Accessibility

Fredrick Douglass National Historic Site welcomes all individuals with a disability! The park strives for accessibility by communicating barriers and providing alternative programming. Explore the accessibility pages for relevant information categorized by disability type. Contact us with any questions or for help planning your visit.

 
A white house sits atop a hill surrounded by green grass. A brick pathway leads to the front door of the home.
Learn about access at Fredrick Douglass National Historic Site!

Photo: NPS / Kelsey Graczyk

Resources

 
Two cement walls intersect to form the exterior of a visitor center. Double doors sit closed toward the left.
Entrance to the visitor information center

Photo: NPS / Kelsey Graczyk

Physical / Mobility
A wheelchair is available for visitors to borrow while at the site and can be requested at the visitor center.

Parking Lot

  • 2 accessible spaces
  • parking lot is paved

Visitor Center

  • The visitor center is a single-level building at street level.
  • manual doors at the entrance and restrooms
  • room inside to navigate in a standard wheelchair
  • information desk to the left inside the entrance
  • theater is past the desk and has room for 4 wheelchairs
  • gift shop and restrooms inside as well

Historic House

The historic house is a multi-level building on top of a large hill.
  • There is a paved ramp between the visitor center / parking lot area and the bottom of the hill.
  • A paved road consumes the rest of the pathway to the top of the hill, and becomes steep with running slope of 9.35%.
  • With staff permission, you can use a personal vehicle (no larger than a 15-passenger van) to access the top of the hill.
  • Wheelchairs more than 27.5 inches wide will not fit through the narrowest door frame on the first floor.
  • There is a ramp within the home that has a slope of 13.65%.
  • The second floor can only be reached by stairs; there is no elevator inside the house. Staff can provide a photo tour of the second floor for any visitors unable to reach it.
 
Chairs lined up in three rows face a blank screen. A quilt hangs on the right and posters hang on the wall to the left.
Theater room in the visitor center

Photo: NPS / Kelsey Graczyk

Deaf / Hearing Loss

Captioning

The film "Fighter for Freedom: The Frederick Douglass Story" is captioned.

Assistive Listening

  • Assistive listening devices are available by request for the park film.
  • Assistive listening devices are available by request for the historic house tour.

American Sign Language

If you would like to request an American Sign Language interpreter, please notify us two weeks in advance by contacting us.

 
A statue of Fredrick Douglass stands next to the quote, "To those who have suffered in slavery I can say, I, too have suffered... to those who have battled for liberty, brotherhood, and citizenship I can say, I, too have battled."
A statue of Fredrick Douglass stands next to one of his quotes

Photo: NPS / Kelsey Graczyk

Blind / Low Vision

Audio Description

Devices to listen to th audio described film "Fighter for Freedom: The Frederick Douglas Story" are available by requiest.

Tactiles

A tactile statue of Frederick Douglass stands in the visitor center.

 
Service Animals

In October 2018, the National Park Service (NPS) issued a policy memorandum regarding the use of service animals by persons with disabilities in national parks. The revised policy aligns the NPS policy with the standards established by the Department of Justice and the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Dogs classified as service animals are individually trained to perform a specific task that assists a person with a disability. Service dogs are legally permitted anywhere that visitors can go. They must be allowed wherever visitors are allowed.

Examples of such work or tasks include guiding people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, pulling a wheelchair, alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure, reminding a person with mental illness to take prescribed medications, calming a person with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) during an anxiety attack, or performing other duties. Service animals are working animals, not pets. The work or task a dog has been trained to provide must be directly related to the person’s disability.

Emotional support, therapy, and companion animals are not service animals under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), they have not been trained to provide a task directly related to a disability. Emotional support animals are considered to be a pet.

Service dogs-in-training are not service animals under ADA, but are considered pets. Pets must abide by the Individual Park Pet Regulations.

 
 
  • An old office furnished with wooden chairs, a desk, and bookshelves
    Virtual Tour

    See inside Frederick Douglass's historic house from wherever you are.

  • A group of visitors in front of a historic house
    Things to Do

    Tour the historic house, see exhibits, explore the grounds, and watch the film.

  • A sign for the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site visitor center with leaves in foreground
    Basic Information

    Find out about operating hours and seasons, fees and passes, and permits and reservations.

Last updated: August 25, 2025

Contact Info

Mailing Address:

1411 W Street SE
Washington, DC 20020

Phone:

771-208-1499
This phone number is to the ranger offices at the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site.

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