Here’s an amazing shot I found on Shorpy (what an amazing site), taken at the Tidal Basin bathing beach in 1922. The photograph is Washington police officer Bill Norton measuring the distance between the knee and the swimsuit. Colonel Sherrill, the Superintendent of Public Buildings and Grounds had issues an order that suits not be over six inches above the knee ... Read More »
The Grand Review of the Armies happened on May 23rd and 24th, 1865 after the formal end of The Civil War. Much of the Union Army paraded through the streets of Washington (most importantly, Pennsylvania Ave.), much to the cheers and adulation of the crowd. The country had just been through four horrible years of war, capped off by the ... Read More »
A couple of reader comments about an Officer Sprinkle in this earlier post piqued my interest in finding out a little more about the guy who has the kind of name you’d give to a cat. An unforgettable name, so hopefully I’ll be able to dig up enough information on this guy to write a post worthy of being “A ... Read More »
This one’s a good one from YouTube and it’s a little more contemporary, but given the artist in the video, I find this significant and musically historical. Stevie Ray Vaughan himself, was live in the nation’s capital on December 27th, 1983. The venue was a place called the Wax Museum at 4th and E St. NW. Side note … he ... Read More »
Great old photo from the Library of Congress. It doesn’t have an exact date on it, but it says it was created somewhere between 1909 and 1940 and gifted to the Library of Congress in 1947 by Herbert French … Fascinating image. Related articles Rep. Joe Baca: Native American Heritage Month – a Time to Honor the Contributions of Our Nation’s ... Read More »
Reading this makes me a little hungry. I was scanning the old Alexandria Gazette (2 cents!) from December 4th, 1890 and noticed that they have an entire column dedicated to oyster advertisements. Mrs. Rammel has quite a variety of them served in her N. Royal St. restaurant. Check out the ad below … Read More »
The description below is cut straight from YouTube. This is a home movie from Lady Bird Johnson during the 1960s. The LBJ Library has an entire YouTube channel dedicated to these, so check them out. They’re also on Twitter and Facebook. The footage is outside and the film is silent. The film starts with Lady Bird Johnson and others posing ... Read More »
I really wanted to start by skewing these posts towards more anonymous D.C. residents, but I keep coming across gold on YouTube like this. I promise to return to more posts on hidden and lost Washington, but you have to watch this. Look how defensive President Nixon is at the end as he folds his arms. Wow. I’m sure many ... Read More »
The Washington Hilton was a happenin’ place to see live music apparently, with Hendrix also playing there in ’68. Thanksgiving was the following Thursday, so I imagine a large number of kids were home from college, and what better way to take a break than watch Morrison, Manzarek, Densmore and Krieger? Read More »
A curious Ghosts of D.C. reader posted on Facebook that she wanted to know why Syracuse has a house in Woodley Park. I too am curious each time I walk by the Greenberg House at 2301 Calvert St. NW. So I’m going to find out, as well as learn about the house’s history. This will be our first official “Reader’s ... Read More »
This is a wild advertisement that I came across in The Evening Times (back then they’d publish the paper a couple times each day). Coke Dandruff Cure? Okay, my interest is piqued … what is that? Read More »
Swampoodle sounds like an area filled with some tough blue-collar dudes. Here’s a little column I found in the Post from January 21st, 1895 about three locals, boozing until the wee hours of the morning. Two plumbers and a plasterer went outside of “Swampoodle” Saturday night to find trouble. They found quite a large quantity of it about 3 o’clock ... Read More »
Here’s a video I came across on YouTube of the old president and recently inaugurated one attending the burial ceremony of the Unknown Soldier. President Wilson was instrumental in honoring those “unknown but to God” by having them interred in the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery. Read More »
One of the most powerful and important inaugural addresses of all time, this is something worth watching in its entirety. The whole speech is below if you’d like to read it. This is a truly amazing and powerful speech. If you want to skip to the famous quote, start watching at 13:45. The full text of the speech is below ... Read More »
I guess D.C. has always had bad drivers. This one is from December 7th, 1930. A dizzy clockwise circle of an automobile around Dupont Circle, which caused several crashed last night, was climaxed when the driver, arrested and jailed at the Third Precinct Station, attempted to hang himself in his cell. Leon Woodrow Rice, 21 of Shepherdstown, W. Va., was ... Read More »
Ghosts of DC The lost and untold history of Washington