Aquia Creek Sandstone, Masonic Cemetery

This photograph is of the mid-18th-century wall surrounding the Masonic Cemetery in Fredericksburg, Virginia. The wall was made from Aquia Creek sandstone, which was also used to build the White House and the United States Capitol. In 1791, the federal government purchased Government Island, then called Wiggington's Island, in Stafford, Virginia to supply freestone for the construction of two iconic American buildings. Government Island resides on the shores of Aquia Creek, a tributary of the Potomac River.