H-DC / DC History

A Timeline of Washington DC History

1600s
	Piscataway Indians inhabit area
1608
	Captain John Smith sails up the Potomac from Jamestown
1632
	Henry Fleete, English fur trader, lives in the Washington area
1663
	Duddington Manor established.
1749
	Alexandria established
1751
	May 15, 1751 --Town of George established--commissioners appointed by Maryland Assembly to lay out town (George Gordon and George Beall's land)
1752
	February 27, 1752 Town of George (80 lots) -- surveyed and platted
1783
	"Federal Town" proposed in Continental Congress
1788
	June 21, 1788 -- Constitution ratified--exclusive jurisdiction clause: Article 1, Section 8, Clause 17, gives Congress authority "to exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten miles square) as may by cession of particular States, and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of the government of the United States....".
1790
	July 16, 1790 - Residency Act of 1790 -- empowers the President to choose a site for the capital city on the east bank of the Potomac River between the mouth of the Eastern Branch (Anacostia River) and the Connogocheague Creek (now Conococheague) near Hagerstown, nearly 70 miles upstream. Library of Congress American Memory Today in History: July 16
1791
	January 22, 1791 -- Thomas Johnson and Daniel Carroll of Rock Creek, appointed by Washington as commissioners, representing Maryland and Dr. David Stuart, to represent Virginia, as Commissioners January 24, 1791 -- President Washington selects site at confluence of Potomac and Eastern Branch Peter Charles L'Enfant designs capital city Presidential proclamation made by George Washington "to survey and limit a part of the territory of ten miles square on both sides of the river Potomac, so as to comprehend Georgetown, in Maryland, and extend to the Eastern Branch." Andrew Ellicott and Benjamin Banneker begin surveying district boundaries
1792
	Cornerstone laid for Presidential Palace (now White House) L'Enfant fired over conflict with Daniel Carroll and others. Library of Congress American Memory Today in History: October 13
1793
	793 Congress House (now Capitol) cornerstone laid
1800
	December 1, 1800 Government moves from Philadelphia DC Population 14,003 President Adams addresses Congress in joint session National Intelligencer newspaper founded
1801
	Library of Congress established Congress assumes jurisdiction over the District of Columbia February 27, 1801 - Congress creates the counties of Washington and Alexandria. Supreme Court arrives
1802
	May 3, 1802 -- Charter granted creating City of Washington municipal government Robert Brent -- first mayor appointed
1806
	Public schools (for whites) open
1807
	Public school (for freed blacks) opens in DC
1808
	February 8, 1808 Washington Bridge Co. authorized by an Act of Congress to construct the "Long Bridge" as a toll crossing.
1810
	Population 24,023
1812
	Charter of the City of Washington to provide for an eight-member board of aldermen and a 12-member common council. The aldermen and the common council now elect the mayor. The first wedding at the White House. Dolley Madison's widowed sister, Lucy Payne Washington, to Supreme Court Justice Thomas Todd
1814
	British burn Capitol, White House and other buildings. First Lady Dolley Madison rescues many of the Executive Mansion's treasures, including Gilbert Stuart's portrait of Washington. Library of Congress American Memory Today in History August 19
1815
	Old Brick Capitol houses Congress during rebuilding of Capitol Congress votes to keep Washington as nation's capital and votes funds for city's reconstruction Personal library of Thomas Jefferson purchased for the Library of Congress to replace that burned by the British in 1814
1816
	St. John's Church Lafayette Square opens
1817
	1817 Executive Mansion rebuilt, its charred walls painted white.  President Monroe returns to the Executive Mansion
1819
	The Congress moves back into reconstructed Capitol.
1820
	Population 33,039 March 15, 1820 - Congress amends the Charter of the City of Washington allowing for the direct election of the mayor by resident voters
1822
	1822 Population reaches 33,000
1824
	Lafayette Square named after the Marquis de Lafayette during his visit and as he is honored in city-wide ceremonies Capitol Rotunda is completed.
