John A. Joyce was a Colonel in the Union Army during the Civil War, serving with the 24th Kentucky Infantry. Born in Ireland and raised in West Virginia and Kentucky, after the war he settled in DC, earned a law degree, and worked for the Internal Revenue Service.
He is the author of two books of poems, as well as memoirs, and books of criticism. His books include A Checkered Life (1883), Jewels of Memory (1896), Complete Poems (1900), and Beautiful Washington(1903), as well as studies of Oliver Goldsmith, Edgar Allan Poe, William Shakespeare, and Robert Burns. He is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery.
The Homes
3238 R St. NW, Washington, DC
Commissioned by Alfred Scott, an early resident of Georgetown; other notable residents of the R Street house have included: Major General Henry W. Halleck; J. Harriss Gastrell, Second Secretary to the British Legation; and Thomas G. Corcoran, advisor to Franklin D. Roosevelt, and a core member of his New Deal “brain trust.”
Also home to: Ulysses S. Grant
John A. Joyce
3238 R St. NW, Washington DC
Located in Georgetown neighborhood, Northwest- West of Rock Creek