.pdf|title=Lot Owners Meet After Totensonntag Service|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Winter 2006|page=2|access-date=August 5, 2014}}

In 2007, lotholders planted a Memorial Garden to beautify the grounds. The Memorial Garden was transplanted in 2009{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2009_summer_fall_newsletter.pdf|title=Area Garden Clubs to Begin Major Beautification Project Next Month at Prospect Hill|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Summer–Fall 2009|page=2|access-date=August 5, 2014}} to form the basis of a new Memorial Grove. The Memorial Grove was planted against the northern boundary of the burial grounds to help conceal Prospect Hill's and Glenwood Cemetery's maintenance yards.{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2009_summer_fall_newsletter.pdf|last=Holler|first=Carol|title=President's Message...Thanks, Welcome and a Reminder|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Summer–Fall 2009|page=5|access-date=August 5, 2014}} The Memorial Grove was a gift from District 1 of the National Capital Area Garden Clubs, and was completed in September 2009. During preparation of the ground, Prospect Hill Cemetery discovered that the District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DCWASA) had installed a {{convert|12|in|cm|adj=on}} water line through the northern part of the cemetery in 1896. Although the cemetery provided DCWASA with an easement for the water line, these records were lost. The line was located and marked.{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2009_holiday_newsletter.pdf|last=Becker|first=Rudy|title=Area Garden Clubs Complete Major Beautification Project at Prospect Hill|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Winter 2009|page=1|access-date=August 5, 2014}} A sculpted stone angel, which years ago had fallen from a century-old grave, was installed on a foundation in the center of the grove.{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2009_holiday_newsletter.pdf|last=Becker|first=Rudy|title=Area Garden Clubs Complete Major Beautification Project at Prospect Hill|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Winter 2009|page=2|access-date=August 5, 2014}}

Prospect Hill began a years-long effort to repair roadways and paved walkways throughout the cemetery in 2010. Lanham Construction Co. began a $1,600 repair effort on the sidewalk between the gatehouse and the maintenance shed and on the sidewalk adjacent to the gatehouse in Fall 2010.{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2010_summer_fall_newsletter.pdf|title=New Lawn Mower Purchased|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Summer–Fall 2010|page=3|access-date=August 5, 2014}} Sidewalks and steps in Section E of the cemetery followed in 2012.{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2012_holiday_newsletter.pdf|title=Cemetery Sidewalks and Steps Repaired|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Winter 2012|pages=5–6|access-date=August 5, 2014}}

The cemetery made two major repairs in 2011. Advisory Neighborhood Commission 5C met with cemetery officials to discuss the deteriorating fence along the alley south of Bryant Street NE. The fence was overgrown, and damaged in places where local people had attempted to dump trash and large objects over the fence. Although the damage was not the fault of Prospect Hill, the cemetery agreed to repair the fence at a cost of $5,500. Repairs included removing vegetation, repairing the wall and fence, extending the wall and fence a short distance, and reinforcing the fence posts with angle braces.{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2011_summer_fall_newsletter.pdf|title=Our 300-Foot Fence Along Bryant Street Alley Repaired After Complaints By Neighbors; Cost $5,500|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Summer–Fall 2011|page=2|access-date=August 5, 2014}}

The second major repair effort involved the Stone House. The 2011 Virginia earthquake struck the city on August 23, 2011, followed by Hurricane Irene on August 26–28. Some tombstones were toppled by the earthquake, and some trees fell over during the storm (damaging the stone angel in the Memorial Grove),{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2013_summer_fall_newsletter.pdf|title=The Angel Is Whole Again|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Summer–Fall 2013|page=6|access-date=August 5, 2014}} but surprisingly little other damage occurred.{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2011_holiday_newsletter.pdf|title=Earthquake and Hurricane Toppled Trees and Tombstones But the Old Stone Gatehouse Survived It All|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Winter 2011|pages=3–4|access-date=August 5, 2014}} Major leaks in the Stone House occurred during the hurricane, however, and a post-storm investigation revealed that the clay tile roof needed major repair. Further investigation showed that the leaks had rotted eaves and roof joists. The project, expected to cost $75,000,{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2011_summer_fall_newsletter.pdf|title=Leaking Roof, Deteriorating Eaves and Rusted Gutters on the Old Gatehouse Need Replacing Now — A Costly Project!|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Summer–Fall 2011|page=1|access-date=August 5, 2014}} was completed on November 7, 2011, at a total cost of $129,500.{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2011_holiday_newsletter.pdf|last=Becker|first=Rudy|title=After Long, Drawn-Out Preliminary Procedure, the Gatehouse Roof Project Is Underway|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Winter 2011|pages=1–2|access-date=August 5, 2014}}

The Memorial Grove angel, whose wing and head were broken off during the hurricane, was repaired in the summer of 2013 and reset on its foundation.

