Our Mission, Vision & Values

We are honored to work with the DC community and visitors from around the world to inspire empathy, unity, and personal growth. By offering over 15,000 free and low-cost tickets a year, we ensure everyone can experience our unique exhibits — and the valuable lessons they teach — regardless of financial means.

Have graced our halls and been inspired by our unique exhibits, intimate music experiences, artitist & author talks, programs, and more.

We Have Given $4 Million+ Toward Our Artist & Heroes-In-Residence Programs Our Artist-In-Residence & Heroes programs provides a supportive, encouraging environment, free from outside pressures - so that participants may rest, heal, or create at no cost.

By staying at our hotel, you’re giving back. Rated among D.C.'s top 7 by Forbes, our themed rooms support our Artist and Heroes-in-Residence programs. With over $4 million given and 999+ free room nights each year, your stay helps provide a space for artists and heroes to rest, heal, and create at no cost.

We Support Other Non-Profits As a non-profit we understand the needs of other organizations. We have helped many raise money for their organizations through events, partnerships, and unique fundraisers.

Inspiring All Who Visit O Museum In The Mansion was created for everyone to share and collaborate within - and then go out into the world, where anything is possible, and dreams can be made real.

Welcoming All To Our Nation's Capitol We offer guests the opportunity to explore themselves, engage with others, and experience how we are each unique and similar at the same time. Whether it is finding synchrony in a beat, connecting with another?s story or being moved by an image ? these commonalities and shared experiences create bonds of empathy for one another that can be brought out into the world to encourage compassion and bridge the divide.

Art, Music, Literature & Sports Bring Us Together We offer artists, performers, authors, and creatives from all walks of life to share their talents through our innovative programs.

In the heart of Washington, D.C., The Big O is a collection of five interconnected townhouses boasting 112 rooms, 32 bedrooms, 35 bathrooms (matching the White House), 16 kitchens, and over 80 secret doors. Designed in 1892 by Edward Clark, the architect of the U.S. Capitol, it served as the home for Edward, his brother James "Champ" Clark (Speaker of the House during Teddy Roosevelt's Presidency), and another brother known as "the artist." Although plans for a connecting house for their sister fell through, the archway to her house was nearly completed. Originally spanning three row houses (now five), it featured separate sleeping quarters for each brother upstairs and incorporated leftover Capitol materials, showcasing exceptional craftsmanship from that era. It stands as one of the last well-preserved private residences from the 19th to 20th centuries in Washington, D.C.

Edward Clark brought some of the finest wood craftsmen from Germany to work on the Capitol and invited them to stay at his home, at 2020 O Street. While there, they created much of the elaborate wood carvings, banisters and trim work still visible on the property. In addition, they incorporated into their mill work many of the extraordinary Tiffany windows still housed in the building today.

In the 1930s, the home was converted into 3 rooming houses for FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover’s G-men — covert federal agents tasked with combating organized crime.

By the 1960s, 2020 O housed student protest leaders, later chronicled by Norman Mailer in Armies of the Night.

From 1977-1990, 2016 O was home to America’s Black Forum & Sounds of the City. ABF, was one of the longest-running syndicated TV shows, is now produced by TV One.

UniWorld Group, led by Walker Williams and Byron Lewis, also operated from 2016 O Street until the property was acquired and reconnected to the main buildings in 1990. Walker served on O Museum’s Board for over 30 years.

From 1994 to 2003 O Museum in the Mansion was the place Mrs. Rosa Parks called home whenever she visited Washington, DC. Mrs. Rosa Parks helped spark the American civil rights movement in 1955 by refusing to give up her seat to a white man on a segregated Montgomery, Alabama bus. That act made her one of the most important women in American history and earned her the nickname "Mother of the Civil Rights Movement".

The African American Heritage Trail identifies sites that are important in local and national history and culture -recognizing the people and places that have shaped our city.

Learn more about Mrs. Parks time with us.
Watch the dedication ceremony

Click to view a slideshow of historical building photos

In 1980, H.H. Leonards purchased the property to restore its original character by reconnecting the historic row houses. In 1985, she added a five-story annex on the former garden site—fulfilling the Clarks' original vision.

In 1999, architect Jay Bothwell donated marble from the Washington Monument restoration, now featured in the Secret Gardens.

The Mansion now includes 100+ rooms and 80 + secret doors. From Victorian elegance to Art Deco flair: hand-painted ceilings, Tiffany glass, a two-story Log Cabin, and a private penthouse. Hear the story in H's own words

Most artifacts were donated by original owners who support the Museum’s mission.

• O Street Advisory Board
• About The Founder
• Music From O Museum in The Mansion

The O Street Museum Foundation, is a nonprofit corporation, tax exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and is a private operating foundation under section 4942(j)(3). We are organized and existing under the laws of the District of Columbia, with principal business address of 2020 O Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036.

Federal tax identification number: 31-1550078
D.C. tax identification number: 8399-0232957-001
Date of Issue: April 24, 1998

IRS 501(c)(3) determination letter
O Street Museum Business License
O Street Museum Franchise Tax Exemption
O Street Museum Sales & Use Exemption