Things to do / Travel Guide
With an act of Congress in 1790, the District of Columbia was carved out of parts of Maryland and Virginia, and chosen as the site of the U.S. capital and the seat of its federal government. Two years later, the cornerstone was laid for the construction of the White House.
In 1800, the national government officially moved its operations from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to the district's city, named Washington after the country's first president. The district takes its name from “Columbia,” the first name for the United States.
Designed in a grid pattern with the Capitol Building, home to the national Congress, at its center, the city quickly developed over the next decade or so. When British forces attacked the city in the War of 1812, however, many of the new buildings were burnt down, including the White House. The First Lady at the time, Dolly Madison, has been recorded as a heroine of American history for refusing to leave her home until the last possible moment and for saving an iconic portrait of George Washington, which hangs in the rebuilt White House until today.
The remainder of the 19th century served as a period first of struggles and later of growth for the city. The Civil War would provide a major boost to the city's population, as it was the acting military and political center of the Union army, allowing the District of Columbia to quickly expand over the next few years. This growth would continue after the war's end, too.
Since then, the city has not only remained the center of national government activity, but it has also been the scene of historic public protests, especially during the banner years of the civil rights movement. It was then, for example, when Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech at the Lincoln Memorial.
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