Streets of Washington
30 10 2009We talked about all the street construction going on around town, but even with all the closures and pot holes, we still have it better than in 1865 when the majority of streets throughout the area remained dirt. Recognize the building in the picture? It’s the Ford Theater. In fact most roads in the Distric were not paved until the early 1900s.
We can’t even imagine how things looked after a nice long week of rain like we have had recently!
[Photo: Library of Congress]
The building with the sloped mansard roof and chimney down from Fords Theater at the end of the block (corner of E Street NW) was the old home of the Columbian College (now George Washington) School of Medicine. The sloped top floor was designed to bring in light to the medical classrooms.
Mud and horse poo. The past is not always as nice as the preservation folks would have you believe.
were streets with street cars paved? they came in in 1862. how about the cobble stone streets of georgetown? how old are they?
i’ve read that georgia avenue used to be made of wood planks, which is kind of cool.
What a great picture. I live around the corner and this brings history to life. Thanks for posting.
@sleek: It sounds great on paper, except DC is so humid that the planks rotted relatively quickly, adding to the general state of yuckiness. Ah well, at least they tried!