1828
	Chesapeake and Ohio Canal completed
1829
	James Smithson leaves money in his will for an Institution for the "increase and diffusion of knowledge." First petition to Congress to abolish slavery in Washington Library of Congress American Memory Today in History June 27
1830
	1830 DC population 39,834
1833
	Treasury building burns to the ground
1835
	Baltimore and Ohio Railroad reaches Washington, initiating the decline of canal traffic through Georgetown and Washington Attempt on life of President Jackson during a state funeral at the Capitol Snow Riots
1836
	Construction begins on new Treasury Building Entire patent collection as Patent Office Building burns
1840
	1840 DC population 43,712
1841
	President William Henry Harrison dies from pneumonia, probably contracted during his inauguration--the shortest presidential term in history
1842
	Charles Dickens makes infamous visit to Washington, which he finds to be a foolish and pretentious village, calling it the "city of magnificent intentions"
1844
	May 24, 1844 First successful use of Morse code sent from Washington to Baltimore. "What hath God wrought" was the first telegraph message sent by Samuel F.B. Morse from the Supreme Court chambers in the Capitol along wires placed on poles beside the B&O's Washington branch Library of Congress American Memory Today in History May 24
1846
	Smithsonian founded July 9, 1846 - Congress passes a law returning the city of Alexandria and Alexandria County to the state of Virginia. Election on retrocession (763 for, 222 against), September 7, 1846 President Polk issues proclamation retroceding Alexandria
1848
	National Era newspaper is attacked by angry mobs Cornerstone of the Washington Monument is laid   Emancipation debate intensifies when abolitionists free 77 Washington slaves and spirit them away on a boat, The Pearl, only to be stopped and the slaves recaptured. May 17, 1848 - Congress adopts a new charter for the City of Washington and expands the number of elected offices to include a board of assessors, a surveyor, a collector and a registrar
1849
	Congressman Abraham Lincoln offers legislation to emancipate DC slaves
1850
	Chesapeake and Ohio Canal is finally completed DC population 51,867 President Taylor dies in office, serves 1 year 227 days. He was the second president to die in office. Compromise of 1850 abolishes the slave trade in Washington, DC. It also establishes the Texas-New Mexico border and declares Congress cannot interfere in regulating interstate slave trade Library of Congress American Memory Today in History October 10 Library of Congress American Memory Today in History September 20
1851
	April 9,1851 B&O RR Station opens at New Jersey Ave & C St NW Fire at the Library of Congress destroys 2/3 of its collection. Many of the volumes have since been replaced, but nearly 900 are still missing. Myrtilla Miner founds Normal School for Colored Girls
1852
	Evening Star newspaper founded
1853
	Clark Mill's statue of Andrew Jackson is dedicated in Lafayette Square Work begins on aqueduct to bring water from Great Falls into Washington
1855
	B&O connects their New Jersey Ave station with the north shore of Long Bridge via Maryland Ave. No tracks placed on bridge until the Civil War. Tracks owned jointly by both the Alexandria & Washington RR and the B&O RR James Renwick's red castle is completed on the Mall to house the Smithsonian Institution Washington Monument funds run out, and the construction stops at 55 feet
1857
	"Know Nothing" riots in Washington kill six people House of Representative moves into current home in south wing of the Capitol
1859
	The Senate moves into the enlarged north wing of the Capitol; it is the same structure that the Senate resides in today
1860
	DC population 75,080 Supreme Court moves from its basement courtroom in the Capitol to the former Old Senate Chamber
1861
	Congress institutes strict loyalty oaths for all federal and local government employees Metropolitan Police created The US Capitol houses Union soldiers, providing medical attention and a place to sleep. The Capitol grounds served as a popular parade area for troops.
1862
	April 16, 1862 - Congress abolishes slavery in the federal district (the City of Washington, Washington County, and Georgetown). This action predates both the Emancipation Proclamation and the adoption of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. July 29,1862 First Horsecar service via rail commences from the Capitol to the State Department  Freedman's Hospital is founded. Major Alexander Augusta, a black surgeon, is placed in charge. The hospital changed its name to Howard University Hospital 100 years later. President Lincoln's son Willie dies of typhoid fever in the White House Library of Congress American Memory Today in History April 16
1863
	"Statue of Freedom" is placed atop the Capitol--sculpted by Thomas Crawford.
