Extremely rare old photo of the White House stables from the 1850s. Click on it for incredible details.

Take a look back in time at this beautiful 1856 photo of the Smithsonian Castle. Click to see incredible details from Ghosts of DC.

Look back in time to 1855 and get a fascinating bird's-eye view of Georgetown, D.C. in this beautiful painting. Source: Library of Congress.

See the oldest known photo of the U.S. Department of State, taken in 1857. Learn more about the old State Department building before it was located in Foggy Bottom and even before it was located in the State, War, and Navy Building next to the White House.

Tysons Corner or Tysons used to be called Peach Grove. William Tyson owned a farm west of DC which would become the site of a major shopping mall.

A glimpse into history with a look at the 1858 plan for the Navy Yard. Discover the fascinating details of this historic document, with images and more!

Take a look at the White House conservatory in 1857, and get a glimpse into what life was like during the presidencies of James Buchanan and Franklin Pierce. The conservatory was eventually demolished to be replaced by the West Wing.

Take a journey back in time to 1850s Washington with this detailed map which marks all the buildings, roads, and rural property owners. Discover fascinating large plots of land outside Boundary Street with this map from the Library of Congress.

Check out this rare photo of James Buchanan's Inauguration at the East Front of the Capitol Building on March 4th, 1857. It's a little blurry and not the highest resolution, but amazing nevertheless. Click on the top image and find out what you see.

How cool is this? It’s an 1852 dollar bill issued by the Bank of the United States. Source: currencyquest.com

GoDCer Nancy sent us an old advertisement from her great-great grandfather's business. Read more to uncover the fascinating details behind this relic of the past!

Here is a cool series of photographs from the 1850s, when the Department of Treasury’s building on 15th St. was under construction. Source: Library of Congress We have a couple other great photos of the Treasury Department posted here and here.

Explore an 1857 view of Washington, D.C. with the Smithsonian in the distance. Click on the image for a larger version to study. See if you can spot the Washington Monument just out of the frame on the right.

David Levy Yulee, of Florida, was not only one of the first senators from that state, but he was also the first Jewish senator.

Learn what Good Hope Hill in Anacostia was like in 1857 - and how a sober gardener could earn $200 per year! Later, it was the location of the German Orphan Home.

This is an old advertisement for railroad tickets between Washington, Baltimore and points west. A ticket from Washington to Cincinnati was $11, Chicago was $18, and St. Louis was $26.50. That ticket to St. Louis is roughly $660 in today’s money. A direct flight from DCA to STL today is about $280. We found this […]

Here is an interesting video that we found, showing a collection of really old photos of D.C.  

Did you know there was a stolen sailboat in 1854? Read the full unsolveted mystery of the stolen boat ad in the Daily Evening Star, July 5th, 1854. Did they ever find the boat?

Today marks the 160th anniversary of Montgomery C. Meigs seeking skilled bricklayers to help in the expansion of the Capitol Building. See a photo of the Capitol under construction during that time! Source: Library of Congress.

Now this is a cool old (really old) advertisement from the Daily Evening Star, printed on July 5th, 1854. It’s an advertisement for omnibus or coach service to Alexandria. Source: Library of Congress