Ghosts of DC

Try an address, a neighborhood, a name or a year, like “14th and U” or “1968.”

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1840s

The 1840s brought the beginning of some of Washington’s most iconic institutions. The Smithsonian opened its first building on the Mall, work began on the Washington Monument, and the city grew steadily as the nation expanded westward and the slavery debate intensified. These posts explore mid-19th century Washington in all its ambition and conflict.

19 stories
Bomford's Mill at Potomac and Grace Streets NW in Georgetown, photographed in 1967The Flour Mill in Georgetown: From Bomford’s Mill to 135 HomesJun 18When Texas Was a Country: Its Ambassadors in Washington, 1836-1845Oct 11, 20231847 Map of WashingtonApr 9, 2019

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General Post Office from the corner of 8th Street and E Street, NW, Washington, D.C., the shop of Elija Dyer, merchant tailor, on the leftThe General Post Office in 1846: Now the Hotel MonacoApr 24, 2015A Plan of the Senate Chamber for the Thirtieth CongressNov 17, 2014The Smithsonian Castle Almost Looked Like This in 1846Sep 4, 2014The Unlikely Fairy Tale of Baron Bodisco and Harriet Williams: A May-December Romance in GtownSep 26, 2013A Video Slideshow of Old Photographs of Washington, D.C.Aug 14, 2013Palo Alto Hotel and Saloon - September 19th, 1899Palo Alto Tavern and Its Cocktail Origin StoryJun 27, 2013
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