This fascinating old photograph shows the Washington Nationals playing at Swampoodle Grounds in the 1880s. Click on it for some amazing details. Source: Architect of the Capitol

This is a colorful story for the lost neighborhood of Swampoodle. We came across the article in The Washington Post, printed on October 20th, 1879. Morris Connors, a notorious Swampoodle thief and rough, tumbled out of a restaurant on G near North Capitol street at 9 o’clock yesterday morning in an outrageous condition from the effects […]

Not many of us get to see Washington, DC from the roof of the Capitol. None of us ever got to see the view in 1861, but here’s the next best thing. Taken in 1861, this is looking north. The cursive at the bottom is pointing out the different sites you can see. From left […]

Here’s a good one to study. This is a view from the Capitol Building looking north, very early during the Civil War.

Here’s another map of Swampoodle from 1903. Make sure you check out the 1888 one and compare them. This has the proposed Union Station superimposed over the neighborhood and you’ll see some familiar street names which appear to have been recycled in different neighborhoods.

GoDCers love maps … and they love Swampoodle. If you’re unfamiliar with Swampoodle, it was a rough and tumble, working-class Irish neighborhood which was destroyed to make way for Union Station in the early 1900s (stay tuned for another map of the area showing the proposed rail station).

Along the same lines as the earlier post today with the St. Albans advertisement, here is another prominent (and old) local school. Gonzaga had just built their Main Building in 1912, now named Dooley Hall. Read their Wikipedia page for a little more history. I found this part to be particularly interesting. Gonzaga benefited greatly […]

Swampoodle sounds like an area filled with some tough blue-collar dudes. Here’s a little column I found in the Post from January 21st, 1895 about three locals, boozing until the wee hours of the morning. Two plumbers and a plasterer went outside of “Swampoodle” Saturday night to find trouble. They found quite a large quantity […]