Frommer's EasyGuide to Washington, D.C.

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The Best of WashingtoN, D.C.

by Jess Moss

The Georgetown University rowing team glides gracefully along the Potomac River as the sun paints the surface of the water. Museums open their doors and docents take their places. Jets take off from nearby Reagan National Airport and roar overhead. The Metro hums along its maze of tunnels and over the Potomac River. Chefs plot the day’s menu in preparation for hungry D.C. restaurant-goers. Reporters gather at the White House to cover stories that will ripple across the country. All rub elbows from sunup to sundown in neighborhood coffee shops, in the halls of Congress, in waterfront restaurants, in Georgetown shops, in bars along 14th Street. Washington, D.C., is waking up.

But D.C.’s awakening is bigger than any one day. The city is coming into its own, becoming more than a haven of staunch politicos and white-marbled monuments. (Although it’s still that, too.) Those who have power, those who want power, and those who are trying to change how power works are constantly shaping the here and now of Washington. A young generation is framing new neighborhoods, like the Wharf in Southwest, a formerly sleepy area abuzz with new restaurants, hotels, music halls, and nightlife, or Union Market, an epicenter for good food and artful retail. Avant-garde and protest art is making a statement on our streets and in our museums, giving volume to the city’s often unheard voices. And, after a difficult stretch of pandemic shutdowns and political turmoil, the city is reemerging, a little tougher, more resilient, and ready to face what comes next.

Politics are here and will always be here in this city of magnificent intentions, as Charles Dickens called it, but Washington is so much more. Each day is different. Things happen here that can happen nowhere else on earth. You’re in the heartbeat of a nation, in a city that belongs to you. Make the most of it!

most unforgettable Washington, D.C., Experiences

Viewing Washington Landmarks by Moonlight: There is nothing as spectacular as the Lincoln Memorial illuminated at night, unless it’s the sight of the White House, the Capitol, or the Washington Monument lit up after dark. Go via the Old Town Trolley or by bike on a Bike and Roll excursion; both operations offer narrated day and nighttime tours. See p. 300 and p. 302.

Waving to the White House: It’s one of the world’s most famous addresses, and thanks to the recent removal of extra security fences, it’s once again easy to catch a glimpse of the White House. You can view the President’s residence and place of work from both sides of the building—the close-up view is of the North Portico, from Lafayette Park and Pennsylvania Ave. But the scene looking up the South Lawn from the Ellipse is arguably the more iconic of the two. Wondering if POTUS is home? The White House publishes a daily schedule that will give you a clue. And of course, if you have the opportunity to go inside and tour the building, take advantage. See p. 171.

Taking in a Show at the Historic Ford’s Theatre: It’s memorable if not a bit eerie to see the Presidential Box where John Wilkes Booth shot President Abraham Lincoln on April 14, 1865, while the president watched the comedy Our American Cousin. The renovated theater is still staging compelling productions today, and an attached museum holds surprisingly affecting exhibits on Lincoln’s presidency and assassination, including the actual Deringer pistol used in the shooting. See p. 176.

The Lincoln Memorial and the Reflecting Pool.

Perusing the Constitution: Nowhere else in the U.S. can you see the original documents that grounded this nation in life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The National Archives in Washington displays the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution of the United States, and the Bill of Rights behind glass. Sealed in scientifically advanced housing inside a low-lit marble rotunda designed to preserve the Charters of Freedom, the documents are faded but still readable—and no less impressive when you consider their enormous impact on the beginnings of the United States. See p. 147.

Visitors watch 4-year-old orangutan Redd and his mother, Batang, cross the O Line at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C.

Visiting the U.S. Capitol or Supreme Court: Washington is the capital of the United States, one of the world’s greatest democracies, and it can be thrilling, inspiring, and just plain fun to see the inner workings of two of the three branches of government: the legislative branch in the U.S. Capitol building, and the judicial branch making decisions at the Supreme Court. Events in 2020 and 2021 affected tour schedules, so be sure to check for the latest info. See p. 123 and p. 132.

The best Family Experiences

Hanging Out at the National Zoo: Make faces at the cute giant pandas, hear the mighty lion’s roar, laugh at the playful monkeys, watch an elephant exercise, ride the solar-powered carousel. The National Zoo is essentially one big (163 acres!), family-friendly park, offering the chance to observe some 1,500 animals at play (or snoozing or eating). See p. 189.

Ice Skating at the National Gallery: The pond in the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden is transformed into an ice-skating rink in winter. Rent some skates and twirl around on the ice, admiring the sculptures as you go. Warm up with a hot chocolate at the garden’s Pavilion Café. See p. 149.