File:Looking W at Circle - Prospect Hill Cemetery - 2014.jpg

Prospect Hill remains an active burial ground.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=4}} Hundreds of burials plots remained for sale in late 2010.{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2010_summer_fall_newsletter.pdf|title=Hundreds of Burial Sites Still Available to Purchase|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Summer–Fall 2010|page=1|access-date=August 5, 2014}}

The cemetery retains its character as a garden cemetery, including its asymmetrical, winding pathways and roads; landscaping; and walls. Burials occur in plots and in rows, and many graves are marked with good examples of Victorian funerary art.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=2}} Many markers from the mid to late 1800s markers are simple slabs or headstones carved from limestone or marble, which is typical for the mid-Atlantic area in the 1800s. Later monuments tend to be larger and more ornate, and several prominent sculptors are known to have created pieces for the cemetery. Included among them are works by noted German-American artist Jacques Jouvenal.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=4}} About 75 percent of the 14,000 burials at Prospect Hill Cemetery in 2006 are German Americans, and the cemetery remains the historic burying ground of the city's once-large German American community. Most of the remaining graves represent European families.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=3}} Almost 200 Civil War veterans, most of them German Americans who served in the 8th Battalion, are buried at Prospect Hill.{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2011_summer_fall_newsletter.pdf|title=Granddaughter of a Civil War Vet Buried in Prospect Hill Writers of His War Experiences in Her Hometown Newspaper|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Summer–Fall 2011|page=3|access-date=August 5, 2014}} The cemetery began converting its burial records to electronic format in late 2012. The first information to be digitized were lot ownership records, with burial records to follow.{{cite news|url=http://www.prospecthillcemetery.org/newsletters/2012_holiday_newsletter.pdf|title=Conversion of Records to Electronic Form|newspaper=Prospect Hill Cemetery Newsletter|date=Winter 2012|page=4|access-date=August 5, 2014}}

The cemetery's western, northern, and eastern walls and iron fences date to about 1917,{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=3}} while the southern wall and fence date to 1939. The walls are of varying height, color, and construction.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=3}}

The barn, farmhouse, 1873 gatehouse, and chapel were all demolished in the 20th century.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=3}} The date of the chapel's demolition is unclear but it was in use for both funerals and other public services (such as Memorial Day worship) until 1950.{{cite news|title=Evangelical and Reformed|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=May 27, 1950|page=7}} The late 1800s receiving vault was also demolished in the 20th century. It remained in use at least until 1945.{{cite news|title=Burial of Daughter, Mummified Mother, Will Fulfill Pact|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=April 22, 1945|page=2}} The 1927 gatehouse remains, however, and has retained its historic integrity.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006b|page=3}}

Prospect Hill Cemetery was added to District of Columbia register of historic places in 2005.{{sfn|Historic Preservation Review Board|2006a|page=9}}

File:Louis Schade grave detail 02 - section D-South - Prospect Hill Cemetery - 2014.jpg

File:Schoenborn memorial E face - section D-South - Prospect Hill Cemetery - 2014.jpg

