St. Albans School opened its doors in the fall of 1909. A bequest of Harriet Lane Johnston, the niece of President James Buchanan, provided for the establishment of an all-boys School and for a scholarship endowment to educate boys in the National Cathedral Choir. Beginning with fifty-nine boys in its inaugural year, St. Albans now educates approximately 565 boys in grades four through twelve, over twenty of whom serve as Cathedral Choristers.

The campus, too, has grown, adding four classroom buildings, two gymnasiums, two libraries, a theater, a refectory, a dormitory, six science laboratories, computer facilities, three art studios, and an indoor swimming pool.

As an Episcopal School, St. Albans requires all students to attend Chapel several days each week. Spiritually rooted in the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, St. Albans strives to develop in its boys an awareness and love of God and a sense of moral responsibility. With a pastoral commitment to all, St. Albans welcomes students of all faiths and respects the religious beliefs of all members of the diverse School community.

St. Albans, along with the National Cathedral School for Girls, Beauvoir School, and the Washington National Cathedral, is part of the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation. St. Albans sits in the shadow of the National Cathedral, on the fifty-seven acre Cathedral Close in residential Northwest Washington.