What was Washington, D.C. like in the 1950s? Take a look at our great posts with stories, people, photos, and history about the District from the fifties.
GoDCer Sends Great 1955 Photo of Parents in D.C.
Thanks to GoDCer Mike for sending in this family photo from 1955. Below is the note he send: Dear Ghosts of DC This photo surfaced in our family a few years ago. It was taken in 1955...
1950s Crestwood Home and Today
We came across this gem of a photo from the 1950s here. Check out 1810 Shepherd St. back then. And this is what it looks like today on Google Street View. Looks like the same paint...
FBI Arrests Chevy Chase Boys in Fake I.D. Scandal
The next time your father or grandfather tells you he never found himself in trouble during his youth, approach that claim with some skepticism, especially if he grew up in Chevy Chase. Check out this fantastic...
GoDCer Sends 1950s Vacation Photos of D.C.
Thanks to GoDCer Emily for sending these in, and thanks for your love of our site! We love getting notes from readers like that.
Fan Loses Eye; Struck by Puck at Uline Arena
How tragic. This reminds me of the horrible accident in 2002 when a girl was killed by a flying puck at a Columbus Blue Jackets game. This is the article we dug up in The Washington Post...
D.C. Gives Fidel Castro A Hero’s Welcome At E Street Restaurant
“It’s Midnight in Washington…and this is the Steve Allison show.” I can remember those lines from 1959 just like it was yesterday. WWDC (1260 on the AM dial) had hired a talk show host from Philadelphia...
Eastern Airlines: 37 Flights Daily to Washington in 1952
Source: Duke University Libraries Here’s a cool retro ad from the 1950s. It’s an advertisement for Eastern Airlines with 37 daily flights to Washington, D.C. I’m assuming this is from New York.
If Walls Could Talk: Super Liquor – House of Cards Edition
Like most of D.C., probably the country, we’re obsessed with House of Cards. It’s a little over the top, but sometimes that’s the beauty of it. Unfortunately, we don’t often expect movies about Washington to be...
Hank’s Oyster Bar Old Town History
What's the history behind Hank's Oyster Bar's building in Alexandria? 1026 King St. was built in the late 19th century.
Beautiful Lost Gordon Hotel at 16th and I Streets
Source: Library of Congress Chances are that most of you aren’t familiar with the old Gordon Hotel (or just The Gordon). It has been long gone from the landscape of 16th St. NW, but once struck...
If Walls Could Talk: Nanny O’Briens
Congratulations to our latest “If Walls Could Talk” poll winner, Nanny O’Briens. We’re going to do a little digging into the history of your building at 3319 Connecticut Ave. NW. The Greek restaurant investor On September...
Stolen: D.C.’s Royal Elephant Tusks
Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie gave a pair of elephant tusks to District leaders during his first visit to America in 1954. Those ivory tusks — recently stolen — have barely been described by police. We thought it...
Wrecking Ball Demolishes Chevy Chase Ice Palace
Source: Streets of Washington When the Chevy Chase Ice Palace and Sports Center opened on Nov. 23, 1938, it became an instant sensation. On opening day more than 2,200 people hit the indoor skating rink, bringing...
Seven Corners Built on Land Owned by Former Slave
Did you know that? We sure didn’t This is a fascinating article that we dug up in The Washington Post from February 26th, 1953. We were doing a little research on the history of Seven Corners and...
Poodle Dognapped from Friendship Animal Hospital
What a bizarre story this is. This poor poodle was dognapped while being boarded at Friendship Animal Hospital. We found this story in The Washington Post, printed on February 7th, 1956. A black, pedigreed French poodle–with fancy...
Worst-Ever Season for the Redskins? Quite Possibly 1954
As dismal as this fall has been for fans of the Washington football franchise (want an illustrated history book for Christmas?), the 1954 season might have been even worse. How bad was it? In early November,...
Ghosts of Heismans’ Past: Jack Scarbath and Bernie Faloney
It’s been more than 60 years since the University of Maryland (here’s a good history book from Amazon) had a serious candidate for college football’s Heisman Trophy. In the early 1950’s, the Terps had two quarterbacks who...
Performance on Watergate Steps
Wow, what a cool old photo from the 1950s.