Getting the Wiggles Out at Rock Creek Park: If you have little ones with lots of energy, then Rock Creek Park is for you. The Woodland Trail begins behind the Nature Center, while a quarter-mile, stroller-accessible Edge of the Woods trail leads from the Nature Center’s front door. Inside the Nature Center itself are live turtles, fish, snakes, an active beehive, and a bird observation deck. The Planetarium offers scheduled daily shows, some for those under 5. See p. 199.

Riding a Roller Coaster, Piloting a Jet, and Other Adventuring: Relax, parents. The Smithsonian’s 19 museums and zoo have you covered. Kids will marvel at the suspended airplanes and astronaut and cosmonaut space suits, among 9,000 other artifacts, at the National Air and Space Museum. Or they can brave the simulated rides—inside a jet aircraft, a vintage airplane, or a spacecraft exploring the Milky Way. The National Museum of American History has cars, trains, and the interactive Wegman’s Wonderplace, designed exclusively for kids, where they can cook in a kid-sized Julia Childs’ model kitchen, shop in a scaled-down market, and climb to their heart’s content. Simulated adventures feel real in futuristic, high-speed race car and roller-coaster machines. Note: Height requirements and fees apply. See p. 145 and 153.

The best Food

Best for a Special Occasion: Dining at Georgetown’s 1789 Restaurant (p. 116) is about as old-school fine-dining Washington as you can get. The food is spectacular, the setting is refined, and the clientele is important. For something a little more contemporary, but no less memorable, treat yourself to the tasting menu at Rose’s Luxury (p. 93). Each course is a delight, though the pork lychee salad course is in a class of its own. Since the best way to get a table at Rose’s is to wait in line, if you really want to treat yourself, you can hire someone to do the waiting for you via TaskRabbit (www.taskrabbit.com) or Skip the Line (www.skipthelineus.com).

Best for Outdoor Dining: These days, nearly everyone has outdoor dining, even if it’s just a few two-tops on the sidewalk outside. But for a more established, weather-resistant open-air experience, head up to the 5th floor at The Wharf, where La Vie (p. 97) has a covered open-air terrace with monumental views. Nearly every other restaurant at The Wharf also has plenty of outdoor space. Another good option, also with waterfront views, is The Point D.C. (p. 96), down on Buzzard Point, whose retractable roof can keep things flexible, even during those sudden summer thunderstorms.

Best for Families: It can be hard to get kids to sit still through dinner. At Pinstripes (p. 104) in Georgetown, the enormous Italian-American menu comes with plenty of bowling lanes and bocce courts to keep little ones entertained. Thin-crust, wood-fired pizzas fill you up at Pizzeria Paradiso (p. 114; with locations in Dupont Circle and M St. NW). More safe bets: chicken tenders and milkshakes at Ted’s Bulletin (www.tedsbulletin.com; with locations on Capitol Hill and 14th St.); burgers and fries at Good Stuff Eatery (p. 95; with locations on Capitol Hill and Georgetown); or the lively, convenient Hill Country Barbecue (p. 100) in Penn Quarter for good ol’ American barbecued chicken and mac and cheese.

Best for Regional Cuisine: While Washington doesn’t have its own cuisine per se, its central location in the Mid-Atlantic/Chesapeake Bay region gives it license to lay claim to the area’s culinary specialties. And locals say nobody does Eastern Shore seafood better than Wharf restaurant Rappahannock Oyster Bar (p. 98), the place to go for superb oysters, fresh from the waters off Virginia or Maryland. Try the briney Olde Salts from Chincoteague, Virginia, a personal favorite. The U-shaped seafood bar also serves up seafood classics like peel-and-eat shrimp steamed with Old Bay seasoning, clam chowder, and crab cakes.

Best All-Around for Fun and Food: Oh, gosh, all sorts of D.C. restaurants satisfy this category, but Jose Andres’ Zaytinya (Mediterranean tastes; p. 103) and Jaleo (Spanish tapas; p. 101) both offer imaginative and playful tasting menus. Tiger Fork (p. 111) in Shaw transports diners to a Hong Kong food market for crispy pork belly, soya chicken, and steamed rice noodles.

Best for a Taste of Washington Experience: Real locals claim chicken and mumbo sauce, a bright orange sauce made by combining ketchup with a dash of BBQ and some sweet-and-sour sauce, as the hometown specialty. Find it at Henry’s Soul Café (p. 112) on U Street NW. For some down-home fare, stop in at Ben’s Chili Bowl (p. 109) and chat with the owners and your neighbor over a chili dog. The place is an institution, and you can stop by anytime—it’s open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Best for Vegetarians: Fans flock to Fancy Radish (p. 90) for its rutabaga fondue, stuffed avocado with pickled cauliflower and spicy dan-dan noodles. Beefsteak (p. 116) is Chef Jose Andres’ healthy and delicious salute to made-to-order vegetarian fast food. Bombay Club (p. 100) and Rasika (p. 101) are excellent choices for vegetarian-friendly Indian cuisine served in sophisticated surroundings.

