• Alexander Gardner with his camera
    A tale of two photographers
     
     
    Mathew Brady and Alexander Gardner
    In Civil War-era DC, the most famous photography studio was run by two photographers whose partnership endured its own civil war
  • Bob Dylan in 1963 as pictured in St. Lawrence University yearbook. (Source: Wikipedia)
    Music History
     
     
    Bob Dylan's Greatest Pic
    When Bob Dylan played the Washington Coliseum in 1965, a local photographer sneaked backstage and took a photo that ended up winning a Grammy for Best Album cover.
  • Storefront of Bassins restaurant in Washington, which was torched by Salvatore Cottones operation in the 1980s.
    True Crime Stories
     
     
    The Brief Reign of the D.C. Mafia
    Drug-dealing. Arson. Attempted murder. The true story of the Sicilian crime syndicate that operated from the backrooms of D.C. pizzerias.
  • Summer Protest
     
     
    Wishing in a Fountain
    In 1966, children swam in a fountain in front of Union Station to bring attention to their lack of access to pools and recreation facilities.
  • Bob Hope wearing a Cleveland Indians uniform in the 1960s. (Photo source: Bettmann/Getty)
    DC Baseball History
     
     
    Bob Hope Almost Bought the Washington Senators
    In 1968, the Washington Senators sought new ownership. Bob Hope, the esteemed comedian, was interested.

When the Willard Hotel served as the White House

1/5/2022 in DC by Arielle Gordon
The Presidential Flag flew outside the Willard Hotel when President Calvin Coolidge stayed there in 1923.

For the first weeks of his presidency, Calvin Coolidge conducted business from a different iconic D.C. residence — the Willard Hotel. The Coolidges lived at the hotel while he was Vice President and they waited to move to the White House until Warren Harding’s family had time to move out after he died in office.

John Collier's Conference at the Cosmos Club

12/20/2021 in DC by Holly McDonald
Madison Place in the early 1900s

By 1934, BIA Commissioner John Collier believed that land allotment and other policies meant to help Native Americans were doing more harm than good, and he wanted to reverse them through an ambitious bill known as the Indian Reorganization Act (also called the Wheeler-Howard Act). Collier’s bill would not only nullify the land allotment policy, but it would also allow Native American tribes to govern themselves, decentralize the BIA, consolidate Native land, and transfer Indigenous children from boarding schools to day schools.

The Show Must Go On: Shirley Horn at the Howard Theatre

12/10/2021 in DC by Holly McDonald
Exterior of the Howard Theatre at night

By the late 1950s, Shirley Horn had performed all up and down the U Street corridor a countless number of times, but her show at the Howard Theatre one October night in 1958 was particularly memorable for her. The jazz pianist and singer happened to be in the ninth month of her pregnancy at the time and was expecting the baby to be due any day.

Respect, Unity, and Brotherhood at the Million Man March

11/27/2021 in DC by Holly McDonald
Group of six men at the Million Man March, 1995

If you visited any major U.S. city in the early fall of 1995, there’s no doubt you would have heard of the Million Man March for Black men in Washington, D.C., on October 16, either from flyers posted around town or through word of mouth. After all, plans for a massive gathering of African American men on the National Mall had been in motion for over a year.

Dinner and Debates: Boardinghouses of the District

11/24/2021 in DC by Emily Robinson
Handy, Levin C, photographer. SE view from dome of U.S. Capitol, showing Carroll Row present site of Library of Congress in left foreground. Washington D.C, ca. 1880. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2005697020/.

Long before the invention of the airplane and a short time before trains were used for commercial transportation, congressmen traveling to Washington for extended periods faced a complicated issue: where would they live in the developing capital city while Congress was in session? Some wealthier members of Congress could purchase private residences or stay with a colleague, but this was not a realistic option for most. The most common solution by far, was to reside in one of the District’s many boardinghouses. Several former presidents, including Abraham Lincoln, found boardinghouses to be a phenomenally sufficient option during their congressional years— for a reasonable fee, a boardinghouse would provide you a room, quality meals, place to work, and lively conversation with fellow residents, many of whom were also politicians. Boardinghouses were scattered throughout the city, but the majority of them were located on Capitol Hill in the area where the Library of Congress stands today.

Thrice Uprooted: The U.S. Botanic Garden

11/11/2021 in DC by Charlotte Muth
1859 Garden & the Capitol, showing the Capitol dome under construction (Source: USBG Flickr, courtesy of Architect of the Capitol)

The U.S. Botanic Garden—located adjacent to the Capitol in a triangle between Maryland Ave SW, Washington Ave SW, and First Street—is rooted in the earliest planning of the capital city. Many of the Founding Fathers believed that a living repository for plants would have countless benefits, from the production of food and medicine to the scientific study of international specimens to the enjoyment of aesthetic beauty. George Washington himself wrote an impassioned letter in 1796 about how a botanic garden should be included in the city plan, even suggesting a few feasible locations.

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