Take a look back into history with this unique photo from 1908 of the United States House of Representatives. Learn about the laws passed, senators debating, and the socializing in the evening.
Digging into the past of Washington, DC? Check out this comparison of an old 1903 Baist map of DC near the Capitol and a Google Map of the same area in 2017. See how much things have changed!
The first State of the Union was in 1800 by our second president, John Adams. Thomas Jefferson began the tradition of passing along the state of the union in writing to Congress, allegedly because he felt he was an inadequate public speaker.
In 1913, the task of speaking directly to a joint session of Congress was reestablished by Woodrow Wilson.
Woodrow Wilson revived the tradition of the oral State of the Union address (1913)
Gentlemen of the Congress:
In pursuance of my constitutional duty...
Take a look at this old photo taken in 1938 of a parking lot in DC. Can you identify where this is? Join the GoDC community and add your thoughts in the comments.
Take a journey back in time and explore the old Georgetown neighborhoods of 1885 with this map. Learn about the history of the area and discover the original patents of Mill Seat, Philadelphia, and Frogland.
Take a look at this 1921 map of Bellevue Highlands, showing what would become Bellevue. Read up on the last farm in the city and click on the map to zoom in and see more details. Source: Library of Congress.
This is an old ad from The Evening Star printed on Saturday, November 11th, 1922. It's a home for sale in Crestwood at 1616 Allison St. NW. Check out the Google Street View today and see the past come alive!
Explore a historic view of Chevy Chase, MD in 1907 with this map showing the area's rural landscape before development. It looks like the Shoemaker family owned quite a bit of land in the area back then.
Take a look back at a really cool old photo of the Government Printing Office off of North Capitol St. Don't miss this great story about a man who worked at the GPO and his family!
Discover the amazing story of how Geronimo and five other Western Indian chiefs attended and celebrated Teddy Roosevelt's inaugural parade in Washington, DC in 1905. Click the image for a larger version.
Take a look at this proposed design from 1877 for the completion of the Washington Monument. Congress appropriated another $200,000 to restart construction on the unfinished monument in 1879.