1865
	Capitol dome completed; Lee surrenders to Grant on April 8; Lincoln assassinated at Ford's Theatre on April 14. 1865 Fire at Smithsonian castle destroys the Institution's collection of scientific artifacts May 23, 1865 Army of the Potomac parades down Pennsylvania Avenue  Library of Congress American Memory Today in History April 14 Library of Congress American Memory Today in History April 14 Library of Congress American Memory Today in History May 23
1866
	April 19 African Americans celebrate emancipation
1867
	Development of Washington's park system begins Howard University is chartered and named after General Howard, who was then the commissioner of the Freedmen's Bureau Overriding President Johnson's veto, Congress grants the male black citizens of DC the right to vote
1869
	National Intelligencer shuttered, after 69 years
1870
	DC population 131,700
1871
	June 1, 1871 - The elected mayor and council of Washington City and Georgetown, and the County Levy Court are abolished by Congress and replaced by a governor and council appointed by the president. An elected House of Delegates and a non-voting delegate to Congress are created. In this act, the jurisdiction and territorial government came to be called the District of Columbia, thus combining the governments of Georgetown, the City of Washington and the County of Washington. A seal and motto, "Justitia Omnibus" (Justice for All), are adopted for the District of Columbia (seal and motto are used to this day) Alexander Shepherd begins city improvement program as head of the Public Works commission bibliography
1873
	September 1873 - Shepherd appointed governor
1874
	June 20, 1874 - The territorial government of the District of Columbia, including the non-voting delegate to Congress, is abolished. Three temporary commissioners and a subordinate military engineer are appointed by the president.
1877
	Lucy Hayes sponsors the first Easter egg-rolling contest at the White House Washington Post founded by Stilson Hutchins
1878
	June 11, 1878 - In The Organic Act of 1878, Congress approves the establishment of the District of Columbia government as a municipal corporation governed by three presidentially appointed commissioners _ two civilian commissioners and a commissioner from the Army corps of engineers. This form of government lasted until August 1967.
1879
	The Capitol gets electric lighting
1880
	DC population 177,624
1881
	July 2,1881 President James A. Garfield shot by Charles J. Guiteau, a disappointed office seeker at B&P station. Garfield dies from blood poisoning September 19,1881 Library of Congress American Memory Today in History July 2
1882
	First edition of the Washington Bee, a widely read African American newspaper, is published
1883
	1883 C&P is formed; services 900 phones
1884
	The Washington Monument is completed Library of Congress American Memory Today in History December 6
1885
	Sun Building opens--city's first skyscraper Washington Monument is dedicated before a crowd of thousands
1886
	Uniontown renamed Anacostia
1887
	L'Enfant's original manuscript of the Plan Of the City of Washington is rediscovered
1888
	August 27, 1888 Subdivision law passed Washington Monument opens to the public October 17,1888 First experimental electric trolley in Washington 7th & NY Ave NW to 4th & T NE, only months after Frank Sprague's successful demonstrations in Richmond, Va.
1889
	Late May/early June, 1889 Potomac River floods extensively damage C&O Canal. Would be another 2+ years before the canal reopens, now under the control of the paralleling B&O RR. Canal reopened September, 1891 & never 'made money' again.
