The times., 1901-04-14
MEMORIES Oh TIBER CREEK
A Historic Stream of the Capitals
Earlier Days.
Not Now Extinct, hut Meandering It's
Way in Subterranean Courses-Its
Tributaries That Have Given Way
to the March of Improvement.

| Like Rome Washington has it's Tiber,
no longer flowing above ground in the
| broad light of open day as formerly, it is
| true, but creeping In subterranean depths
| beneath the city's thoroughfares and
turned, at length, ignominiousiy into a
sewer. 1t must be an old resident of this
| city who can recall the Tiber in it's paImy
days, when citizens bathed in it's refresh
| ing waters in summer or skated on its
| congealed surface in winter But among
! those to whom that stream is a pleasant
memory of his boyhood days is DR.. Joseph
| T. Howard, an officer of the Oldest In
! habitants' Association of the District. DR..
| Howard can, if he chooses, project his
mind back some fifty odd years and re-
call a great number of changes in aspect
! which this city has undergone in that pc
riod, not the least striking being the dis
appearance. utterly and completely, of III
ber Creek and its host of tributary
streams which made portions of what is
now Washington difficult or impossible
for pedestrians to appreciate.
THE main stem of the Tiber,' said DR.
Howard, "or what / consider as such,
| was formed by draining from the hills
and dales between Seventh and Four
| teenth Streets and extended about a mile
north of Florida Avenue, eliminating in
a stream that entered the city limits at
the intersection OF Eighth Street and
Florida Avenue. Passing down Eighth
Street southwark to r, it turned eastward
to Fifth and then flowed southwark to
Third and o Streets. thence east along
o Street to Second Street, where il re-
ceived tributary that had it's origin
northwest of McCloud's Woods (now
Glenwood Cemetery Running south, it
was joined by another branch Just north
of St. Patrick's burying ground that had
its origin in the valley now occupied by
the new reservoir Both tributaries flowed
southwark east Of St. Patricks Gene
terry, to O Street to form a confluence
with the main stream. From this point
the creek flowed east and southeast to a
point adjacent to where First and NJ
Streets now intersect where it was fed by
another stream that had it's origin some
where north of McClouds Woods
through which it flowed in a soutbeaster-
ly direction to Berwyn Woods, and thence
south through Gales Place now Eek
ington) to near the old mill Logan's
Mill, where ii returned the waste water
from the mill wheel and went on TO unite
with the main branch from o Street. The
Tiber, in its southwark course, took
direction near to and parallel with what
is now First Street east TO point where
sects North Capitol Street, where it was
joined by stream flowing westward from
the eastern part OF the city between f
and II Streets east. and from Chicken
Cock Hill, as the high ground between
Delaware Avenue and Third Street north
east was called Where this tributary
passed under the track of the Baltimore
and Ohio Railroad there was substan-
tiai arch called the eulyert
"On the west side of the eulvcrt the
stream bulged out very wide, and, being
quite deep, it was favorite swimming
place. Taking a curve in southeastern
ly direction the creek passed through
New Jersey Avenue at d Street north
west, and curved gracefully toward the
intersection of First Street and Indiana
Avenue northwest, where it was again
arched over for the passage of the rail-
road and was Joined by tributary form
ed by drainage from the hills, quick
sands, and marshes in the neighborhood
of New York Avenue, as that thorough
fare passed between Fourth and Sixth
Streets northwest This stream attained
considerable width at X Street and flow
ed southwark between Fourth and Fifth
Streets, through Donahue's soap factory,
into the jail Lot as it was called, now
judiciary Square, then through 1t diagon-
ally TO Fourth and Z Streets, and on to
Third and Indiana Avenue, thence
along the latter thoroughfare to unite
with the main stream at the last mention
ed culvert. From this point the Tiber be-
came fully formed and flowed in south
westerly direction. to 3 Street, and thence
south along Second Street, under Penn
sylVania Avenue, through what Is now
the Botanic Garden to Third street
and Maine Avenue, where il emptied into
the canal 1t is hardly necessary TO aqd
that, while at the time referred to Tiber
Creek was only covered over at the points
indicated, it is now entirely covered In
from it's source TO its mouth, and those
who knew it not In days of yore have no
idea of it's still threading its way De
meath the surface, through our wonder
fully progressive city; but to those who,
like myself knew 1t well. though lost 10
sight, it is still TO memory dear
"Of the many scenes and incidents en-
acted in, about, and upon the banks or
the Tiber, / will only mention few that
impressed me most at the time OF their
occurrence The right bank of the T1ber,
curving from Third Street northwest TO
near l. Street, consisted OF gradually
rising hill eliminating at about NJ Street
in what was called Reedbirds Hill,
which was intersectsd by the Red Chalk
Hill Road, now North Capitol Street ON
the slope of this hill toward the T1ber.
between Second Street and the Chalk
Road, was a vacant lot used by the Gen
eral Postoffice Department as the place
course a large crowd was attracted when
ever the letters We're to be burned, and
when the process was completed many
persons would engage in searching among
the ashes. their labors often being re-
warded by the searchers finding coins
and trinkets which had escaped the Vigi-
lance of those who had been employed in
searching the letters before they were
sent out to be burned. On that part of
Reedbirds' Hill between the Red Chalk
Road and Tiber Greek there was large
blackberry patch which was the general
resort of parties IN guest of that escu-
lent; here also, on the southeasterly slope
of the hill toward the creek. was spring
of clear and cool water that often quench-
ed the thirst of berry hunters and others
AT about the point where M Street eX-
tended would have crossed the creek was
Logan'S Pond favorite resort for Juve-
nile swimmers in Spite of the mill own
ers wishes. and when the water was full
of bathers it was only necessary to sound
urchins make for I shore, seize their
clothing, and deca In various direc-
tions to be out of ger. South of Lo-
gan's Pond. betwe II and l. Streets
euphonious names as Blue Cork and
'Piggory.' where many Washlngtonian
myself among the humber, first learned
the useful and beautiful art of swimming
Passing still farther southWard, and east
of the point where Massachusetts Avenue
extended would have, crossed the stream,
was another swimming pond rms was
the culVert Of which mention has already
been made. Ii was Eat one time, thirty
feet wide, quite long. and very deep in
the middle. II was here that / was en-
abled. with the aid of others, to save the
life of one of the Wickliffe boys-Robert,
] think. His father was Postmaster Gen
eral at the time and lived in a house op-
posite the General Postotiice. that occu-
Bank now stands The boy. who was
older and larger than myself. had at