Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., is the
capital city of the
United States of America. "D.C." stands for the
District of Columbia, the
federal district containing the city of Washington. The city is named after
George Washington, military leader of the
American Revolution and the first
President of the United States.
The District of
Columbia and the city of Washington are coextensive and are governed by a single
municipal government, so for most practical purposes they are considered to be the same entity (this was not always the case, though, as there were multiple jurisdictions within the district as late as 1871, when
Georgetown ceased to be a separate city within the District). However, although there is a municipal government and a mayor,
Congress has the
supreme authority.
The centers of all three branches of the
U.S. federal government are in the District as well as the headquarters of most
independent agencies. It serves as the headquarters for the
World Bank, the
International Monetary Fund, and the
Organization of American States, and other national and international institutions. Washington is the frequent location of large political
demonstrations and
protests, particularly on the
National Mall. Washington is the site of numerous
national landmarks,
museums, and
sports
teams, and is a popular destination for
tourists.
It is commonly known as
D.C.,
the District, or simply
Washington. Historically, it was called the
Federal City or
Washington City. It should not be confused with the state of
Washington located in the
Pacific Northwest. To avoid confusion, the city is often called simply
D.C. and the state is often called
Washington State. The population of the District of Columbia, as of 2005
U.S. Census Bureau estimates, is 582,049 persons. The
Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area surpasses 8 million persons. If Washington, D.C. were considered a
state, it would rank last in area behind
Rhode Island, 50th in population ahead of
Wyoming, and 35th in
Gross State Product.
The District of Columbia, founded on
July 16,
1790, is a federal district as specified by the
United States Constitution. The U.S. Congress has ultimate authority over the District of Columbia, though it has delegated limited local rule to the municipal government. The land forming the original District came from the states of
Virginia and
Maryland. However, the
area south of the
Potomac River (39 square miles or about 100 km²) was returned, or "
retroceded", to Virginia in 1847 and now is incorporated into
Arlington County and the City of
Alexandria. After 1847, the remaining land that formed the area now known as the District of Columbia was formed exclusively from land that once belonged to Maryland.
Planning
|
L'Enfant plan for Washington |
|
1888 German map of Washington, D.C. |
A Southern site for the new country's capital was agreed upon at a dinner between
James Madison and
Alexander Hamilton, hosted by
Thomas Jefferson.
The city was designed by
Pierre Charles L'Enfant, a
Major in the
United States Army. The initial plan for the "Federal District" was a diamond, measuring 10
miles (16
km) on each side, totaling 100 square miles (256 km²). The actual site on the Potomac River was chosen by
President Washington. Washington may have chosen the site for its natural scenery, believing the Potomac would become a great navigable waterway. The city was officially named "Washington" on September 9, 1791. Out of modesty, George Washington never referred to it as such, preferring to call it "the Federal City". Despite choosing the site and living nearby at
Mount Vernon, he rarely visited the city. The federal district was named the District of Columbia because
Columbia was a poetic name for the United States used at the time.
Initially, the District of Columbia included four distinct sections, of which the city of Washington was only one. The others were
Alexandria County,
Georgetown, and the
County of Washington. Georgetown occupied its current boundaries. Alexandria County included parts of the present-day City of Alexandria, as well as the current
Arlington County, Virginia. Washington City occupied much of its current area but ended at present-day
Rock Creek Park on the west and
Florida Avenue and Benning Road on the north. Florida Avenue was then called "Boundary Street." The remainder of the district was Washington County.
In 1791–92,
Andrew Ellicott and the free
African-American Benjamin Banneker surveyed the border of the District with both Virginia and Maryland, placing boundary stones at every mile point; many of these still stand.
The
cornerstone of the
White House, the first newly constructed building of the new capital, was laid on
October 13,
1792. That was the day after the first solemn celebrations of
Columbus Day, marking its 300th anniversary.
On
August 24,
1814, British forces
burned the capital during the most notable raid of the
War of 1812 in retaliation for the sacking and burning of York (modern-day
Toronto) during the winter months, which had left many Canadians homeless. President
James Madison and U.S. forces fled before the British forces arrived and burned public buildings, including the
Capitol and the
Treasury building. The
White House was burned and gutted. The Navy Yard was also burned—by American sailors. The home of the
Commandant of the Marine Corps, located at the
Marine Barracks, was one of the few government buildings not burned by the raiding British soldiers out of a sign of respect and is now the oldest public building in continuous use in the nation's capital. The damage done by the British forces is often exaggerated and was not as reckless as the sacking of York. Civilians were not directly targeted and, initially, the British had approached the city hoping to secure a truce. However, they were fired upon, triggering frustration and anger among the British, which ultimately led to the sacking of government buildings.
["The British Burn Washington, DC, 1814". EyeWitness to History, eyewitnesstohistory.com (2003).]During the 1830s the District was home to one of the largest slave trading operations in the country (see
Alexandria, Virginia).
In 1846, the populace of Alexandria County, who resented the loss of business with the competing port of Georgetown and feared greater impact if slavery were outlawed in the capital, voted in a referendum to ask Congress to
retrocede Alexandria back to the state of Virginia. Congress agreed to do so on July 9 of that year.
 |
Newspaper Row, Washington, D.C., 1874. |
Washington remained a small city—the 1860 Census put the population at just over 75,000 persons—until the outbreak of the
Civil War in 1861. The significant expansion of the federal government to administer the war and its legacies such as veterans' pensions led to notable growth in the city's population. By 1870, the District population had grown to nearly 132,000.
