Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1886-07-31

THE WAR a PRISOS-CAPIToI. HILL SIXTY
YEARS AGo-coL- JAMES A. TAIT's RECoLLEC-
TONS.
Among the buildings soon to be torn down
10 make room for the Congressional Library
building, is an old structure or rather row OF
buildings To which is attached considera-
Bile historic interest This is the row LIST
street east, extending nOrtnward from street
south. and facing the Capitol grounds. TWAS
formerly known as the Duff Green row. During
the war IL was known as the Carroll prison, and
since the war the houses in the row have been
used generally as tenement or boarding houses,
and the row has been known a. Carroll row,
taking the name from Daniel Carroll to whose
large estate the property originally belonged
There are five houses in the row. They were
made of the generous width that Character
lied the houses erected by people of means in
the early days of the century. The houses,
which have "a somewhat gloomy ana prison.
like appearance ON account OF the dull color of
the stucco with which the walls are covered,
have pitched or gable roots and old fashioned
dormer windows. some of the houses have been
frightened up little since the war. and slate
roofs give them something of a modern air. The
other houses still have the original shingle roof
This row, which is now divided into five
houses. was originally a hotel. During the war
IL became noted as a prison, in which many
persons suspected of disioyaity to the govern
ment were confined. a few years alter the war
It was bought by Mr.. Ordway and others, with
the view, was stated at the time of securing
"A site for a large hotel. The hotel project now
ever, was never carried out.
COL TAITS RECoLLECTIoNs.
Col James A TAFT, as he sat at the door of his
office on Pennsylvania avenue, Capitol Hill,
last evening, was asked by a STAR reporter
what he knew about the Carroll row. Col.
TAFT, who Is seventy-Iwo years old, has lived on
Capitol Hill ali his life.
THAT row, he said, "was erected long before
my time. i can remember il when was seven
years old. 1t was then Nick Queens hotel.
Nick Queen occupied all the row for hotel pur-
q nj ~ W
pied then and Tor many years by DIR. James
EweD, VINO was the author OF The Medical
Companion, quite a noted work. Afterwards
Duff Green occupied the as q printing
establishment Ex-senator Simon Cameron
worked there as "A printer, and others whom
i knew ana who are now old men worked
there. Duff Green had large printing eStab-
hshment and issued from there the United
lStufeS Telegraph. lou must not coniound
Queens hotel with the Indian Queen hotel. The
Indian Queen WAS kept by old Jesse Brown ON
Pennsylvania avenue, where now stands the
Metropolitan hotel. In the days OF my boy hood
Queen hotel. called by its owners name, was
n fine structure comparatively, and was one of
the principal hotels OF the capital. In those
days ali the fashion was on Capitol Hill. Mem
bers OF Congress and many persons of note and
wealth lived on Tie hill near the Capitol Many
OF the houses on New Jersey avenue now stand
Ing were standing them Pennsylvania avenue
west oI the Capitol was swamp. L can stand
here at my Office door and can see OILY one or
two houses that have noi been built in my day.
Why used to shoot ducks ON a pond over there
beyond sd street, and ON the other side of Penn
sylvania avenue used To trap rabbits. IL was all
q waste east OF that. There was no thorough
fare from the Navy Yard by way of Pennsyl-
Sania avenue. Coming from the Navy Yard
the road used TO be over the hill by Providence
hospital anu thence up ~ street by 81. Peters
church Capitol Hill, or the Capitol park in
front OF Queen 5 hotel. WAS Then twenty-iour feet
higher than ii now, and it used to be
terrtced. 1t down twelve feet, and
subsequently,, in the days OF the board oi pub
lie works, cut down twelve feet more. / re-
member seeing the stage coaches drive up the
road To the hotel. During the war of 1912,
when the British burned the Capitol, they
brought In their soldiers wounded at Bladens-
burg and occupied the corner house. DIR. EwelIS
house, hospital. DIR. Ewell and the British
surgeons attended the wounded there. The
East Capitol market then frame struc-
ture on East Capitol street, between LIST and I'd
streets W men IL was torn down the timbers
and cypress shingles We're used in constructing
the frame house now standing at the corner OF
I'd and East Capitol streets Those shingles, L
dare say. arr on the house yet They will last
u hundred years. Alter the row passed out of
Dun Green's hands the houses We're used as
congressional boarding houses. They were
used as boarding houses up 10 the time of the
War, when the building was converted by the
government Into IL prlson-the Carroll prison.
The Old Capitol, which, was also used a
prison, had been a boarding house, and there
John T.. Calhoun died.