1890
	May 12,1890 Cable car operation commences DC population 230,392 National Zoo moves its animals from the Mall to its new home at Rock Creek Park White House gets electric lighting
1893
	Permanent Systems of Highways, March 2, 1893
1894
	Cairo Hotel built, prompting building height limitation regulations by District Commissioners Congress mandates NO overhead wires or power poles in Washington city proper Columbia Historical Society established (now Historical Society of Washington, D.C.) Coxey's Army arrives in Washington to demand financial aid for unemployed Americans
1895
	First section of Highway plan submitted
1896
	Public Library established July 29,1896 First successful electric conduit operation for streetcars in Washington. Only Washington & New York City-Manhattan Island ever adopt this type of operation in the United States. Overhead wires permitted outside city limits
1897
	First automobiles drive on city streets Library of Congress building opens  Library of Congress American Memory Today in History November 1
1898
	Last Horsecar operation Permanent Systems of Highways legislation revised
1899
	July 23,1899 Last cable car operation in Washington, D.C. Prompted by construction of he fourteen-story Cairo apartment building, Congress passes the Height of Buildings Act
1900
	DC population 278,718 Potomac dredging work leads to creation of Potomac Parks and Tidal Basin Washington celebrates its centennial
1901
	McMillan Commission plans development of Mall from Capitol to Lincoln Memorial. Anna Cooper becomes principal of M Street High School (later renamed Dunbar) Theodore Roosevelt officially adopts the name White House for the presidential residence
1903
	February 28, 1903 President Theodore Roosevelt signs into law a measure "to provide for a Union Station in the District of Columbia." October, 1903-1908 Union Station constructed & opened at a cost of $16 million including facilities, Brentwood car shops, etc. 24 at-grade crossings with B&O removed from service by relocation & new construction. Washington Terminal RR created to provide switching services for station owners (B&O and PRR) and tenants from the south (Chesapeake & Ohio, RF&P, Southern, Atlantic Coast Line, and Seaboard). Many at-grade crossings eliminated from the Virginia Ave mainline with new elevated trackage. Carnegie-funded Washington Public Library opens at Mount Vernon Square
1906
	July 4, 1906 - The District Building, on 14th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, becomes the official City Hall. December 30,1906 Train wreck at Terra Cotta near present day Fort Totten. 52 killed on train & platform resulting in ICC banning future wooden body passenger car construction Board of Education appointed by Supreme Court of the District of Columbia
1907
	Union Station opens, largest train station in country October 27,1907 Last B&O train leaves from New Jersey Ave. station (2:52 AM the "Duquesne Limited" for Pittsburgh) & Ist train arrives (6:5 0 AM from Pittsburgh) into partially completed Union Station. Old B&O station abandoned & quickly demolished. November 17, 1907 1st PRR train in & out of Union Station. Other rail lines from the south also commence usage. B&P station & adjacent Mall trackage abandoned. Old B&P station demolished after August, 1908 President Roosevelt presides over ground-breaking for the Washington National Cathedral
1908
	June 24, 1908 First streetcar service to Union Station, over 8 months after opening  1Union Station formally dedicated. Designed by architect Daniel Burnham
1909
	Orville Wright’s demonstration flight for the federal government takes him from Fort Myer to Shuter’s Hill and back
1910
	DC population 331,069 May 17, 1910 Commission of Fine Arts established
1912
	Cherry trees, a gift from Japan, planted in Tidal Basin. Library of Congress American Memory Today in History March 27  Washington chapter of NAACP opens. This soon became the center of NAACP's government activities.
1913
	1913 Public Utilities Commission established  Suffragist Parade March 13
1914
	Construction of the Lincoln Memorial begins
1915
	Carter Woodson founds the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History in Washington
1917
	America enters World War I and Washington's population swells with war workers. Rows of temporary war buildings are erected around the Mall.
1919
	"Red Summer" riots tear city apart, kill thirty people, and leave race relations in tatters
1920
	DC population 437,571 Zoning Commission established and first zoning regulations created
1922
	Lincoln Memorial completed . Knickerbocker Theater roof caves in, killing 96
1923
	Freer Galley of Art opens
1924
	Late March (29),1924 C&O Canal finally ceases operating after another of many floods (the 5th) causes excessive damage. The Canal had been owned for many years by the B&O RR, keeping other would-be competitors (the Western Md. Railway.) from the property. B&O keeps the canal serviceable though mostly dry until the 1936 floods and then sells the entire 184.7 mile long canal, Georgetown, DC to Cumberland, Md to the US Park Service in October, 1938 for $2,000,000  Key Bridge is opened Washington Senators win the world series against the New York Giants 4 games to 3 National Capital Park Commission organized
1926
	National Capital Planning Commission (originally National Capital Park Commission, then National Capital Park and Planning Commission) organized
1929
	Construction begins on Federal Triangle
1930
	DC population 486,869
1931
	Hunger marchers come to Washington
1932
	Arlington Memorial Bridge is completed Bonus Army arrives in city, encamping in empty buildings and on banks of Anacostia. President Hoover refuses to meet with the Bonus Army, and Congress turns down the marchers' demand for bonus pay. General Douglas MacArthur's troops chase marchers from city in day of bitter violence. Folger Shakespeare Library opens Having used borrowed quarters for 143 years, the Supreme Court moves to its own building  Library of Congress American Memory Today in History July 28
1933
	December 1, 1933 Capital Transit formed by consolidation of Washington Railway & Electric Co and Capital Traction Co. thereby placing all street railways under one management for the first time Eugene Meyer buys Washington Post at bankruptcy auction from McLean family The 20th Amendment changes the date of the President's inauguration from March 4 to January 20
1935
	1935 First Cherry Blossom Festival takes place
1936
	Mary McLeod Bethune becomes the first black woman to head a federal agency, the Division of Negro Affairs of the National Youth Administration  Washington Redskins win the National Football League championship 28-21 against the Chicago Bears
1937
	Negro League baseball champions, the Homestead Grays move to Washington. They play at Griffith Stadium, home of the Senators
1939
	Frank Capra's Mr. Smith Goes to Washington premieres DAR refuses to let renowned African American opera singer Marian Anderson sing at Constitution Hall because of a long-standing policy of racial segregation. With the help of first Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, Anderson is invited to sing from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. About 75,000 people, both black and white, gather to hear Anderson
1940
	DC population 663,000 Mary Church Terrell publishes her autobiography A Colored Woman in a White World
1941
	First plane lands at National Airport ; United States declares war on Japan.