In July 1864,
Confederate forces under
Jubal Anderson Early made a brief raid into Washington, culminating in the
Battle of Fort Stevens. The Confederates were repulsed, and Early eventually returned to the
Shenandoah Valley. The
fort is located near present day
Walter Reed Army Medical Center in northwest Washington. The battle was the only battle where a U.S. president,
Abraham Lincoln, was present and under enemy fire while in office.
[ Rock Creek Park - National Park Service www.nps.gov (accessed April 03 2006)]In the early 1870s, Washington was given a territorial government, but Governor
Alexander Shepherd's reputation for extravagance resulted in Congress abolishing his office in favor of direct rule. Congressional governance of the District would continue for a century.
In 1878, Congress passed an
Organic Act that made the boundaries of the city of Washington coterminous with those of the District of Columbia. This effectively eliminated Washington County; Georgetown, technically made a part of the city, was allowed to remain nominally separate until 1895 when it was formally combined with Washington.
The
Washington Monument opened in 1888. Plans were laid to further develop the monumental aspects of the city, with work contributed by such noted figures as
Frederick Law Olmsted and
Daniel Burnham. However, development of the
Lincoln Memorial and other structures on the National Mall did not begin until the early 20th century.
|
Pennsylvania Avenue in 1998 |
The District's population peaked in 1950, when the census for that year recorded a record population of 802,178 people.
["Anniversary of Washington, D.C., as Nation's Capital." United States Census Bureau (Facts for Features). [December 1, 2003. Retrieved on [April 28, 2006.] At the time, the city was the ninth-largest in the country, ahead of
Boston and behind
Saint Louis. The population declined in the following decades, mirroring the suburban emigration of many of the nation's older urban centers following
World War II.
The
Twenty-third Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified on March 29, 1961, allowing residents of Washington, D.C. to vote for president and have their votes count in the
Electoral College.
After the assassination of civil rights activist
Martin Luther King, Jr., in Memphis, Tennessee, on
April 4, 1968, riots broke out in downtown Washington. The violence raged for four days. Much of downtown D.C. was burned. At one point, the rioters came within two blocks of the White House. President
Lyndon Johnson ordered over 13,000 federal troops to occupy the citywhich had been a tattered shell known locally as "Amshack"-- was turned into a visitor's center and then eventually transformed to the glittering building it is today.
One of the most important developments in bringing people back downtown was the building of the subway system. The first 4.6 miles (7.4 km) of the
Washington Metro subway system opened on March 27, 1976.
Walter Washington became the first elected mayor of the District in 1974.
Marion Barry became mayor in 1978, but he was arrested for
drug use in an
FBI sting operation on
January 18,
1990, and served a six-month jail term. His successor,
Sharon Pratt Kelly, became the first black woman to lead a city of that size and importance in the U.S. Barry, however, defeated her in the 1994 primary and was once again elected mayor for his fourth term, during which time the city nearly became
insolvent and was forced to give up some home rule to a congressionally-appointed financial control board. In 1998,
Anthony A. Williams was elected the city's mayor and led the city into a fiscal recovery, which made him a popular figure. Williams was reelected in 2002.
On September 29, 2004,
Major League Baseball officially relocated the
Montreal Expos to Washington for the 2005 season, now named the
Washington Nationals, despite opposition from
Baltimore Orioles owner
Peter Angelos. A very public lengthy discussion between the city council and MLB threatened to scuttle the agreement until December 21, when a plan for a
new stadium in
Southeast D.C. was finalized. The Nationals will play at
R.F.K. Stadium until the new stadium is ready on the waterfront in 2008.
Washington, D.C. is located at (the coordinates of the
Zero Milestone, on The Ellipse). According to the
United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 68.3
square miles (177.0
km²). 61.4 square miles (159.0 km²) of it is land and 6.9 square miles (18.0 km²) of it (10.16%) is water.
Washington is surrounded by the
states of
Virginia (on its western side) and
Maryland (on its southeast, northeast, and northwest sides); it interrupts those states' common border, which is the Potomac River's southern shore both upstream and downstream from the District. The Potomac River as it passes Washington is virtually entirely within the District of Columbia border because of colonial
riparian rights between Maryland and Virginia.
The District has three major natural flowing streams: the
Potomac River, the
Anacostia River, and
Rock Creek. The Anacostia River and Rock Creek are tributaries of the Potomac River. There are also three man-made
reservoirs:
Dalecarlia Reservoir, which crosses over the northwest border of the District from Maryland;
McMillan Reservoir near
Howard University; and
Georgetown Reservoir upstream of Georgetown.
The highest point in the District of Columbia is 410
feet (125 m) above sea level at
Tenleytown. The lowest point is sea level, which occurs along all of the Anacostia shore and all of the Potomac shore except the uppermost portion (the Little Falls - Chain Bridge area). The sea level Tidal Basin rose eleven feet during
Hurricane Isabel on
September 18,
2003.
