Privacy Policy

Effective Date: April 2025

Table of Contents

At Gravestone Stories, your privacy is important to us. This policy explains what information we collect and how we use it when you visit our website (https://gravestonestories.com).

Information We Collect

We may collect personal information that you voluntarily provide when you:

Fill out our contact form
Sign up for an email newsletter (if offered)
Book or inquire about tours

The information may include your name, email address, and any message you include in the form.

Website Analytics

We use MonsterInsights to connect to Google Analytics, which helps us understand how visitors use our website. This may include anonymized information such as:

Page views
Time spent on site
General location (city or region)
Device and browser type

This data helps us improve the user experience and is not linked to your personal identity.

Cookies

Like most websites, we use cookies to track site usage and functionality. You may disable cookies through your browser settings, but doing so may affect how you interact with the website.

Email Communications

If you sign up for updates or request information through our forms, we may send you emails related to your inquiry or tour booking. You can opt out at any time by following the unsubscribe instructions in the email.

How We Protect Your Information

We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information. All collected data is kept secure and only used for the purposes described above.

External Links

Our website may include links to external sites (e.g., historical archives or related organizations). We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those websites.

Your Rights

You have the right to request access to or deletion of your personal data. To make such a request, please contact us directly at [your email address].

Contact Us

If you have any questions about this privacy policy, please contact us via our Contact page.

Explore More on This Site

Join a Cemetery Tour

Step into history with our expert-led walking tours of Alexandria’s most storied cemeteries.

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David Heiby
Public Historian & Tour Leader

Reflections from a Recent Tour

“Attended an excellent tour this morning with my DAR chapter of the Wilkes Street Cemetery led by historians David Heiby and Madeline Feierstein of @gravestonestoriesva. They were a wealth of knowledge about early U.S. and Virginia history. Fascinating!”
— Amy D., Daughter of the American Revolution Member

Meet our Guides

Invite Gravestone Stories to Speak

We offer engaging historical talks tailored to museums, genealogical societies, preservation groups, and other organizations interested in Alexandria’s rich past.

Our expert speakers bring Alexandria’s layered past to life—through compelling stories, original research, and engaging presentations tailored for your group or event.

Learn more about booking a talk.

Featured in the News

Our June 2024 tour was featured on the front page of the Alexandria Times in honor of the Alexandria Archaeology Commission’s 50th anniversary.

Read the Article

Featured Blog Story

The final resting places of four civilian victims of the Black Diamond disaster are located at Alexandria National Cemetery, part of the Wilkes Street Cemetery Complex.

Granite boulder memorial at Alexandria National Cemetery honoring four civilian Quartermaster Department employees who perished in the Black Diamond disaster. — **Within Alexandria National Cemetery, a solemn granite boulder stands near the central flagpole.** A bronze plaque on its face honors four civilian Quartermaster Department employees—Peter Carroll, George W. Huntington, Christopher Farley, and Samuel N. Gosnell—who lost their lives on April 24, 1865, during the pursuit of President Abraham Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth. These men are the only known victims of the Black Diamond disaster interred at Alexandria National Cemetery.

Terror on the Potomac: The Sad Story of the Black Diamond

In the chaotic days following Lincoln’s assassination, tragedy struck the Potomac River. On the night of April 23, 1865, the coal barge Black Diamond—tasked with helping block John Wilkes Booth’s escape—was accidentally rammed by the steamer Massachusetts. Eighty-seven lives were lost, including freed Union prisoners and civilian Quartermaster Department employees from Alexandria, whose final journey ended in sacrifice.

Read the Full Story →

Featured Gravestone

Joseph McCoy

Lynching Victim — No Known Grave

Joseph McCoy: Lynching Victim — No Known Grave
On April 23, 1897, 18-year-old Joseph McCoy was lynched by a white mob in Alexandria after being forcibly removed from police custody. Beaten, shot, and hanged at Cameron and Lee Streets, McCoy was buried in an unmarked pauper’s grave in Penny Hill Cemetery. His story endures as a solemn reminder of racial terror and injustice. Say his name.

No gravestone. Buried in Penny Hill Cemetery, Alexandria, VA. →

Memorial poster in Douglass Cemetery, part of the Wilkes Street Complex, honoring Joseph McCoy and Benjamin Thomas—Alexandria’s two known lynching victims. Installed by the Alexandria Community Remembrance Project.

Browse the Featured Gravestone Archive →

Notable Burials Highlight

Explore Alexandria’s Notable Burials
Curious who’s buried in Alexandria? Here are just a few:

Major Samuel Cooper – Boston Tea Party participant and Revolutionary War officer
Wilmer McLean – His homes witnessed both the first and last battles of the Civil War
Fields Cook – African American leader in education and civil rights
Julius Campbell – Star player of the 1971 T.C. Williams Titans, portrayed in Remember the Titans, and a powerful symbol of Alexandria’s struggle and progress in civil rights
Joseph Bruin – Slave trader involved in the 1848 Pearl escape attempt

Browse All Notable Burials →

Explore the Alexandria History Timeline

Step through the city’s past—one decade at a time. This interactive timeline connects the lives of those buried in Alexandria to the national and global events that shaped them.

Browse the Timeline →

Recent Discoveries & Rediscovered Graves

Col. George Gilpin Rediscovered (2024)
Revolutionary War officer and Washington’s pallbearer found after more than 200 years.
Read the Full Story →
Winter Archaeology at Wilkes Street
Ground-penetrating radar revealed long-lost burials—including firefighter Charles Glasscock and the Adam, Irwin, Dundas, and Black family plots.
Explore the Discoveries →

Discover Alexandria’s Civil War Legacy

Civil War Tour of Alexandria National Cemetery - View of Wilkes Street Complex circa 1865 — Entrance to the Alexandria National Cemetery on Wilkes Street, approximately 1865. Retrieved from the Library of Congress.

Alexandria was the first Southern city seized by Union forces—just one day after Virginians voted to secede. Its cemeteries, hospitals, and historic homes became central to the Civil War’s human story.

Explore the lives of soldiers, civilians, contrabands, and spies who shaped Alexandria’s wartime legacy.

Explore at Your Own Pace

Want to explore on your own schedule?
Download our printable brochure and enjoy a self-guided walk through Alexandria’s most historic cemeteries—featuring 35,000+ stories in one extraordinary complex.

Get the Brochure →

Gravestone Stories in the Community

Coming Up

May 6 – D.A.R. Chapter Talk (Private)
A private presentation on the Lee-Fendall House for a local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. More public events coming soon!

Recent Appearances

April 15 – Mount Vernon Genealogical Society
A full house joined us at the Hollin Hall Senior Center for a deep dive into Alexandria’s Wilkes Street Cemetery Complex—home to more than 35,000 stories of American history.

April 5 – Honoring Civil War Sacrifice
We marked the 160th anniversary of Grosvenor Branch Hospital’s closure at the Lee-Fendall House, reading the names of 10 Union soldiers buried in Alexandria.

See photos and more highlights »
Get tour updates by email »

Community Partners

Alexandria’s rich history is preserved and interpreted by dedicated organizations that engage the community through research, education, and historic site preservation.
The Alexandria Historical Society works to document and promote the city’s past.
The Lee-Fendall House Museum, owned and operated by the Virginia Trust for Historic Preservation, offers insight into Alexandria’s evolving history through one of its most significant historic homes.