Ben’s Chili Bowl is a D.C. institution.

The best Things to Do for Free in Washington, D.C.

Take a Nature Hike: Step into the nearly 2,000-acre Rock Creek Park, and within minutes you can find yourself surrounded by dense forest, worlds away from the busy sights and sounds of the capital city. There are over 30 miles of hiking trails throughout the park; some meander along the creek, others hoof it uphill for some elevation gain, and some are paved and easy for hikers of all ages. The park is managed by the National Park Service; access to all trails is free to the public. See p. 199.

People-Watch at Dupont Circle: This traffic circle is also a park—an all-weather hangout for mondo-bizarre bike couriers, chess players, street musicians, and lovers. Sit and watch scenes of Washington life unfold around you—or join in the fun: The Circle is also the setting for outdoor yoga classes, sports screenings, and an annual snowball fight. See p. 276.

Attend a Millennium Stage Performance at the Kennedy Center: Every evening at 6pm in its Grand Foyer, the Kennedy Center presents a free 1-hour concert performed by local up-and-coming, national, or international musicians. Purchase a cocktail from one of the Grand Foyer’s bars near Millennium Stage and head through the glass doors to the terrace, where you can enjoy your drink and views of the Potomac River. Complimentary guided tours of the Kennedy Center are also available during the day. See p. 223.

Groove to the Sounds of Live Jazz in the Sculpture Garden: On summery Friday evenings at the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden, you can dip your toes in the fountain pool and chill out to live jazz from 5 to 8pm. The jazz is free; the sandwiches, wine, and beer served in the Pavilion Café are not. See p. 150.

Pick a Museum, (Just About) Any Museum: Because this is the U.S. capital, many of the museums are federal institutions, meaning admission is free. The National Gallery of Art, the U.S. Botanic Garden, and the Smithsonian’s 19 Washington museums, from the National Air and Space Museum to its newest, the National Museum of African American History & Culture, are among many excellent choices. See chapter 6.

Watch Planes Take Off and Land at Gravelly Point: Take the short drive to this waterfront park bordering Reagan National Airport, just minutes outside of D.C. Bring picnic eats and watch jet after jet descend and fly directly overhead. Not for the fainthearted! You can also see the planes from Hains Point, located on the other side of the Potomac River at the tip of East Potomac Park.

Attend an Event on the Mall: Think of the National Mall as the nation’s public square, where something is almost always going on—more than 3,500 events in a typical year, according to the National Park Service. There’s the Kite Festival during cherry blossom season in the spring; the splendid Independence Day celebration every Fourth of July; special events reserved by individuals and random organizations that have obtained a permit, from weddings to speeches to religious gatherings; and walking tours, biking, Frisbee throwing, and assorted impromptu sports happenings year-round. See p. 135 for a calendar of annual events.

The best Neighborhoods for Getting Lost

Georgetown: The truth is, you want to get lost in Georgetown, because it’s the neighborhood’s side streets that hold the history and centuries-old houses of this one-time Colonial tobacco port. Don’t worry—Georgetown is so compact that you’re never far from its main thoroughfares, M Street, and Wisconsin Avenue. For a backstreets tour of Georgetown, see p. 265.

Capitol Hill: From the Library of Congress, walk east down Pennsylvania Ave. SE into the heart of one of the most storied neighborhoods in D.C. East of 2nd Street, blocks of large-scale government buildings fade into rows of beautifully restored 19th-century town houses. Coffee shops, restaurants, and stores frequented by resident Hill staffers abound. The historic Eastern Market (p. 129) lies just north of Pennsylvania Avenue; and fun and lively Barracks Row (p. 93) follows just south to the Washington Navy Yard, the oldest shore establishment of the U.S. Navy.

Old Town Alexandria: Just a short distance from the District (by Metro, car, boat, or bike) is George Washington’s Virginia hometown. On and off the beaten track are quaint cobblestone streets, boutiques and antiques stores, 18th-century architecture, and fine restaurants, many laying claim to the best crab cakes in town. See p. 242.

