The Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) unanimously designated Eastern High School as a historic landmark on the DC Inventory of Historic Sites.

In early 2022 CHRS was asked by the school principal and a representative of the Capitol Hill Community Foundation to nominate Eastern on its 100-year anniversary in 1923.  Many months of on-line research, trips to MLK and Sumner Archives, much text drafting and discussions followed.  These efforts have borne fruit.  The Historic Preservation Review Board unanimously voted to add Eastern High School as a Historic Landmark on the DC Inventory of Historic Sites.  The Historic Preservation Office (HPO) plans to nominate Eastern to the National Register later this year.  CHRS presentation to HPRB

The school sits on an elevated lawn, on the north side of 1700 block of East Capitol Street in Hill East neighborhood.  Its nearly 400-foot long front façade is a strong  presence in this part of Capitol Hill.  A generous site, stadium, tennis and basketball courts all contribute to life in the area.  

This large red brick building catches one’s eye with its prominent central pavilion, where  a two-story porte cochere is located between flanking turreted towers.  Ornate Tudor Gothic detailing and features, including a Gothic arch entrance door and banks of Gothic-arched windows and a crenellated parapet with a limestone panel on-center supporting a clock, and decorative Tudor-inspired stone carvings are all attention- catching.  Long four-story wings and taller four-story end pavilions with projecting limestone window bays extend to east and west from the central section.  

Eastern offers many innovative programs including the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program and the Health Sciences Academy. 

The school is an important institution in the neighborhood.  The marching band is the Pride of Capitol Hill and is so beloved that neighbors want an honorary street name for the Blue and White Marching Machine. 

The Historic Landmark Nomination for Eastern High School, Case 23-08, submitted by the Capitol Hill Restoration Society, was  filed with the Historic Preservation Review Board, and set for a hearing in April 2023.