In March 1833, amid Alexandria’s growing religious diversity, the Methodist Protestant Church established its own burial ground within what would later become known as the Wilkes Street Cemetery Complex. Burial and lot sale records date back to this time, making it one of the earlier formal cemeteries in the complex.
Reflecting Alexandria’s vibrant 19th-century civic and religious life, the Methodist Protestant Cemetery eventually became the final resting place for more than 1,500 individuals, including prominent citizens, volunteer firefighters, and Civil War-era Alexandrians. Its establishment marked a defining moment in the city’s evolving religious landscape, as congregations began to move away from in-town graveyards toward dedicated, suburban burial grounds.