The geographic center of the District of Columbia is located near 4th Street NW, L Street NW, and New York Avenue NW (not under the Capitol Dome, as is sometimes said.)
Geographical features of Washington, D.C. include
Theodore Roosevelt Island,
Columbia Island, the
Three Sisters, and
Hains Point.
Climate
Washington has a temperate climate typical of the mid-atlantic/northeast U.S., with four distinct seasons. Summer tends to be hot and humid with daily high temperatures in July and August averaging in the high 80s° to low 90s°
F (about 30° to 33°
C). The combination of heat and humidity makes thunderstorms very frequent in the summer. Spring and fall are mild with high temperatures in April and October averaging in the high 60s° Fahrenheit (about 20 °C). Winter can bring cold temperatures, frozen precipitation and, on occasions, major snowstorms. Average highs tend to be in the 40s (4 to 8 °C) and lows in the 20s (-6 to -2 °C) from mid December to mid February. While
hurricanes (or the remnants of them) occasionally track through the area in the late summer and early fall, they have often weakened by the time they reach Washington. Spring is the most favorable time of year, with low humidity, mild temperatures and blooming foliage. This period generally lasts from late March until mid May.
The average annual snowfall is 15
inches (381
mm) and the average high temperature in January is 43 °F (6 °C); the average low for January is 27 °F (-3 °C). The highest recorded temperature was 106 °F (41 °C) on
July 20,
1930 and
August 6,
1918 and the lowest recorded temperature was -15 °F (-26 °C) on
February 11,
1899.
[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]Historical populations
of Washington, D.C.| Year | Population | | 1800 | 8,144 | | 1810 | 15,471 | | 1820 | 23,336 | | 1830 | 30,261 | | 1840 | 33,745 | | 1850 | 51,687 | | 1860 | 75,080 | | 1870 | 131,700 | | 1880 | 177,624 | | 1890 | 230,392 |
| | Year | Population | | 1900 | 278,718 | | 1910 | 331,069 | | 1920 | 437,571 | | 1930 | 486,869 | | 1940 | 663,091 | | 1950 | 802,178 | | 1960 | 763,956 | | 1970 | 756,510 | | 1980 | 638,333 | | 1990 | 606,900 | | 2000 | 572,059 | | 20005 estimate | 582,049 | |
| |
The 2005 Census estimate of the city's population was 582,049,
after the city government questioned the Census' results. The Census admitted they made a mistake and added more than 31,000 to their original estimate.
As of the 2000 census, there were 572,059 people, 248,338 households, and 114,235 families residing in the city. The
population density was 9,316.4 per square mile (3,597.3/km²). There were 274,845 housing units at an average density of 1,728.3/km² (4,476.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 60.01%
Black or African American, 32.78%
White, 2.66%
Asian, 0.30%
Native American, 0.06%
Pacific Islander, 3.84% from
other races, and 2.35% from two or more races. About 7.86% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race, with
Salvadoran being the largest Hispanic group. A plurality of whites are of
British ancestry.
There were 248,338 households, out of which 19.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 22.8% were
married couples living together, 18.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 54.0% were non-families. 43.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16 and the average family size was 3.07.
In the city, the population was spread out with 20.1% under the age of 18, 12.7% from 18 to 24, 33.1% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 89.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $40,127, and the median income for a family was $46,283. Males had a median income of $40,513 versus $36,361 for females. The
per capita income for the city was $28,659. About 16.7% of families and 20.2% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 31.1% of those under age 18 and 16.4% of those over age 65.
As of 2000, 83.2% of Washington, D.C. residents age 5 and older speak only
English at home and 9.2% speak
Spanish.
French is the third most spoken language at 1.8%, followed by African languages at 1.0% and
Chinese at 0.5%.
According to the 2001 American Religious Identification Survey, nearly three out of four District residents identified themselves as
Christian.
[Kosmin, Barry A.; Mayer, Egon; Keysar, Ariela. "Religious Identification Survey, 2001." City University of New York (Graduate Center). Retrieved on April 3, 2006.] This breaks down to 72% Christian (27%
Catholic, 19%
Baptist, and 26% other
Protestant churches), 13% stating no religion, 4%
Buddhist, 2%
Muslim, and 1%
Jewish.
According to the
Census Bureau, the District's daytime population is estimated at 982,853.
[Bergman, Mike. "[http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/population/005822.html Washington, D.C., Has Huge Increase. Census Bureau Releases First-Ever DataOn Daytime Populations for Cities and Counties]." United States Census Bureau (Press Release). October 20, 2005. Retrieved on April 3, 2006.] The influx of over 410,000 workers into Washington on a normal business day comprises a 72% increase of the capital's normal population. That is the largest increase percentage-wise of any city studied and the second-largest net increase, behind only
New York City.
As host to over 180 embassies and hundreds of international organizations, Washington, D.C. has a substantial population of foreign residents. There are also many students from abroad studying at the local universities and colleges. This adds a cosmopolitan flavor to the city.
