History
Lost Washington: Carroll Row
Carroll Row, built ca. 1800, was located at the northeast corner of 1st and A Streets, SE.
The most important of the five houses in the row was the northern most structure, which was one of Washington's earliest hotels -- Long's Hotel. It was the site of many festive occasions, including President Madison's inaugural ball in 1809. An eyewitness of the ball described the guests as a "moving mass" that crowded into the ballroom and broke an upper window sash for ventilation when the air became oppressive.
Carroll Row was built by Daniel Carroll who was the principal landowner of Capitol Hill in the early nineteenth century. The row became famous for becoming fashionable boardinghouses for members of Congress prior to the Civil War, with patrons including John Quincy Adams and Abraham Lincoln while he was a member of the 30th Congress (1847-49).
The row was occupied and used as headquarters by General Robert Ross and Admiral Sir George Cockburn, leaders of the invading British forces who burned the city on the night of August 24, 1814. During the invasion, the southernmost house (closest to Pennsylvania Avenue) became a hospital for wounded British soldiers. Later, in the 1830s, it served as the printing establishment of Duff Green, editor of the United States Telegraph and printer for the government.
During the Civil War the entire row served as Carroll Prison, housing the government's political prisoners.
The entire row was razed in 1887 to make way for the Library of Congress. The library's Jefferson Building is now located on the site that included Carroll Row.
Kent Boese posts items of historic interest primarily within the District. He's worked in libraries since 1994, both federal and law, and currently works on K Street. He lives in the Park View neighborhood, and is the force behind the blog Washington Kaleidoscope.  |
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The Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress is one of the most beautiful and splendid examples of architecture in this hemisphere. Incredibly- sounds were made in the 1950's & 60's to demolish this masterpiece. What DID happen- was across the street- an entire block of period builgs was destroyed- some dating back to the 1700's and this block was left abandoned until that awful edifice- the Madison Building- was put up.
IMO- the Madison is one of the very worst buildings in the city- along w/ the Department of Labor & the FBI building.
by w on Oct 26, 2009 3:11 pm • link • report
by IMGoph on Oct 28, 2009 12:03 pm • link • report
This part of what is now called Capitol Hill had the largest population of stone cutters & carvers in the entire city.
A street NE and the surrouding streets were a veritable stonemasons neighborhood.
If you spoke German, you would fit right in.
Thomas U Walter, himself a German/American, evidently encouraged many of his fellow German Americans to come to this part of DC to work on the Capitol extensions & the new dome that he designed.
It is not as well known as being an "ethnic neighborhhod" since many of these folks had been in the USA for a few generations already , they were NOT immigrants, but kept the German culture close to hand. You can still see the signs in the area- storefronts, stained glass transoms with German Names , etc.
My own family was part of this area from the early 1850's and we have a lot of research materials on this topic.
by w on Oct 28, 2009 1:37 pm • link • report
This part of what is now called Capitol Hill had the largest population of stone cutters & carvers in the entire city.
A street NE and the surrouding streets were a veritable stonemasons neighborhood.
If you spoke German, you would fit right in.
Thomas U Walter, himself a German/American, evidently encouraged many of his fellow German Americans to come to this part of DC to work on the Capitol extensions & the new dome that he designed.
It is not as well known as being an "ethnic neighborhhod" since many of these folks had been in the USA for a few generations already , they were NOT immigrants, but kept the German culture close to hand. You can still see the signs in the area- storefronts, stained glass transoms with German Names , etc.
My own family was part of this area from the early 1850's and we have a lot of research materials on this topic.
by w on Oct 28, 2009 1:38 pm • link • report
This part of what is now called Capitol Hill had the largest population of stone cutters & carvers in the entire city.
A street NE and the surrouding streets were a veritable stonemasons neighborhood.
If you spoke German, you would fit right in.
Thomas U Walter, himself a German/American, evidently encouraged many of his fellow German Americans to come to this part of DC to work on the Capitol extensions & the new dome that he designed.
It is not as well known as being an "ethnic neighborhhod" since many of these folks had been in the USA for a few generations already , they were NOT immigrants, but kept the German culture close to hand. You can still see the signs in the area- storefronts, stained glass transoms with German Names , etc.
My own family was part of this area from the early 1850's and we have a lot of research materials on this topic.
by w on Oct 28, 2009 1:39 pm • link • report
This part of what is now called Capitol Hill had the largest population of stone cutters & carvers in the entire city.
A street NE and the surrouding streets were a veritable stonemasons neighborhood.
If you spoke German, you would fit right in.
Thomas U Walter, himself a German/American, evidently encouraged many of his fellow German Americans to come to this part of DC to work on the Capitol extensions & the new dome that he designed.
It is not as well known as being an "ethnic neighborhhod" since many of these folks had been in the USA for a few generations already , they were NOT immigrants, but kept the German culture close to hand. You can still see the signs in the area- storefronts, stained glass transoms with German Names , etc.
My own family was part of this area from the early 1850's and we have a lot of research materials on this topic.
by w on Oct 28, 2009 1:39 pm • link • report
This part of what is now called Capitol Hill had the largest population of stone cutters & carvers in the entire city.
A street NE and the surrouding streets were a veritable stonemasons neighborhood.
If you spoke German, you would fit right in.
Thomas U Walter, himself a German/American, evidently encouraged many of his fellow German Americans to come to this part of DC to work on the Capitol extensions & the new dome that he designed.
It is not as well known as being an "ethnic neighborhhod" since many of these folks had been in the USA for a few generations already , they were NOT immigrants, but kept the German culture close to hand. You can still see the signs in the area- storefronts, stained glass transoms with German Names , etc.
My own family was part of this area from the early 1850's and we have a lot of research materials on this topic.
by w on Oct 28, 2009 1:39 pm • link • report
by w on Oct 28, 2009 1:42 pm • link • report
Evidence of the German neighborhood connection remains -- look closely at the main entrance of the red brick building that occupies the northeast corner of Independence Avenue and Third Streets, S.E. The stone carving says "Germania." This building housed the offices of the German Building Association, an S&L that served the Washinton German American Community. Later, it was renamed the German American Building Association, and then, when the US entered World War I, it became the American Building Association, which was carved in stone over the entrance of the new offices at Pennsylvania Ave. and Third St., S.E. It was then merged into Perpetual American (and the stonework was covered with a metal sign), Crestar, and, ultimately, to, Suntrust.
by Nemo on Sep 20, 2011 10:51 am • link • report
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