1942
	Massive construction takes place in DC to fill wartime need for housing and office space
1943
	Jefferson Memorial completed Pentagon completed
1950
	DC population 802,178 President Truman and family move to Blair House as White House renovation begins September 22, 1950 Old Georgetown Act
1952
	July 1, 1952 - The Reorganization Plan of 1952 transfers to the three commissioners the functions of more than 50 boards. White House renovation completed after a literal gutting and rebuilding
1953
	Thursday, January 15,1953 Pennsylvania RR "Federal Express" train wreck injures 43 at Union Station; no fatalities. Supreme Court rules that Thompson's Restaurant in DC cannot exclude African Americans because of an 1872 municipal law.
1954
	Following the Brown v. Board of Education and Bolling v. Sharpe Supreme Court decisions, Washington becomes the first major city to integrate its schools
1955
	Summer,1955 Congress revokes Capital Transit Co franchise following 45-day strike by carmen and passes Public Law #389 which specifies that the new operator will provide an all bus system within 8 years. Takes over I year to find a buyer for franchise.
1960
	Population declines for first time to 763,956
1961
	23rd Amendment is passed granting DC residents the right to vote for president First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy commences White House redecoration program Washington Senators move to Minnesota and become the Twins Woodrow Wilson Bridge dedicated
1962
	Sunday, January 28,1962 Navy Yard, 14th & Colorado, Bureau Engraving, Calvert Street Loop, 17th & Penna. Ave SE & Union Station street car lines abandoned. Last street car pulls into Navy Yard carhouse ending 99 1/2 years of street railway service in the Nation's Capital. CIA moves to Langley headquarters
1963
	More than 200,000 March on Washington, hear Martin Luther King, Jr.'s, "I Have a Dream" speech supporting civil rights. 1963 President Kennedy's preservation push helps save buildings around Lafayette Square
1964
	1964 Washingtonians first vote for president (since 1800)
1965
	Capital Beltway completed Marion Barry moves to Washington to open local chapter of SNCC (Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee). Watergate East apartment building opens; two-bedroom unit sells for $45,000
1967
	February 20, 1967 - The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority is created through a compact between the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia President Johnson appoints Walter E. Washington as mayor-commissioner of DC (and Thomas Fletcher deputy), changing  three-commissioner system  to a single presidentially appointed commissioner and an appointed nine-member council
1968
	April 22, 1968 - District residents receive the right to elect a Board of Education . First phase of L'Enfant Plaza is finished Martin Luther King is assassinated in Memphis setting off riots in Washington that kill several people and destroy areas of the city, including H St NE, Columbia Heights, U St.