Crime
During the
violent crime wave of the early 1990s, Washington, D.C. was known as the murder capital of the United States, and often rivals
New Orleans as the nation's most murderous city. The number of homicides peaked in 1991 at 482, with violence declining drastically since then: murders declined to 198 in 2004, with a slight decline to 195 in 2005. Once plagued with violent crime, many D.C. neighborhoods, such as
Columbia Heights, are becoming safe and vibrant areas as a result of
gentrification. While not as intensely violent, crime hot spots have since displaced farther into the eastern sections of Washington, D.C. and across the border into Maryland. Although the eastern side of the city has developed a reputation for being unsafe, these crime hot spots are generally concentrated in very specific areas that are associated with
drugs and
gangs. Other areas east of the U.S. Capitol, as well as the city's wealthier
Northwest neighborhoods, experience low levels of crime. Despite the declining trends, Washington D.C. crime rates (2005) remain among the highest of U.S. cities, and it was most recently ranked as the 13th most dangerous city in the nation.
["America's Safest (and Most Dangerous) Cities." Morgan Quitno Press. November 21, 2005. Retrieved on July 8, 2006.]On
July 11,
2006, Metropolitan Police Chief
Charles H. Ramsey declared a "crime emergency" in the city in response to a rising homicide rate (the city had logged 13 murders since July 1st, most notably the killing of a prominent British political activist in
Georgetown). While the declaration allows for more flexible and increased policing in high-crime neighborhoods, it is temporary and will be revisited following a 30-day trial period.
Landmarks and museums
Washington is home to numerous national landmarks and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the United States. The
National Mall is a large, open area in the center of the city featuring many monuments to American leaders; it also serves to connect the White House and the United States Capitol buildings. Located prominently in the center of the Mall is the
Washington Monument. Other notable points of interest near the Mall include the
Jefferson Memorial (see right),
Lincoln Memorial,
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial,
National World War II Memorial,
Korean War Veterans Memorial,
Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the
District of Columbia War Memorial and the
Albert Einstein Memorial.
The world famous
Smithsonian Institution is located in the District. The Smithsonian today is a collection of museums that includes the
Anacostia Museum,
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery,
Hirshhorn Museum,
National Air and Space Museum,
National Museum of American History,
National Museum of the American Indian,
National Museum of Natural History,
National Portrait Gallery,
National Postal Museum,
Smithsonian American Art Museum,
Renwick Gallery, and the
National Zoo.
There are many art museums in D.C., in addition to those that are part of the Smithsonian, including the
National Gallery of Art,
National Museum of Women in the Arts, the
Corcoran Museum of Art, and the
Phillips Collection.
The
Library of Congress and the
National Archives house thousands of documents covering every period in American history. Some of the more notable documents in the National Archives include the
Declaration of Independence,
Constitution and
Bill of Rights.
The District of Columbia operates its own
public library system with 27 branches throughout the city, and has a
public website. The main branch — which occupies a multi-story glass and steel-framed building at the intersection of 9th and G Streets, N.W., designed by modernist architect
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe[
1] — is known as the
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library. It has a large mural in its mail hall depicting the
eponymously named civil rights leader.
Other points of interest in the District include
Arena Stage,
Chinatown,
Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception,
Blair House,
Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle,
Folger Shakespeare Library,
Ford's Theatre,
Frederick Douglass National Historic Site,
International Spy Museum,
National Building Museum,
the Awakening at Hains Point,
Old Post Office Building,
Theodore Roosevelt Island,
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and the
Washington National Cathedral.
As of 2002, the federal government accounts for 27% of Washington, D.C.'s jobs.
The presence of many major government agencies, including the
Department of Defense,
National Institutes of Health, and the
Food and Drug Administration, has led to business development both in the District itself as well as in the suburbs of northern Virginia and Maryland. These businesses include federal
contractors (defense and civilian), numerous nonprofit organizations, law firms and lobbying firms, catering and administrative services companies, and several other industries that are sustained by the economic presence of the federal government. This arrangement makes the Washington economy virtually
recession-proof relative to the rest of the country, because the federal government will still operate no matter the state of the general economy, and it often grows during recessions.
Fannie Mae, electric utility
Pepco Holdings, Inc., and manufacturer
Danaher are major companies with headquarters in Washington, D.C. itself. Many other
Fortune 500 companies maintain their headquarters in the metropolitan area, including
AES Corporation in
Arlington County, Virginia,
Capital One,
Gannett, and
NVR Incorporated in
McLean, Virginia;
Lockheed Martin,
Marriott International, and
Coventry Health Care in
Bethesda, Maryland; and
Sprint Nextel Corporation and
SLM Corporation in
Reston, Virginia.
Major defense contractors
General Dynamics,
Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC), and
Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC),
Orbital Sciences Corporation are also located in the metro area, as is the consulting firm
Booz Allen Hamilton. In addition,
America Online is located in nearby
Dulles, Virginia.
Because of the proximity to the
National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, the American genomics industry has recently sprouted in the Maryland suburbs of Washington. Prominent companies are
Celera Genomics,
The Institute for Genomic Research, and
Human Genome Sciences (all of which are in the city of
Rockville, Maryland).
Of non-government employers, Washington, D.C.'s major universities and hospitals are among the top employers with
George Washington University,
Georgetown University and
Washington Hospital Center as the top three.
Howard University and
Fannie Mae round out the top five employers in Washington, D.C.
