We’re on a roll here with these photos, especially with ones of the White House. Here’s one of a concert given by the United States Marine Corps Band on the South Lawn. The photo was taken on July 16th, 1921. Now, here’s a photo of a more contemporary concert on the White House South Lawn. This is a view of ... Read More »
We dug up this undated photo at the Library of Congress. It appears to be from the late 1930s or early 1940s. The good news, is that the firehouse is still there. Check out the Google Street View below. Read More »
What a beautiful building. Sadly, this building no longer exists. Take a look at the same intersection today on Google Street View. Read More »
And check this out … the building being constructed in 1927 is still there! Read More »
Here is a terrific shot of homes being built in Anacostia. This was taken around 1919 and this row appears to be the 1900 block of 16th St. SE. Check out the Google Street View below (it’s not quite the same angle because of the trees obstructed the view). This makes for a great “Then and Now.” Read More »
Hopefully we are earning a GoDCer for life in Ayanna by posting all of these Hillcrest-related advertisements. If you know the person that lives here, send this to them. I’m sure they’d love to see their home back in 1955. And for all you GoDCers out there, compare the advertisement above to the Google Street View of the home today. ... Read More »
It’s still amusing to me when the papers refer to anything north of Boundary St. (i.e., Florida Avenue) as the suburbs. I came across an article in the Washington Times from 1906, highlighting some new construction in Mt. Pleasant. The building of apartment houses goes on apace, and while the timid observer continues to deplore the increasing number and predict ... Read More »
The ’68 riots were a tragic and defining moment in our city’s history. Here’s a great then and now shot of 9th and U St. I think you’ll recognize the building in the middle, currently occupied by Dickson Wine Bar. Related articles The Riots of ’68 (ghostsofdc.org) Pool Hall Contest Ends in Riot (ghostsofdc.org) Car Flattened Near Dupont Circle (ghostsofdc.org) Open House ... Read More »
Here are some cool old photos and contemporary photos from the same spot in Lafayette Park, near the White House. The statues barely changed over a 100 years, but it’s fascinating to see what happened to the surroundings. Read More »
This is not good. We’re looking at a photo of a car accident on the northeast corner of Massachusetts and 21st St. NW. This is just two block west of Dupont Circle and a block north of P St. Check out the photo from 1917 and then the Google Street View photo from today. I also added this to Historypin, ... Read More »
Here’s a cool “Then and Now” photo set. This is the Washington Star (or Evening Star) Building down at 1101 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, right across from the Old Post Office Pavilion. This striking Beaux-Arts building was originally constructed in 1898 (designed by Marsh & Peter) to house the newspaper, which was the anchor tenant until 1955. The paper eventually ceased ... Read More »
Here is a nice “Then and Now” shot of the old Riggs National Bank across from the Department of Treasury. I found this in the Smithsonian’s Flickr feed. The first one is from 1919 and the one below is today’s shot from Google Street View. If you like these photos, why don’t you follow @GhostsofDC on Twitter to get updates? ... Read More »
If you’ve spent any time in Rock Creek Park, you have seen or crossed over this bridge. Below is a little history on it from a plan documenting the structure in 1995. And to the right is a photo I found of Lansing H. Beach, the man that was in charge of the design and construction of the bridge … ... Read More »
Here are a couple photos from my new favorite site, Shorpy. This was taken on January 5th, 1921 at the intersection of Columbia Rd. and Sherman Ave. NW. Now this is cool … take a look at the photo of the same intersection today (courtesy Google Street View). Both photos are looking east down Columbia Rd. The whole row of ... Read More »
Prince of Petworth has a couple of posts on this statue already, but I wanted to add a few then and now photos and do a little more background research on the dedication ceremony. Read More »
Ghosts of DC The lost and untold history of Washington