JOSEPH GALES, Jr.

(1786 – 1860)

9th mayor of the District, born in Eckington, England; son of Joseph Sr., who came to Philadelphia in 1792, and became the first reporter of the proceedings of the American Congress. Gales, Jr., came to Washington in 1807 and joined the “National Intelligencer,” then owned by Samuel Harrison Smith. In 1810 he bought the paper and his brother-in-law, William Winston Seaton, as editor. The “Intelligencer” remained a leading national newspaper until its demise in 1870. When the British invaded Washington in 1814, the offices of the “Intelligencer” were ransacked by the British who considered Gales a traitor.

Image Courtesy of: U.S. Senate

Gales School
65 Massachusetts Ave. N.W.

Built in 1881, Closed in 1944
Recently used as a homeless shelter. Currently under removation.

Designated National Historic Landmark in 2002

Image Courtesy of: Sumner School Museum

Congressional Cemetery
Range 55 Site 168