A revised permanent page of books about DC. Feel free to post comments or suggestions over there in the comments. There’s a permanent link to the page on the sidebar under “Hot Topics.”
Shaw Heritage Trail Unveiled Saturday
The organization Cultural Tourism DC will be unveiling one of their heritage trails in Shaw with an event this Saturday, May 5th. They’re calling the trail “Midcity at the Crossroads” – click here to view a map of the 17 historical markers. There is a formal ceremony at 11 at the Kennedy Recreation Center and […]
A Few Thoughts on Place Names
I’ve been thinking a lot about place names recently. First there is the persistence of names. There was one case I stumbled across at work: while researching an old factory in San Francisco I discovered that although now the site is the location of two apartment towers, the new buildings retain the name of the […]
Reviewing The Great Society Subway: A History of the Washington metro
Zachary M. Schrag’s recently published book The Great Society Subway has been on my “to read” list for quite some time now. Since the first time I visited Washington, D.C. I was captivated by the city’s Metro system, which I first began to explore in earnest when I lived in the city without a car […]
Before CVS
This tidbit from the chapter on Seventh Street in my newly-arrived 1937 WPA guide on Washington: Seventh Street in this region, and immediately east and west of the street itself, becomes invaded with dilapidated houses, small shops, pawnbrokers’ officers, and teeming restaurants. The Old Indian Herb Store, at No. 1726, sells every kind of remedy […]
Heurich House Makes CNN.com
The nonprofit organization that runs the Heurich House, which I’ve written about a couple times before, has until March 15 to raise almost $230,000 or risk defaulting on the loan they used to purchase the property. CNN.com has picked up an excellent AP story about the house, which now appears as the top link in […]
National Park Service In the Neighborhood
Ok, so I am really excited about this. As of today, the Carter G. Woodson House, located just feet from where I live in Shaw, is now owned by the National Park Service. The NPS plans to renovate the home and several adjacent homes (seen to the right) to build a visitors center and open […]