["Top 200 Chief Executive Officers of the Major Employers in the District of Columbia." Department of Employment Services, Office of Labor Market Research and Information. September 2004. Retrieved on June 6, 2006.]The
gross state product of the District in 2004 was
$75.264 billion, ranking it #36 when compared with the fifty states.
[Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce.]Newspapers
The Washington Post is the oldest and most-read daily
newspaper in Washington, and it has developed into one of the most reputable daily newspapers in the U.S. It is perhaps most notable for exposing the
Watergate scandal, among other achievements. The daily
Washington Times and the free weekly
Washington City Paper also have substantial readership in the District. On
February 1,
2005 the free daily tabloid
Washington Examiner debuted, having been formed from a chain of suburban newspapers known as the
Journal Newspapers. The weekly
Washington Blade focuses on
gay issues, and the
Washington Informer on
African American issues.
Many neighborhoods in the District have their own small-circulation newspaper, usually published by the neighborhood association on a weekly basis. Some of these papers included the
Dupont Current (
Dupont Circle),
Georgetown Current (Georgetown),
In-Towner (Dupont Circle,
Logan Circle, &
Adams Morgan),
Northwest Current (Upper Northwest), the
Voice of the Hill, the
Hill Rag (
Capitol Hill), and
East of the River (Anacostia). In addition, several specialty newspapers have sprung up that specifically serve the U.S. Congress; most notable are
Roll Call and
The Hill.
Television
The metro area is well served by several local broadcast
television stations and is the eighth largest
designated market area in the U.S., with 2,252,550 homes (2.04% of the U.S. population). Major television network affiliates include
WUSA 9 (
CBS),
WJLA 7 (
ABC),
WRC 4, (
NBC),
WTTG 5 (
Fox),
WDCW 50 (
WB, transitioning to
The CW),
WDCA 20 (
UPN, transitioning to
My Network TV), as well as
WETA 26 and
WHUT 32 (
PBS) stations. Channels 4, 5, and 50 are
Owned-and-operated stations (however WDCW's owners only own 25% of The WB).
Public Access on Cable Television is provided by the
Public Access Corporation of the District of Columbia on two channels simulcast to both local cable TV Systems. One channel is devoted to religious programming and the other channel provides a diversity of offerings. A regional news station,
News Channel 8, is carried on Channel 8 on all cable systems in Washington, D.C. and surrounding communities. Spanish-language television is also represented by Telefutura affiliate WMDO-CA 47 and Telemundo WZDC-LP 64, but these are low-power stations whose broadcasting range is limited to within the
Capital Beltway area. Univision's WFDC 14, however, transmits as a full power station and can be received as far north as Baltimore.
Incidentally, D.C's Univision and Telefutura stations (owned by Entravision) switched call letters on
January 1,
2006; meaning that now Univision is the only Spanish station which can be seen at full power over the whole Washington metropolitan area. The Univision network moved from low-powered Channel 47/WMDO to full-powered Channel 14/WFDC; Univision's youth-oriented Telefutura network moved from 14 to 47. The change caused Univision and Telefutura to exchange channel locations on D.C. area cable TV systems, too.
Several
cable television networks have their headquarters in the Washington area including
C-SPAN on
Capitol Hill,
Black Entertainment Television (BET) in
Northeast Washington, and
Discovery Communications in
Silver Spring, Maryland, as well as the
Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) in
Alexandria, Virginia. Major national broadcasters and cable outlets including
NBC,
ABC,
CBS,
Fox, and
CNN maintain a significant presence in Washington, as do those from around the world including the
BBC,
CBC, and
Al Jazeera.
Radio
There are several major
radio stations serving the metro area, with a wide variety of musical interests.
Rock stations include
WARW 94.7 FM (
classic rock),
WIHT 99.5 FM (
top 40), and
WWDC 101.1 FM (alternative rock).
Urban stations include
WPGC 95.5 FM (
Rhythmic CHR/
Mainstream Urban),
WHUR 96.3 FM (
Howard University Urban AC station),
WMMJ 102.3FM (
Urban AC),
WKYS 93.9 FM (
Mainstream Urban), and
Radio CPR 97.5 FM (a popular
pirate radio station broadcasting the area around
Mount Pleasant,
Adams Morgan, and
Columbia Heights). Two major
contemporary Christian music stations in the region are
WGTS 91.9 FM (out of
Takoma Park) and
WPER 89.9 (out of
Warrenton, Virginia). Stations that concentrate on talk and sports include
WJFK 106.7 FM,
WMAL 630 AM (
conservative),
WWRC 1260AM (
Air America Radio), [WOL] 1450 AM,
WPGC 1580 AM (
Urban Gospel), WTEM 980 AM (sports talk),
WAVA 105.1 FM (
Christian talk),
WTOP 820 AM, 103.5 FM (all news), and
WTWP 1500 AM, 107.7 FM (Washington Post Radio/talk). Radio duos
Don and Mike and
Ron and Fez both had periods of great success on
WJFK.
Don and Mike still broadcast on
WJFK, while
Ron and Fez broadcast on DC-based
XM Satellite Radio yet out of XM's New York studio.
Three of the above-mentioned stations—WOL 1450 AM, WKYS 93.9 FM, and WMMJ 102.3—are owned by the Washington media conglomerate
Radio One. Radio One is the biggest African-American media conglomerate in the country, founded by Cathy Hughes, a prominent figure in Washington radio since her days at
Howard University's WHUR.