Dupont Circle: Explore Dupont Circle’s lovely side streets extending off Connecticut and Massachusetts avenues. You’ll discover picturesque 19th-century town houses, small art galleries, historic museums, and actual residences (this is the Obama family’s old neighborhood). Stroll Embassy Row (northward on Massachusetts Ave.) to view Beaux Arts mansions, many built by wealthy magnates during the Gilded Age. See p. 274.

The best Ways to See Washington, D.C., Like a Local

Shop at Eastern Market: Capitol Hill is home to more than government buildings; it’s a community of old town houses, antiques shops, and the venerable Eastern Market. Here, locals shop and barter every Saturday and Sunday for fresh produce, baked goods, and flea-market bargains, just as they’ve done for well over a century. A must: the blueberry pancakes at the Market Lunch counter. See p. 129.

Pub and Club It in D.C.’s Hot Spots: Join Washington’s footloose and fancy-free any night of the week (but especially Thurs–Sat) along 14th and U Streets, in Shaw, Adams Morgan, Capitol Riverfront, The Wharf (near southwest waterfront), Georgetown, Penn Quarter, and the H Street Corridor.

Go for a Jog on the National Mall: Lace up your running shoes and race around the Mall at your own pace, admiring famous sights as you go. Your fellow runners will be buff military staff from the Pentagon, speed-walking members of Congress, and downtown workers doing their best to stave off the telltale pencil-pusher’s paunch. It’s about 2 miles from the foot of the Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial. See p. 150.

Attend a Hometown Game: Take yourself out to a Washington Nationals baseball game at Nationals Park, drive to FedEx Field to root for Washington’s NFL team along with its rabid fans, catch a Washington Wizards or Mystics basketball game at the downtown Capital One Arena, or hop the Metro to the new soccer stadium at Buzzard Point for a D.C. United match. To experience the true soul of the city, attend a Washington Capitals ice hockey match. Wear red. See p. 236.

Take in Some Live Music: One of the best ways to feel at one with locals is by enjoying the live music scene together, not so much in large concert halls, but in smaller, seated venues such as Blues Alley (jazz and blues; p. 232) in Georgetown; the Hamilton (blues, rock, or country; p. 232) in the Penn Quarter; The Anthem (rock, country, pop; 901 Wharf St., SW; www.theanthemdc.com;  202/888-0020) in the Southwest Wharf district; and The Black Cat (rock and independent; p. 233) on 14th Street. See p. 231.

Attending a hometown game at Nationals Park.

Sit at an Outdoor Cafe and Watch the Washington World Go By: Locals watching locals. What better way to keep tabs on one another? The capital is full of seats offering front-row views of D.C. on parade. Here’s a bunch: Colada Shop (p. 109), Belga Café (p. 93), Café du Parc (p. 70), Fiola Mare (p. 118), Le Diplomate (p. 107), and Martin’s Tavern (p. 119).

The best Places to Stay

Best Historic Hotel: The Willard InterContinental celebrates its 115th anniversary in 2021, and recently underwent a renovation. The original, smaller City Hotel existed here as early as 1816 before its name changed in 1906. The hotel has hosted nearly every U.S. president since Franklin Pierce was here in 1853. President Ulysses S. Grant liked to unwind with a cigar and brandy in the Willard lobby after a hard day in the Oval Office and is even said to have popularized the term lobbyist after so many locals would approach him there. Literary luminaries such as Mark Twain and Charles Dickens used to hang out in the Round Robin bar. See p. 70.

Best for Romance: Its discreet service, intimate size, and exquisitely decorated guest rooms—and the fact that you need never leave the hotel for pampering or dining—makes The Jefferson (p. 74) perfect for a romantic rendezvous.

Best When You Have Business on Capitol Hill: Yotel Washington, D.C. (p. 59) lies a short walk from the Capitol and offers a rooftop pool, a 24/7 fitness center, and an in-house power-dining spot, Art and Soul.

Best Bang for Your Buck: Its great location near Georgetown, the White House, and the Metro and less than a mile from the National Mall, plus spacious studio and one-bedroom suites with kitchens, free Wi-Fi, and reasonable rates, make Foggy Bottom’s River Inn (p. 80) one of the best values in town.

Best Views: The Hay-Adams (p. 70) has such a great, unobstructed view of the White House that the Secret Service comes over regularly to do security sweeps of the place. Ask for a room on the H Street side of the hotel, on floors six through eight. Many of the guest rooms at the Watergate (p. 79) survey the Potomac River and the Georgetown waterfront, but the best view of all is from the hotel’s Top of the Gate rooftop bar and lounge. Nearly half of the guest rooms in the InterContinental Washington, D.C. – The Wharf (p. 66), in the Southwest Waterfront neighborhood, capture a stunning view of the Washington Channel and East Potomac Park.

