Historic Masonry of Capitol Hill

We will be posting several new blogs as part of a series on the historic masonry of Capitol Hill.  The subject matter will cover the elements of design, history related to masonry construction, and upkeep and maintenance of historic masonry structures in Capitol Hill, DC.

This series on historic masonry is driven by the large amount of public interest we have received from the community. So, please check in and feel free to reach out to us at info@glbarnhart.com.

The following list will be updated as new vignette articles and posts are added:

• Jack arches

• Segmental arches

• Semicircular arches

• Elliptical Arches

• Stone lintels

• Keystones

• Modern headers

• Flemish bond

• Common bond

• Running Bond

• English bond

• Lateral support

• Raked, flush, and concave joint

• Pressed brick

• Common brick

• Cube/Hack position and implications in firing

• Cement mortar

• Lime mortar

• Brick corbels

• Bat closer

• Queen Closer

• Frog and lack of frog in Capitol Hill Brick until 15th St NE

• Spalling

• Header failure

• Hydrostatic pressure

• Weeps to relieve retaining wall hydrostatic pressure

• Mortar to brick ratio

• CBA of brick vs alternatives

• Non ashlar cobble footings and walls

• Masonry quoin corners

• Masonry Coping

• Stretcher, Header, Rowlock, Soldier, Sailor, Shiner