Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1885-04-25

rocks and rapids, and, therefore, no doubt mod
flied his expectation of this city becoming
the great emporium of the country.
While the proximity of this site to the river
was no doubt, the controlling motive in the
mind of Washington in making the selection,
Yet, as he rode along on the Virginia side from
his home in Mount Vernon, and gazed across
the shining surface of the broad bosom of the
river, his eye fell upon scene of picturesque
beauty. There were the circling heights
clothed with forest trees, and below the land
diversified by. cultivation wild shrubbery,
gently descended to the river edge. Here and
there might be seen the houses of the prOprie-
tors OF the plantations where corn and wheat
Who owned ali the land where the city now
stands were mainly English people, who had OBJ
tanned their patents to the land from the king.
PRIMITIVE WASHINGTON.
They were the Carrolls the Youngs, the Da-
Wilson's, the Peters, the Walkers, the Warnings,
people of sterling character, who are described
in the early chronicles as living in comfortable
style and cultfvating their land with the help
of their slaves. AS may be seen from the map,
the land was well watered. In addition to the
Potomac and Rock creek along the northern
and western border, there was the Eastern
branch on the south, navigable for seven miles
above its mouth, to the town of Badensburg.
Goose Tor Tiber) creek which is now used merely
as sewer outlet, was at that time a large
stream, formed by two branches arising in the
hills to the north. Its course was along where
North Capitol street now is, and then turning
at the foot OF Capitol Hill to the west it crossed
fhs ayshqs Sg below Sd street, and, widening out
Aenter9 i2arket and q portion of the
Smithsonian grounds to the Potomac. From
9th street, Tiber creek had more the appear
ance of a great arm of the river than country
stream, and from the character of the land in
that portion of the District it has been thought
that at one time it was all under water For
many years the swampy nature of the ground
prevented the rapid improvement of this part
of the city, which is now the principal business
hauled and fish taken along the Avenue, be-
tween 9th and 10th streets, where now
handsome stores stand. The citizens in
those days We're accustomed to go to where
the Center market now stands for the pur-
pose of getting aboard the vessels that piled
up and down the river, which made their way
into the city by the Tiber creek This name
gave point to one OF the lines in Tom MoOre's
satire upon this city, which he visited in 1904.
The poet sneeringly wrote, what was Goose
creek is Tiber now," and added:
This famed metropolis, where fancy sees
Squares In morasses, obelisks in trees"
WHY IT WAS CALLED TIBER CREEK
The rather high sounding name of Tiber was
bestowed upon the stream, not from any preten-
tiOus motives, but rather as neighborhood joke
upon one of the early inhabitants by the name
of Pope, whose plantation was located on Capitol
Hill. His farm named Rome. He was
called the Pope of Rome, and naturally the
stream which meandered around his place was
called the Tiber. The early inhabitants pre-
lerTtu the name Goose creek, but
Later days the more pretentious designation
Tiber creek was adopted. subsequently u canal
was constructed connecting the Tiber with the
James creek, a stream which entered the PotO-
mac at Greenleafs point, and it was used by the
Chesapeake and Ohio canal boats for bringing
supplies to the city. 1t is a rather singular
TACT that on LEnfants map of this city the
line of a canal connecting the upper Potomac
with the Tiber creek is indicated precisely in
Chesapeake and Ohio canal was built In the
northern portion of the city, above NJ
street, there was another swamp, which was
known in later days as the Slashes, and
the theory was that this swamp was the
bed OF portion of Rock creek, which at
an early day flowed in the direction of the
Eastern Branch. Another stream which is
within the recollection of citizens liv-
ing was the Four-mile Run, which had it's rise
east OF 18th street, crossed Massachusetts ave-
nue. near scott circle and them making turn
as indicated db IN a, the map crossed Connecticut
west to Rock Creek. From the elevation of
Capitol Hill with this diversified country spread
out on all sides and the circling hills and shin
ing river as the framework, the picture present
ed to the eye of Washington and LEnfant as
they stood gazing over what was to be the site
One
PROMISING FUTURE.
While the situation was no doubt pictur-
esque, and appealed strongly to the eye of an
architect and surveyor, there were not lacking
indications that at some day in the future this
Georgetown had begun to creep up the heights
from the. water edge where Ninian Beall, a
ScOtchman, had come, In 1908, with land
patent for 795 acres of the Rock of Dunbarton.
Other people of his own nationality followed,
and in 1851 Georgetown formally organ
lied by the assembly of Maryland, the name
the founder of the place. Scotch Row in Duck
Lane found its ancient glory as the aristocratic
quarter Of the town slowly fading in the more
brilliant luster of the Heights, and Georgetown
had become a town of considerable commercial
importance when the capital city was but yet
mere tobacco plantation. Further down the
river was still another settlement, known as
Hamburg, which was located Just south of the
hill where the naval observatory now stands
On the records Hamburg would appear to have
been a good-sized place, with its streets and
building sites laid out in regular blocks, but it
was never very thickly settled, and there is to-
day but few indications showing that a settle
ment ever existed in that locality. The land
was purchased and laid out in the year 1771 in
building lots by Mr. Jacob Funk, for whom
Funkstown, in Maryland was named. The lots
were sold mainly to servants and poor people,
and the houses put up were not of the substan,
tial character which endures the attacks of
time. When, however the lots came to be ex-
changed for lots in the subdivision OF the new
in the country were found to be owners of these
lots in the settlement of Hamburg.
CARROLLsBURG AND BLADENsBURG.
In the previous year Charles Carroll decided
the tract known Duddington Manor to
Henry Rozer, Daniel Carroll and Motley Young,
and a portion was laid off in city lots
and sold. Quite a settlement sprang up,
which was known Carrollsburg. 1t was 10
Gated just to the east of Greenleafs Point,
where the Arsenal now stands, and extended
up to street south. A great many substantial
citizens lived there, as the houses still standing
indicate. In addition to these settlements the
town OF Bladensburg, situated at the head OF
navigation on the Eastern branch, was founded
In the year 1742, when Baden was governor OF
Maryland, nine years before Georgetown had
come into existence as town. Further down
the Potomac, some seven miles, was the village
of Alexandria, which was founded in 174S, and
at the time the capital city was laid out lively
bustling business place, as it was the market
and main shipping point In the region for to-
bacco and other productions. The trade of
Georgetown, Alexandria, Carrolisburg and
Bladensburg had reached very considerable pro-
portions when w sshington selected this site, and