Best for Families: The Residence Inn DC/Capitol (p. 65) is within walking distance of the National Mall, several Smithsonian museums, and the Metro. Breakfast is free; kids will love the indoor heated pool, while parents will appreciate its large, suite-style rooms with fully equipped kitchenettes. It’s also pet-friendly if your family includes the four-legged variety.

The best Offbeat Experiences

Join the Drum Circle at Meridian Hill Park: Sunday afternoons, when the weather is right, Meridian Hill Park (p. 200) is the setting for an all-comers-welcome African drum circle. The tradition is 50 years old and dates from the tumultuous days of the 1960s, when activists sought a way to celebrate black liberation but also mourn the death of African-American leader Malcolm X. One drummer started, others gradually joined in, and over time the sonorous Sunday drum circle turned into a steady gig. The park is stunning, designed to resemble an Italian garden, complete with statuary, a cascading fountain, and landscaped grounds.

Explore Washington from an Unconventional Angle: Yes, it’s a graveyard, but Georgetown’s Oak Hill Cemetery is also a handsome wooded and landscaped garden with a grand view of the city from its hillside perch. Here lie monuments for some of Washington’s most illustrious residents, from the city’s early days as well as recent years. See p. 271.

Play Street Hockey in Front of the White House: Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House is closed to traffic, which makes it a perfect place for street hockey fanatics to show up Saturdays and Sundays at 10am. All you need are Rollerblades and a stick, although gloves and shin pads are also recommended. Go to www.whitehousehockey.com for info.

Playing street hockey in front of the White House.

Visit the Barbie Pond: All hail the Barbies. What started as a quirky front yard display outside a row house has become a neighborhood institution. The Barbie Pond on Ave. Q (14541⁄2 Q St. NW, at 15th St. NW) displays elaborate scenes full of Barbie and Ken dolls representing holidays, TV shows and movies, or support for causes such as gay rights and environmentalism. You can follow the Barbies on Instagram at @barbie_pond_ave_q to see what the latest theme is. Just be sure to be respectful when here—take all the photos you want, but do not touch the dolls.

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Washington, D.C., in Context

by Jess Moss

The Federal City. The Nation’s Capital. Hollywood for Ugly People. Chocolate City. A swamp. The DMV. Over the years, Washington, D.C., has garnered quite a few identities. Some pleasant; others not so much. Even Washingtonians have argued over what Washington, D.C., should really be called if it’s ever granted its statehood. The New Columbia? Washington, Douglass Commonwealth?

Whatever nickname best describes D.C., you are bound to formulate your own after visiting. The city is that multi-hued and diverse. Sure, most visitors are here to see some of the country’s most celebrated landmarks: the Washington Monument standing tall near the Lincoln Memorial, the stately U.S. Capitol Building staring down Pennsylvania Ave. toward the porticoed White House, the National Mall in all its shimmering green glory.

But Washington is not just a city of iconic sites. It’s a dynamic metropolis full of life: marble-clad monuments providing a stately backdrop to a morning excursion on the Potomac River, a delicious meal at a Michelin-starred restaurant, a bike ride through Rock Creek Park on a beautiful fall day, a stroll past handsome embassies along Embassy Row, a tour of the Smithsonian’s compelling National Museum of African American History & Culture, or a live jazz performance on a summer night in the Sculpture Garden of the National Gallery of Art.

This chapter, specifically, aims to put the story of Washington, D.C. into context beyond all of those monikers. It’s also where we offer practical information on the best times to visit, the weather by season, and the city’s most celebrated events.

Washington, D.C., Today

What Washington, D.C., was, is, and wants to be is constantly shifting. D.C. is both the capital of the United States and a city unto itself; therein lie its charms, but also a host of complications. Control of the city is the main issue. The District is a free-standing jurisdiction, but because it is a city with a federal rather than a state overseer, it has never been entitled to the same governmental powers as the states. Congress supervises the District’s budget and legislation. Originally, Congress granted the city the authority to elect its own governance, but it rescinded that right when the District overspent its budget in attempts to improve its services and appearance after the Civil War. The White House then appointed three commissioners to oversee D.C.’s affairs.

It wasn’t until a century later, in 1973, that the city regained the right to elect its own mayor and city council—although Congress still retains some control of the budget and can veto municipal legislation. The U.S. president appoints all D.C. judges and the Senate confirms them. District residents can vote in presidential primaries and elections and can elect a delegate to Congress, who introduces legislation and votes in committees but cannot vote on the House floor. This unique situation, in which residents of the District pay federal income taxes but don’t have a vote in Congress, is a matter of great local concern. D.C. residents publicly protest the situation by displaying license plates bearing the inscription

taxation without representation

. The proposed solution is to make D.C. a state, and calls for statehood have gained momentum in recent years, though it remains to be seen if the movement will gain enough traction in Congress to become reality.