There are two
National Public Radio (NPR) affiliates:
WAMU 88.5 FM (usual NPR programs, community programming, and
BBC news) and
WETA 90.9 FM (round-the-clock news/analysis, broadcasting shows originating mainly from
NPR,
PRI, and
BBC). Other stations include
WASH 97.1 FM (
adult contemporary),
WMZQ 98.7 FM (
country music),
WBZS/WBPS 92.7/94.3 Mega Clasica (Latin Adult Contemporary),
WLZL El Zol 99.1 FM (Latin/Tropical),
WGMS 104.1/103.9 FM (
classical music),
WPFW 89.3 FM (
jazz and progressive talk),
WJZW 105.9 FM (
smooth jazz), and
WRQX 107.3 FM (adult contemporary). Additionally, most major radio stations from Baltimore can be heard in the Washington metropolitan area.
XM Satellite Radio and NPR are based in Washington. The
Voice of America, the U.S. government's
international broadcasting service, is headquartered in Washington.
Performing arts
Washington is a major national center for the arts, with many venues for the performing arts in the city.
Arena Stage, one of the first not-for-profit regional theaters in the nation, is rich with history and produces an eight-show season ranging from classics to world premieres, dedicated to the American canon of theater. The
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts hosts the
National Symphony Orchestra, the
Washington National Opera, the
Washington Ballet, and a variety of other musical and stage performances. Notable local music clubs include
Madam's Organ Blues Bar in
Adams Morgan; Blues Alley in Georgetown; the
Eighteenth Street Lounge in the
Dupont Circle district; and the
Black Cat, the
9:30 Club, and the
Bohemian Caverns jazz club, all in the
U Street NW area. The U Street area actually contains more than two dozen bars, clubs, and restaurants that feature jazz either nightly or several times a week.
Music
D.C. has its own native music genre, called
go-go, a post-funk, percussion-driven flavor of
R&B that blends live sets with relentless dance rhythms, so-called because they "go and go and go." The most accomplished practitioner of go-go was D.C. bandleader
Chuck Brown, who brought go-go to the brink of national recognition with his 1979 LP
Bustin' Loose. Go-Go band and Washington natives
Experience Unlimited hit the American pop charts in 1988 with their memorable dance tune "
Da Butt" Other notable go-go bands include
Rare Essence,
Trouble Funk, Junkyard, Backyard, and Northeast Groovers.
Washington was an important center in the genesis of
punk rock in the United States. Punk bands of note from Washington include
Fugazi,
Bad Brains, and
Minor Threat. Washingtonians continue to support punk bands, long after the punk movement's popularity peaked. The region also has a significant
indie rock history and was home to
TeenBeat,
Dischord Records and
Simple Machines, among other indie record labels.
Television shows
There have been several television series that have featured the District. Most of these have been related to government (
The West Wing and Commander in Chief) or security organizations (
The District,
Get Smart). Other programs had the nation's capital as a secondary focus, telling stories on their own that were not always tied to the infrastructure of the government either in the district or for the country. For instance,
Murphy Brown focused on the lives of the reporters of the (fictional) Washington-based television newsmagazine,
FYI. The soap opera
Capitol allowed for stories about political intrigue alongside the traditional class struggle sagas. The sitcom
227 portrayed the life of the African American majority as seen through the eyes of residents in a Washington apartment building. There are also many movies shot and filmed in the city yearly.
Local government
 |
The U.S. Capitol, seat of the Legislative Branch of the U.S. Federal Government, sits prominently east of the National Mall in Washington, D.C. |
The city is run by an elected mayor (currently
Anthony A. Williams) and a
city council. The city council is composed of 13 members — a representative elected from each of the eight
wards and five members, including the chairman, elected at large. The council conducts its work through standing committees and special committees established as needed. District schools are administered by a
school board that has both elected and appointed members. There are 37 elected
Advisory Neighborhood Commissions that provide the most direct access for residents to their local government. The commissions serve as local councils, and their suggestions are required to be given "great weight" by the D.C. Council. However, the U.S. Congress has the ultimate plenary power over the district. It has the right to review and overrule laws created locally and has often done so. The
Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution does not apply to the District of Columbia.
D.C. residents pay federal
taxes, such as
income tax, as well as local taxes. The mayor and council adopt a budget of local money with Congress reserving the right to make any changes. Much of the valuable property in the District is federally owned and hence exempt from local property taxes; at the same time, the city is burdened with the extraordinary expenses related to its role as the capital, such as police overtime and street cleaning for D.C.'s frequent parades and festivals. These factors are often used to explain why the city's budget is frequently overstretched. However, the federal government also appropriates funds for the city. For instance, according to Public Law 108-7, the federal government provided, among other funds, an estimated 25% of the District's operating budget in 2003.
Historically, the city's local government has earned somewhat of a reputation for mismanagement and waste, particularly during the mayoralty of
Marion Barry, who was re-elected despite serving jail time for smoking
crack cocaine. A front page story in the
July 21,
1997 Washington Post reported that Washington had some of the highest cost, lowest quality services in the region. Prosperity in the late 1990s and early 2000s has lessened public pressure on Mayor Williams, who still faces daunting
urban renewal, public health, and public education challenges.
