The District of Columbia—identical
with the city of Washington—is the capital of the
United States. It is located between Virginia and
Maryland on the Potomac River. The district is named
after Columbus.
DC history began in 1790 when Congress directed
selection of a new capital site, 100 sq mi, along
the Potomac. When the site was determined, it
included 30.75 sq mi on the Virginia side of the
river. In 1846, however, Congress returned that area
to Virginia, leaving the 68.25 sq mi ceded by
Maryland in 1788. The seat of government was
transferred from Philadelphia to Washington on Dec.
1, 1800, and President John Adams became the first
resident in the White House.
The city was planned and partly laid out by Maj.
Pierre Charles L'Enfant, a French engineer. This
work was perfected and completed by Maj. Andrew
Ellicott and Benjamin Banneker, a freeborn black man
who was an astronomer and mathematician. In 1814,
during the War of 1812, a British force burned the
capital including the White House.
Until Nov. 3, 1967, the District of Columbia was
administered by three commissioners appointed by the
president. On that day, a government consisting of a
mayor-commissioner and a 9-member council, all
appointed by the president with the approval of the
Senate, took office. On May 7, 1974, the citizens of
the District of Columbia approved a Home Rule
Charter, giving them an elected mayor and 13-member
council—their first elected municipal government in
more than a century. The district also has one
nonvoting member in the House of Representatives and
an elected Board of Education.
On Aug. 22, 1978, Congress passed a proposed
constitutional amendment to give Washington, DC,
voting representation in the Congress. The amendment
had to be ratified by at least 38 state legislatures
within seven years to become effective. It died in
1985. A petition asking for the district's admission
to the Union as the 51st state was filed in Congress
on Sept. 9, 1983, and new statehood bills were
introduced in 1993. The district is continuing this
drive for statehood.
The federal government and tourism are the mainstays
of the city's economy, and many unions, business,
professional, and nonprofit organizations are
headquartered there. Among the city's many
educational institutions are the Catholic University
of America, Georgetown University, Howard
University, and Gallaudet University. Cultural
attractions include the National Gallery of Art, the
Smithsonian Institution, the John F. Kennedy Center
for the Performing Arts, and the Folger Shakespeare
Library. |