Another wrinkle in this uncommon relationship is the fact that Washington’s economy relies heavily on the presence of the federal government, which accounts for about 30% of all D.C. jobs, making it the city’s second-largest employer. The city struggles toward political independence, although it recognizes the economic benefits of its position as the seat of the capital.

As you tour the city, you will see that Washington, D.C., is a remarkably resilient place. The combined pandemic, social justice protests, and political unrest of 2020 and 2021 have left a mark on the city’s economy, as well as its collective memory. While the pandemic is not yet over at this writing, D.C. residents have largely adapted to life with mask mandates and shifting restrictions, and the vast majority are highly compliant—masking up, getting vaccinated, and staying home when told to do so.

Despite recent hardships, income here remains higher than the national average, residents are better educated than elsewhere, and the city has one of the highest rates of population growth in the nation, increasing nearly 15% in the last decade. Around 53% of the population is female, more than one-third are between the ages of 18 and 34, and the people are remarkably diverse: 46% African American, 46% white, 11% Hispanic, 5% Asian, 14% foreign-born, and 17% speaking a language other than English at home. The presence of embassies and the diplomatic community intensifies the international flavor.

One of the best ways to sample this global character is through the city’s restaurant scene, which showcases an immense variety of international cuisines, from Ethiopian to Peruvian, as well as soul food and such regional specialties as oysters and crab (served soft-shell, hard-shell, soup, cake, you name it). The city’s dining creds mount as critics from Bon Appétit magazine to the New York Times give high marks to the capital’s restaurants. Eating out is a way of life here, whether simply for the pleasure of it or for business—the city’s movers and shakers break bread at breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Despite pandemic shutdowns, theaters, music venues, assorted historic and cultural attractions, hotels, brand-name stores, and homegrown boutiques abound, and Washingtonians make the most of their bounty. But whatever it is—exhibit, play, concert, or restaurant meal—it had better be good. As well-traveled, well-educated, and, let’s face it, pretty demanding types, District dwellers have high standards.

It wasn’t always this way. About 20 years ago, Washington wasn’t as attractive. Tourists came to visit federal buildings and the city’s memorials but stayed away from the dingy downtown and other off-the-Mall neighborhoods. The city had the potential for being so much more, and certain people—heroes, in my book—helped inspire action and brought about change themselves: Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, who fought (and continues to fight) steadfastly for D.C. statehood and economic revival and equality; former Mayor Anthony Williams, who rescued the District’s budget when his predecessor, the notoriously mismanaging Mayor Marion Barry, brought the city to the brink of financial ruin; and the community-minded developers Abe and Irene Pollin, who used their own funds to finance the $200 million MCI sports center in the heart of town, spurring development all around it. Today, the popular arena (now known as Capital One Arena) anchors the utterly transformed Penn Quarter neighborhood.

Revitalization is too mild a word to describe the changes taking place in neighborhoods throughout the District. The city is literally reinventing itself. Look to the Capitol Riverfront neighborhood in southeast D.C. (locally known as Navy Yard), where a grand baseball stadium, Nationals Park, opened in March 2008, followed ever since by new restaurants and bars and hotels and housing; to the Columbia Heights enclave in upper northwest D.C., now a mélange of Latino culture, loft condominiums, and ethnic eateries; to historic Shaw, which has turned overnight from a quiet residential area into a trendy food and bar destination; and to the Southwest Waterfront, whose new Wharf complex of watersports and recreational activities, lodging, nightlife venues, shops, and eateries gives people plenty of reasons to come here, when they had few before. Add one more reason: Audi Field at Buzzard Point, the gorgeous stadium that debuted in 2018 as home base for D.C. United, the city’s soccer team.

And more development is underway, including Capital Crossing, a mixed-use, 7-acre development between Union Station and Capital One Arena that actually adds 3 new city blocks, by way of its placement atop the I-395 Freeway! Meanwhile, the city’s evergreens—the memorials and monuments, the historic neighborhoods, and the Smithsonian museums—remain unflaggingly popular.

But D.C. continues to have its share of problems, including crime, poverty, and lingering inequality. Some issues relate to the city’s gentrification efforts, such as the displacement of residents from homes they can no longer afford in increasingly expensive neighborhoods. Mayor Muriel Bowser, who overwhelmingly won the 2018 election, continues to work hard to connect the city to its residents, as different as they may be, and to the politicians who reside here. Despite D.C.’s remarkable growth, many residents still struggle with access to all of those economic benefits, including healthcare, good schools, safe neighborhoods, adequate housing, and basic social services.