Representation in federal government
The U.S. Constitution gives Congress direct jurisdiction for Washington, D.C. While Congress has delegated various amounts of this authority to local government, from time to time, Congress still intervenes in local affairs relating to schools,
gun control policy, and other issues. Citizens of the District lack elected voting representation in Congress, though they have three
electoral votes in the
Presidential elections, giving it more electoral votes per capita than 49 states. Citizens of Washington are represented in the
House of Representatives by a
non-voting delegate (currently
Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-
DC At-Large)) who sits on committees and participates in debate but cannot vote. D.C. does not have representation in the
Senate. Attempts to change this situation, including the proposed
District of Columbia Voting Rights Amendment, have been unsuccessful.
Citizens of Washington, D.C. are not unique in having diminished representation in their federal legislature, although they are unique in having no voting representation at all. Other nations that have built capital cities from scratch, including
Australia and
Nigeria, have diminished representation for a federal district. Washington's situation can also be compared to the historical status of
U.S. territories, which had only non-voting delegates to the House.
Public schools
The public school system in the city is operated by
District of Columbia Public Schools and consists of 167 schools and learning centers, which consist of 101 elementary schools, 11 middle schools, 9 junior high schools, 20 senior high schools, 6 education centers, and 20 special schools.
[Just the facts. DCPS. URL accessed on April 29, 2006.]See also: District of Columbia Public SchoolsPrivate schools
Private schools in the city include the British School of Washington,
Emerson Preparatory School,
Georgetown Day School, Holy Trinity School,
Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School,
Gonzaga College High School,
Edmund Burke School, Field School, German School,
The Maret School,
The Model Secondary School,
National Cathedral School, Our Lady of Victory, Sheridan School,
Sidwell Friends School,
St. Albans School,
St. Anselm's Abbey School,
St. John's College High School, Archbishop Carroll High School, St.Augustine Catholic School and the
Washington International School.
Colleges and universities
The city is home to several
universities,
colleges, and other institutes of
higher education, both public and private. The
University of the District of Columbia is the city's public university; it is the nation's only urban
land-grant university and is counted among the
historically black colleges. The
Department of Agriculture's Graduate School offers continuing education and graduate-level classes in many disciplines. The Department of Defense maintains the
National Defense University at
Fort McNair.
Among private institutions,
Georgetown University is older than the District itself, having been founded in 1789 by
John Carroll. It is the nation's oldest
Roman Catholic affiliated body of higher education. The nation's first African American university president was at Georgetown. The university is especially well-known for the
Edmund Walsh School of Foreign Service and the
Georgetown University Law Center.
The George Washington University, founded by an act of Congress in 1821, is the largest institution of higher education in the nation's capital with its main campus in
Foggy Bottom and its Mount Vernon campus in the
Foxhall neighborhood of
Northwest Washington. It is the second-largest landholder and employer in the District, second only to the Federal government.
The Catholic University of America (CUA), in the Northeast quadrant of the District is unique as the national university of the Roman Catholic Church and as the only higher education institution founded by U.S.
Roman Catholic bishops. Established in 1887 following approval by
Pope Leo XIII as a graduate and research center, the university began offering undergraduate education in 1904. In April of 2004, CUA purchased 49 acres (20 ha) of land from the Armed Forces Retirement Home. The parcel is the largest plot of open space in the District and makes CUA the largest university in D.C. by land area.
Trinity University, a female-only Roman Catholic affiliated institution, is located near CUA.
American University, a private institution chartered by an act of Congress in 1893, is situated on an 84 acre (34 ha) campus in upper Northwest Washington and is well known for the
Washington College of Law, the
Kogod School of Business, the
School of International Service, the
School of Public Affairs and the
School of Communication.
Other notable private colleges in the District include
Gallaudet University, the first school for the advanced education of the
deaf and
hard-of-hearing;
Howard University, a historically black university dating to the nineteenth century; and
Southeastern University. Howard and Gallaudet have the distinction of being named for persons unaffiliated with their primary focus: Howard University is named for a white man, and Gallaudet University is named for a man who was not deaf.
Furthermore,
The Johns Hopkins University's
Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), dedicated to the graduate study of
international relations and international
economics, is located near
Dupont Circle, on Massachusetts Avenue's
Embassy Row.
The
Corcoran College of Art and Design has an arts program attached to the Corcoran Museum of Art, adjacent to the White House Complex. The
Reformed Theological Seminary and the Washington Theological Union have graduate programs in theology.
Strayer University, a for-profit career school, has a campus in Washington, D.C.
Other professional and semi-professional teams based in D.C. include the
USAFL Baltimore Washington Eagles, the
NWFA D.C. Divas, the
Minor League Football D.C. Explosion, and the
Washington Cricket League. It was also home to the
WUSA Washington Freedom, from 1987 to 1989 home of the
Major Indoor Lacrosse League's
Washington Wave, and during the 2000â€"
2002 NLL seasons, the
Washington Power was based in the city. In
rugby league, the
Washington D.C. Slayers play in the
American National Rugby League.