1969-70
	3 Sisters Bridge construction in Georgetown commences causing release of funds for Washington Metro subway. 3 Sisters Bridge never built
1970
	DC population 756,510 DC gains an elected non-voting delegate to the US House of Representatives
1971
	John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts opens  May Day protest in Washington leads to thousands of arrests
1972
	Break-in at the Democratic National Headquarters in the Watergate office complex  .  City loses Senators baseball team for a second time, as the team leaves Washington to become the Texas Rangers Republic of China gives America a pair of giant pandas, Hsing-Hsing and Ling-Ling, and they become the stars of the National Zoo Martin Luther King Library opens, replacing library on Mount Vernon Square Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation (PADC) established
1973
	December 24, 1973 - Congress approves the District of Columbia Self-Government and Governmental Reorganization Act, P.L. 93-198, establishing an elected mayor and a 13-member council
1974
	May 7, 1974 - Voters of the District of Columbia approve by referendum the District Charter and the establishment of advisory neighborhood commissions.  General elections are held for the mayor and councilmembers on November 5, 1974.
1975
	January 2, 1975 - The newly-elected Mayor Walter Washington and first elected council take office
1976
	Saturday, March 27,1976 First 4.6 miles of Washington Metro subway opens   Bicentennial celebrations draw a million people to the Mall for the city's greatest fireworks display February 3, 1976 - The first election for advisory neighborhood commissioners is held National Air and Space Museum opens on the Mall
1978
	August 22, 1978 - Congress approves the District of Columbia Voting Rights Amendment, which would give District residents voting representation in the House and the Senate. The proposed constitutional amendment was not ratified by the necessary number of states (38) within the allotted seven years, thus failed. East Building of the National Gallery of Art opens
1979
	1979 January 2, 1979 - The Mayor Marion Barry takes office. Pope John Paul II delivers a mass on the Mall   DC Historic Preservation Review Board established, replacing Joint Committee on Landmarks
1980
	DC population 638,333 November 4, 1980 - District electors approve the District of Columbia Statehood Constitutional Convention of 1979, which became D.C. Law 3-171 and which called for convening a state constitutional convention
1981
	President Reagan shot and nearly killed in assassination attempt outside the Washington Hilton Washington Star newspaper shuttered
1982
	Vietnam Veterans Memorial erected in Constitution Gardens . January 13,1982 Air Florida flight crashes into 14th Street Bridge, killing almost all on board. The same day, Metro suffers its worst accident, also resulting in several fatalities.  November 2, 1982 - After the constitutional convention, a Constitution for the State of New Columbia is ratified by District voters. The Washington Convention Center opens, spurring downtown development
1984
	October 1, 1984 - The District enters the municipal bond market The renovated Old Post Office opens, heralding the rebirth of Pennsylvania Avenue Rhodes Tavern demolished
1985
	DC Voting rights Amendment, giving the District voting representation in Congress and approved in 1978, dies after 13 states reject it
1986
	October 29, 1986 - Congress approves an amendment to the District of Columbia Stadium Act of 1957, which authorizes the transfer of Robert F. Kennedy Stadium from the federal government to the District of Columbia government . Willard Hotel reopened
1987
	February 20, 1987 - The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority is created to acquire Washington National and Washington - Dulles International airports from the federal government, pursuant to P.L. 99-151, The Metropolitan Washington Airports Act of 1986. The authority begins operating the airports on June 7, 1987 October 1, 1987 - Saint Elizabeth's Hospital is transferred to the District of Columbia government pursuant to P.L. 98-621, The St. Elizabeth's Hospital and the D.C. Mental Health Services Act of 1984 The Smithsonian Quadrangle opens
1988
	Thursday, September 29, 1988 rededication of Union Station after $160 million renovation
1990
	DC population 606,900 DC voters elect a "shadow" congressional delegation to lobby congress for statehood Mayor Marion Barry is caught smoking crack cocaine by surveillance team Washington National Cathedral completed 83 after groundbreaking
1991
	Cinco de Mayo riots in Mount Pleasant and Adams Morgan cause unrest in city for several days  January 2, 1991 - Mayor Sharon Pratt Dixon, the first woman mayor, takes office
1992
	The House approves statehood for Washington D.C., but the Senate does not  June 22,1992 Virginia Railway Express (VRE) commuter RR commences service from Northern Virginia Mayor Sharon Pratt Kelly moves government offices to 441 4th St NW (One Judiciary Square) Alexandria defeats plans by Redskins owner Jack Kent Cooke and Governor Douglas Wilder to build a 76,000-seat football stadium at