Diverse in demographics, residents are alike in loving their city, despite the issues it faces. Visitors seem to share this love, as statistics bear out: In a typical year, D.C. welcomes 24.6 million visitors a year, including 1.8 million from abroad.

The Making of the City

As with many cities, Washington, D.C.’s past is written in its landscape. Behold the lustrous Potomac River, whose discovery by Captain John Smith in 1608 led to European settlement of this area. Take note of the city’s layout: the 160-foot-wide avenues radiating from squares and circles, the sweeping vistas, the abundant parkland, all very much as Pierre Charles L’Enfant intended when he and Congress envisioned the Federal District in 1791. Look around and you will see the Washington Monument, the U.S. Capitol, the Lincoln Memorial, the White House, and other landmarks, their very prominence in the flat, central cityscape attesting to their significance in the formation of the nation’s capital.

But Washington’s history is very much a tale of two cities. Beyond the National Mall, the memorials, and the federal government buildings lies D.C., the municipality. Righteous politicians and others speak critically of Washington—shorthand, we understand, for all that is wrong with government. They should be more precise. With that snide repudiation, critics dismiss as well the particular locale in which the capital resides. It is a place of lively neighborhoods and vivid personalities, a vaunted arts-and-culture scene, international diversity, rich African-American heritage, uniquely Washingtonian attractions and people—the very citizens who built the capital in the first place and have kept it running ever since.

Early Days

The European settlers who arrived in 1608 weren’t the region’s first inhabitants, of course. Captain John Smith may have been the first European to discover this waterfront property of lush greenery and woodlands, but the Nacotchtank, Powhatan, and Piscataway tribes were way ahead of him. As Smith and company settled the area, they disrupted the American Indians’ way of life and introduced European diseases. The Native Americans gradually were driven away or sold into slavery.

By 1751, immigrants had founded George Town, named for the king of England and soon established as an important tobacco-shipping port. African Americans lived and worked here as well. Several houses from its early days still exist in modern-day Georgetown: The Old Stone House (p. 194) on M St. NW, a cabinetmaker’s home built in 1765, is now operated by the National Park Service, and a few magnificent ship merchants’ mansions still stand on N and Prospect streets, though these are privately owned. The Vigilant Firehouse at 1066 Wisconsin Ave., NW., is the oldest surviving in the District. For a walking tour of Georgetown, see p. 265.

The Old Stone House, a woodworker’s house built in the 1760s in Georgetown.

Birth of the Capital

After colonists in George Town and elsewhere in America rebelled against British rule, defeating the British in the American Revolution (1775–83), Congress, in quick succession, unanimously elected General George Washington as the first president of the United States, ratified a U.S. Constitution, and proposed that a city be designed and built to house the seat of government for the new nation and to function fully in commercial and cultural capacities. Much squabbling ensued. The North wanted the capital; the South wanted the capital. Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison hashed out a compromise, which resulted in the Residence Act of 1790, giving President George Washington the authority to choose his spot: The nation’s capital would be a site not exceeding 10 miles square located on the Potomac. The South was happy, for this area was nominally in their region; Northern states were appeased by the stipulation that the South pay off the North’s Revolutionary War debt, and by the city’s location on the North–South border. Washington, District of Columbia, made its debut.

The only problem was that the city was not exactly presentable. The brave new country’s capital was a tract of undeveloped wilderness, where pigs, goats, and cows roamed free, and habitable houses were few and far between. Thankfully, the city was granted the masterful 1791 plan of the gifted but temperamental French-born engineer, Pierre Charles L’Enfant. Slaves, free Blacks, and immigrants from Ireland, Scotland, and other countries worked to fulfill L’Enfant’s remarkable vision, starting construction first on the White House in 1792 (making it the city’s oldest federal structure) and months later the Capitol, the Treasury, and other buildings. (Read The Great Decision: Jefferson, Adams, Marshall and the Battle for the Supreme Court, by Cliff Sloan and David McKean, and Empire of Mud: The Secret History of Washington, D.C., by J. D. Dickey, for excellent descriptions of the early days of the city.) Gradually, the nation’s capital began to take shape, though too slowly perhaps for some. British novelist Anthony Trollope, visiting during the Civil War, declared Washington the empire of King Mud.