There were two
Major League Baseball teams named the
Washington Senators in the early and mid-
20th century, which left to become respectively the
Minnesota Twins and the
Texas Rangers. In the
19th century, the town was home to teams called the Washington Nationals, Washington Statesmen, and Washington Senators on and off from the 1870s to the turn of the century.
Washington was home to several
Negro League baseball teams, including the
Homestead Grays,
Washington Black Senators,
Washington Elite Giants,
Washington Pilots, and
Washington Potomacs.
The
Verizon Center in
Chinatown, home to the Capitals, Mystics, Wizards, and the
Georgetown Hoyas, is also a major venue for concerts,
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE)
professional wrestling, and other events.
Washington hosts the annual
Legg Mason Tennis Classic tennis tournament that takes place at the
Carter Barron Tennis Center on 16th Street.
The
National Marathon is held annually in Washington.
City streets in the District of Columbia are organized primarily in a grid-like fashion with its origin at the
United States Capitol. The north-south roads are primarily named with numbers (ie. 1st Street, 2nd Street, etc), while the east-west roads are primarily named with letters (ie. A Street, B Street, etc). Among this network of streets, there are diagonal roads; these roads are named after specific states in the United States. Within this grid, all streets are a part of one of the four
quadrants, the center being the Capitol Building. There are a
Northeast (NE),
Northwest (NW),
Southeast (SE), and
Southwest (SW). All roads end with this suffix at the end of their title. For example, there are a 4th Street NE, 4th Street NW, 4th Street SE, and 4th Street SW.
Major interstates running through the area include the
Capital Beltway (I-495),
I-66,
I-95,
I-395,
I-295, and
I-270 (which does not reach D.C., terminating at I-495). Other major highways include the
Whitehurst Freeway, and
Anacostia Freeway in D.C., the
George Washington Parkway in D.C. and Virginia, the
Suitland Parkway in D.C. and Maryland,
US Route 50, the
Clara Barton Parkway and the
Baltimore-Washington Parkway in Maryland, and the
Dulles Toll Road in Virginia.
The Washington area is served by the
Washington Metro public transportation system, which operates public
buses (
Metrobus) and the region's subway system (
Metrorail). A
public-private partnership operates the
DC Circulator buses downtown. Many of the jurisdictions around the region run public buses that interconnect with the Metrobus/Metrorail system.
Union Station is served by
MARC and
VRE commuter trains, and
Amtrak intercity rail. Intercity bus service is available from the
Greyhound Bus Terminal in
Northeast and from
dragon buses leaving from Chinatown.
Washington, D.C. is served by three major
airports: two are located in suburban Virginia and one in Maryland.
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is the closest — located in Arlington County, Virginia, just across the
Potomac River from
Hains Point, and accessible via Washington Metro. The airport is conveniently located to the downtown area; however it has somewhat restricted flights to airports within the United States because of noise and security concerns. Most major international flights arrive and depart from
Washington Dulles International Airport , located 26.3 miles (42.3 km) west of the city in
Fairfax and
Loudoun counties in Virginia. Dulles is the second busiest international gateway on the
Eastern Seaboard. Dulles offers service from several low-cost carriers including
JetBlue, although the low-cost selection decreased greatly when
Independence Air (which was headquartered at Dulles) folded in January 2006. It is the Washington/Baltimore region's largest airport in terms of passengers served. 27 million passengers were served in the year 2005.
Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport , is located 31.7 miles (51.0 km) northeast of the city in
Anne Arundel County, Maryland, near Baltimore. BWI is notable for its variety of
low-cost carrier, such as
Southwest Airlines and has had the highest passenger volume of the three major airports in the Baltimore-Washington Metroplex for several months.
General aviation is additionally available at several smaller airfields, including
Montgomery County Airpark (
Gaithersburg, Maryland),
College Park Airport (
College Park, Maryland),
Potomac Airfield (
Friendly CDP of
Prince George's County, Maryland), and
Manassas Regional Airport (
Manassas, Virginia). Since 2003, the general aviation airports closest to Washington, D.C. have had their access strictly limited by the implementation of the
Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).
Washington, D.C., has nine
sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International, Inc.:
[Sister Cities International, Inc. Accessed May 29, 2006.]*
Athens,
Greece*
Bangkok,
Thailand*
Beijing,
China*
Brazzaville,
Congo*
Brussels,
Belgium*
Chongqing,
China*
Dakar,
Senegal*
Paris,
France*
Pretoria,
South Africa*
Seoul,
KoreaIn
June,
2006, the city signed an Agreement of Friendship with the
British city of
Sunderland, signalling the start of increased economic and cultural cooperation between the two cities.
[Staff Writer. "Cities in star-spangled agreement." BBC News. June 21, 2006. Retrieved on July 8, 2006.] Washington Old Hall, on the outskirts of Sunderland, is the ancestral home of
George Washington.
*
List of neighborhoods of the District of Columbia by ward*
Official Website*
Greater Washington Regional Economic Initiative*
Washington, D.C. Convention and Tourism Corporation*
City Museum of Washington, D.C.*
Washington DC Community*
Washington, D.C. Monuments and Memorials*
DC Blogs listing and live feed*
DC Bars and ClubsWebcams
*
Washington Monument Capitol Building Webcam*
Washington Monument Capitol Building Potomac River WebcamMaps
*
Locations of boundary stones*
Washington, DC Crime Map