• Abner, Edward (1834–1914) – Local beer brewer who partnered with Robert Portner to found a brewery; later owned several beer gardens and restaurants in the District of Columbia{{sfn|Peck|2014|page=135}}
• Abner, Edward F. (1864–1910) – Local beer brewer who bought the Albert Brewery and later the Abner-Drury Brewery; nephew of Edward Abner{{sfn|Peck|2014|page=135}}{{cite news|title=Edward F. Abner Dead|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 9, 1910|page=2|postscript=none}};
  {{cite news|title=Edward F. Abner's Funeral|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 12, 1910|page=12}}
• Beyer, Louis (1827–1904) – Local beer brewer who owned the Metropolitan Brewery{{sfn|Peck|2014|page=135}}
• Buttner, Henry (1834–1911) – President of the German Building Association{{cite news|title=Henry Buttner Dead|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=July 6, 1911|page=14}}
• Fahy, Herbert J. (1898–1930) – Lockheed test pilot, co-founder of Washington Airport, and, at the time of his death, world record holder for endurance flying (36 hours, 56 minutes){{cite news|title=Herbert Fahy Dead After Plane Crash|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=April 28, 1930|page=1|postscript=none}};
  {{cite news|title=Rites for Aviator|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=April 30, 1930|page=4}}
• Flippin, William Searcy (1827–1899) – Tennessee circuit court judge and long-time reporter for the Sixth Judicial Circuit Court of the United States{{cite news|title=Buried in Prospect Hill Cemetery|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=January 4, 1900|page=3|postscript=none}};
  {{cite news|title=Identified as Judge Flippin|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=January 2, 1900|page=10}}
• Gerhardt, Joseph (1817–1881) – Brevet Brigadier General in the Union Army and commander of the 46th New York Volunteer Infantry; cited for gallant and meritorious service during the American Civil War{{cite news|title=Gen. Gerhardt's Funeral|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=August 22, 1881|page=1}}
• Gerhardt, John Joseph "Joe" (1855–1922) – Known as "Move 'Em Up Joe", he was an American professional baseball player from 1873 to 1893 and son of Brig. Gen. Joseph Gerhardt{{cite news|title=Died|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=March 16, 1922|page=3}}
• Koch, Werner (1834–1911) – Newspaper publisher and editor of the Intelligenzblatt (a German language newspaper) and the Washington Journal (one of the longest-publishing newspapers in the city){{cite news|title=Werner Koch, Editor and Soldier, Dead|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=March 9, 1911|page=20}}
• Parkhurst, George A. (1841–1890) – American actor who was on stage at Ford's Theatre when Abraham Lincoln was shot{{cite news|title=Actor Parkhurst Dead|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=July 3, 1890|page=2|postscript=none}};
  {{cite news|title=Funeral of Geo. A. Parkhurst|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=July 5, 1890|page=3}}
• Petersen, William A. (1816–1871) – A tailor who owned the Petersen House, where President Abraham Lincoln died on April 14, 1865{{sfn|Franscell|2012|page=104}}
• Powalky, Karl Rudolph (1817–1881) – Noted astronomer who made calculations regarding the orbits of planets, asteroids, and the Sun, greatly improving astronomical observational accuracy.{{cite news|title=The Dead Astronomer|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=July 15, 1881|page=1}}
• Schade, Louis F. (1829–1903) – Editor of Stephen A. Douglas' newspapers National Demokrat and National Union in Chicago; editor of The Washington Sentinel in the District of Columbia; defense attorney for Confederate war criminal Henry Wirz; purchaser of the Petersen House{{cite news|title=Funeral of Louis Schade|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=February 27, 1903|page=2}}
• Schoenborn, August (1827–1902) – Architect who designed the 1860 iron dome for the United States Capitol{{sfn|Polmar|Polmar|2010|page=152}}
• Shambaugh, Charles (1839–1913) – Medal of Honor recipient for valor during the Battle of Glendale on June 30, 1862, in Henrico County, Virginia{{cite news|title=Congress Voted Medal to Charles Shambaugh|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=October 13, 1913|page=10}}
• Schneider, Charles (1841–1911) – Director of the Second National Bank, founder of Charles Schneider Baking Company, and co-founder and first president of the National Master Baker's Association of the United States and Canada{{sfn|Macfarland|1908|page=415}}{{cite news|title=Charles Schneider Dies Following Operation|newspaper=The Evening Star|date=July 27, 1911|page=4}}

Daniel Reintzel, mayor of Georgetown, was disinterred from Presbyterian Burying Ground in November 1907. The Evening Star newspaper reported that he was reburied at Prospect Hill Cemetery,{{cite news|title=Night for 'Star' at Masonic Lodge|newspaper=Washington Evening Star|date=May 21, 1922|page=8}} but this is inaccurate. He was reburied in the Masonic Circle at Glenwood Cemetery in Washington, D.C.{{cite web|url=http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~reinsel/allfamilies/note_54.htm|last=Reinsel|first=Robert|title=Genealogy Data Page 55 (Notes Pages)|website=RootsWeb|date=2002|access-date=August 17, 2014}}

;Notes

{{notelist}}

;Citations

{{reflist|35em}}

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• {{cite book|author=Superintendent of Documents|title=Catalogue of United States Public Documents|location=Washington, D.C.|publisher=Government Printing Office|date=1897}}
• {{cite book|last=Thomas|first=Jeannie B.|title=Naked Barbies, Warrior Joes, and Other Forms of Visible Gender|location=Urbana, Ill.|publisher=University of Illinois Press|date=2003 |isbn=9780252028540 |url=https://archive.org/details/nakedbarbieswarr00jean|url-access=registration|page=[https://archive.org/details/nakedbarbieswarr00jean/page/32 32]}}
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Category:1858 establishments in Washington, D.C.

Category:Cemeteries in Washington, D.C.

Category:German-American culture in Washington, D.C.

Category:Lutheran cemeteries in the United States

Category:Cemeteries established in the 1850s