The Early 1800s

Living in early Washington City was not for the faint-hearted. Functional roads went only to Maryland and the South, essentially stranding the city on its own. The roads that were in place, mainly Pennsylvania Avenue, were so full of potholes and tree stumps that carriages frequently overturned. Politicians slipped into the gutter or stumbled against a bank of earth walking home from the Capitol. L’Enfant’s plans for the National Mall as a grand and majestic avenue were also derailed. The cofounder of the National Institute (the predecessor to the Smithsonian) described the Mall as a magnificent Sahara of solitude and waste—appropriated as a cow pasture and frog pond.… To make matters worse, British forces stormed the city in August 1814 during the War of 1812 and torched the Capitol, the Library of Congress, and the White House before heading north to Baltimore. The city lay in tatters.

The Civil War & Reconstruction

During the Civil War, the capital became an armed camp and headquarters for the Union Army, overflowing with thousands of followers. Parks became campgrounds; churches, schools, and federal buildings—including the Capitol and the Patent Office (now the National Portrait Gallery)—became hospitals; and forts ringed the town. The population grew from 60,000 to 200,000, as soldiers, former slaves, merchants, and laborers converged on the scene. The streets were filled with the wounded, nursed by the likes of Louisa May Alcott and Walt Whitman, two of many making the rounds to aid ailing soldiers. In spite of everything, President Lincoln insisted that work on the Capitol continue. If people see the Capitol going on, it is a sign we intend the Union shall go on, he said.

Lincoln himself kept on, sustained perhaps by his visits to St. John’s Church, across from the White House. Lincoln attended evening services when he could, arriving alone after other churchgoers had entered and slipping out before the service was over. Then on the night of April 14, 1865, just as the war was dwindling down and Lincoln’s vision for unity was being realized, the president was fatally shot while attending a play at Ford’s Theatre (p. 176).

In the wake of the Civil War and President Lincoln’s assassination, Congress took stock of the capital and saw a town worn out by years of war—awash with people but still lacking the most fundamental facilities. Indeed, the city was a mess. There was talk of moving the capital city elsewhere, perhaps to St. Louis or some other more centrally located city.

The inauguration of Abraham Lincoln in 1861 while construction of the U.S. Capitol continued.

A rescue of sorts arrived in the person of public works leader Alexander Boss Shepherd, who initiated a comprehensive plan of improvement that at last incorporated the infrastructure so necessary to a functioning metropolis, including a streetcar system that allowed the District’s overflowing population to move beyond city limits. Shepherd also established parks, constructed streets and bridges, and installed water and sewer systems and gas lighting, gradually nudging the nation’s capital closer to showplace design. Notable accomplishments included the completion of the Washington Monument in 1884 (after 36 years) and the opening of the first Smithsonian Museum in 1881.

Washington Blossoms

With the streets paved and illuminated, the water running, streetcars and rail transportation operating, and other practical matters in place, Washington, D.C., was ready to address its appearance. In 1901, as if on cue, a senator from Michigan, James McMillan, persuaded his colleagues to appoint an advisory committee to develop designs for a more graceful city. With his own money, McMillan, a retired railroad mogul, sent a committee that included landscapist Frederick Law Olmsted (designer of New York’s Central Park), sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens, and noted architects Daniel Burnham and Charles McKim to Europe for 7 weeks to study the landscaping and architecture of that continent’s great capitals. Make no little plans, Burnham counseled fellow members. They have no magic to stir men’s blood, and probably themselves will not be realized. Make big plans, aim high in hope and work, remembering that a noble and logical diagram once recorded will never die, but long after we are gone will be a living thing, asserting itself with ever growing insistency.

The committee implemented a beautification program that continued well into the 20th century. Other projects added further enhancements: A presidential Commission of Fine Arts, established in 1910, positioned monuments and fountains throughout the city; FDR’s Works Progress Administration (WPA) erected public buildings embellished by artists. The legacy of these programs is on view today, in the Federal Triangle, the cherry trees along the Tidal Basin, the Lincoln Memorial, the Library of Congress, Union Station, East Potomac Park, Lafayette Square, and many other sights, each situated in its perfect spot in the city.

The American capital was coming into its own on the world stage, as well, emerging from the Great Depression, two world wars, and technological advancements in air and automobile travel as a strong, respected global power. More and more countries established embassies here, and the city’s international population increased exponentially.

Black Broadway Sets the Stage

As the capital city blossomed, so did African-American culture. The many Blacks who had arrived in the city as slaves to help build the Capitol, the White House, and other fundamental structures of America’s capital stayed on, later joined by those who came to fight during the Civil War, or to begin new lives after the war. From 1900 to 1960, Washington, D.C., became known as a hub of Black culture, education, and identity, centered on a stretch of U Street NW called Black Broadway, where Cab Calloway, Duke Ellington, and Pearl Bailey often performed in