Essay on the City of Washington
This newspaper article was published in New York City in the mid 1790s, describing official plans for the developing federal city. Although an Act of Congress in 1790 had declared that Washington would be the national capital as of 1800, it was at the time mostly farmland and a few groups of buildings. <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/251">The author describes the Mall as a magnificent setting, and the park to be developed there as elegant as any in Europe</a>.
<em>Herald</em>, February 4, 1795.(New York, NY).
02/04/1795
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=38&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Pre-1800s">Pre-1800s</a>
George Washington to Daniel Carroll of Duddington
In 1791, Daniel Carroll of Duddington, a District resident, was in the middle of an argument with <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/82">Pierre Charles L'Enfant</a>, city planner for the new capital. Carroll had built a house where L'Enfant wanted a road, but Carroll was reluctant to have it torn down. Washington wrote to convince Carroll to move the house, at federal expense. What Washington did not know was that L'Enfant had already torn down Carroll's house a few days before.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=George+Washington">George Washington</a>
George Washington Papers, American Memory, Library of Congress. <a href="http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=mgw4&fileName=gwpage101.db&recNum=327">View original</a>.
11/28/1791
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Latrobe's design for the Washington Monument
In 1799 <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/80">Architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe</a> submitted this <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/148">proposal</a> for the <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/36">Washington Monument</a>. The design was meant to be incorporated into the original design of Washington, DC, but budget problems prevented its construction. The plan included the pyramid monument you see here, a terrace, and murals with allegorical figures covering the ceiling inside the monument.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Benjamin+Henry+Latrobe">Benjamin Henry Latrobe</a>
The Library of Congress, <a href="http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/95860797/">View Original</a>.
1799
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=38&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Pre-1800s">Pre-1800s</a>
Potomac and Anacostia Rivers
The southern boundary of Washington, DC, is bordered by two rivers: the Potomac and the Anacostia. The rivers have long had problems with pollution from human and industrial waste. In the 1860s, President Lincoln used to complain of the smell of the rivers, retreating to Soldier's Home to escape. In the 1970s, President Lyndon B. Johnson attempted to reverse decades of pollution, making the rivers a focus of the 1972 Clean Water Act. Today the rivers are improving, but still suffer from pollution.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. <a href="http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/95515129/">View original</a>.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=38&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Pre-1800s">Pre-1800s</a>
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A View of the Mall in St James's Park
The Mall in London, which runs along the side of Saint James Park, was originally a playing field for King Charles II of England and his courtiers. They played pall-mall, a game similar to croquet. By the mid-1700s, it had become a tree-lined avenue where fashionable Londoners went to walk and socialize. This Mall, and others like it, helped inspire the design and name of the National Mall.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Thomas+Bowles+III+%28engraver%29">Thomas Bowles III (engraver)</a>
The British Museum. <a href="http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=3305894&partId=1">View original</a>
1753
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Pall mall ball and mallets
These mallets and ball were used to play a game called pall mall, which involved hitting the ball down a green playing field and through an iron hoop. The game was popular in England in the late 1600s and continued to be played into the early 1800s. This set is probably from the mid to late 1700s. The playing fields for the game were called Malls; the term came to be used for all long, open grassy areas where people walked or played.
The British Museum, Online Collection. <a href="http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=28914&partId=1">View original</a>.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=38&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Pre-1800s">Pre-1800s</a>
City of Washington
President <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/152">George Washington</a> and city planner <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/82">Pierre L'Enfant</a> chose the land for the new capital of the United States, in part, because of the beauty of its landscape. Rolling hills, the meeting point of two rivers, flat lands along the river banks, and fields good for growing crops were positive signs. This image shows a romantic view of the city looking across the Potomac River from Virginia into the District. The Capitol building stands on a hill. Sailing ships and tranquil farmlands speak of a prosperous and beautiful city.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.<a href="http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/hec2009014634/"> View original</a>.
1939
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=38&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Pre-1800s">Pre-1800s</a>
Jefferson Pier
This historical survey stone was established in 1793 to mark the prime meridian of the United States. It was also intended to mark the intersection of direct lines from the middle of the <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/59">Capitol</a> and the <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/66">White House</a>, but it is in fact a little off center. The first marker, a wooden stake, was replaced by a stone in 1804. In the 1870s, the Army Corps of Engineers accidentally removed that marker, and the present stone was placed in 1889. The prime meridian was relocated in 1850.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Colonel+O.H.+Ernst">Colonel O.H. Ernst</a>
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/Department of Commerce. <a href="http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/htmls/geod0508.htm">View original</a>.
1793 (established)
1889 (restored)
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=38&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Pre-1800s">Pre-1800s</a>
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The Ellipse
The Ellipse, officially known as President's Park South, is a 52 acre park located directly south of the White House. It was part of L'Enfant's original plan of the city. The Ellipse was originally called <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/319">"The White Lot"</a> due to the whitewashed fence which enclosed the area. It was the home park for some of Washington's first amateur baseball teams. <a href="http://mallhistory.org/explorations/show/wartime">The park was used by the military during the Civil War and World War II</a>. The area is open to the public and contains many monuments and memorials. Since 1954, it has been the site of the annual Christmas Pageant of Peace.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. <a href="http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2011635422/">View original</a>.
1791 (planned)
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Braddock's Rock
Originally, Braddock's Rock was a sizable outcropping of Piedmont stone jutting into the <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/424">Potomac</a>. Called the "Key of all Keys," this rock became a starting point for surveyors drawing property lines for early settlers. In 1755, General Edward Braddock landed at the rocky promontory and began his march to Fort Duquesne with the young <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/152">George Washington</a> among his soldiers. Later used as a quarry for the stone used in the <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/66">White House</a>, <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/59">Capitol</a>, and C&O Canal, it was blasted away in 1832. Today, the remaining portions are 16 feet underground, enclosed by a well located among the approaches to the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge.
<em>The Washington Times</em>, February 19, 1906. <a href="http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84026749/1906-02-19/ed-1/seq-12/">View original.</a>
1755 (re-named)
1832 (destroyed)
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<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=38&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1830-1859">1830-1859</a>