Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-02-17
EARLY WASHINGTON
Incidents of Fishing Days in
Foggy Bottom.
RIVALRY OF SECTIONS
Real Estate Values Back in the Year
1903.
FIGURES OF BUSINESS GROWTH
Some Of the Residents of West Wash
ington and K Street in the
Twenties and Thirties.

In that portion of the capital city to
which the name of the Lower Bridge ap
piled in the early part of the last century
and later that of "Foggy Bottom was the
enumeration of the squares commenced
Square No. 1 was the designation Of that
south of K street, east of Rock creek, and
though a building square, supposed to be
terra firma, was partially covered by the
waters of the creek, especially the south
west portion. This square was in the
Peters tract, called Mexico" which, skirt
ing the creek in the early years, and nav
igable for vessels of few hundred tons
to the mills above P street, and had a
depth of ten feet west of this square.
There were no mean wharfage privileges.
Before the construction of the Chesapeake
and Ohio canal, about 1880, one of the
enjoyments was fishing in the creek Some
of the early settlers built wharves on the
creek, and at that of Shaw & Birth, stone
cutters, stone was landed from the Acquia
Creek quarries for twenty years or more
1t is well known by students of the
early history of Washington that some
of the leading men in developing the city
in other sections We're jealous of the
western portion, and, indeed, 1T was in
timated that the commissioners were par
tial to it, and We're doing their best to
locate the navy yard, the marine barracks,
etc, in the west end. The construction Of
the bridge a K street, in the embryo days,
though in the line of travel for Washing
ton the subject of criticism by Mr..
Law, whose interests We're in other sec
tons
Square No. /, as may be supposed, is
now solid earth. and all it's lines well de-
fined by eth, 2sth K and 1 streets and
Virginia avenue. On the original plan
twenty-five lots were plated, five 'front.'
ing on X street: In 1898 the second east
of 2Sth street, lot II, was bought by H.
KONG, but in 1896 it passed to Thomas
Cook and ]. E. Rowles. That year Mr..
Cook acquired the lot east. No. II. and
streets. and 10. In 1897 H. Shively
bought part 10 and A. Ault the south half
of 8, on the creek, with the privilege of
WHARFAGE and Soi IN 1893 Mr. Mr.; shivsly bought ought
bought lot 10, and afterward other lots
on the same square.
Corporation Values in 1903.
In 1903 the corporation values were 6 to
cents per foot for the ground A. Ault
was taxed on $500 improvements in lot 8;
L. Harbaugh, $1,000, raised in 1907 to
81 800, on lot g. a two-storied brick house;
II. Snively, 5000, in the name of Shaw &
Birth, in 1907 assessed at $500 two
stored brick and frame on lots 10 and IL;
II. Snively, $500, assessed to M. Hebner In
1907, lot II, and Shaw & Birth, 500, lot ID:
Rufus Elliot, stone cutter, bought part
of lot 20, on 9th street In 1S12; David
Walker and Henry Foxall. in lot 10 ad
joining In 1915: Samuel Smoot lot T. on
18th street, and Alex. Suter lot 2, on 1
street. in 1916 the latter selling shortly
after to John Pickrell. John Lawrence, in
1915 bought parts of lots on 2Sth street,
and In the twenties Francis Dodge Of
Georgetown had two lots on 9th street;
P. Otterback and Richard Smith, lots on
2Sth street. and James Birth three lots,
three-fifths of the K street front. In 1924
the assessment was on a ground valuation
of to Z cents, and the improvements were
listed to George Peter. 500, occupied by
Monica Trail, $500, and on wharf, lot 6,
81 600 on house and $500 on wharf, lot Z;
John Baker, $1,000, lot 8; P. Otterback,
$500 lot 8; Birth & Shaw, $780, $500, $50
and $40 on lots 10 and II; David Walker.
81 600 on lot 10, and F. Dodge, $1,000, lot
20. on 9th street.
In the thirties improvement valuations
had changed on the west front, the Chesa-
peake and Ohio canal having taken title
to ground there and private whaiIs were
relegated. The improvements were listed
to Monica Trail, 800 on lot 6; Samuel
Smoot, 1000, lot Z, owned before by u.
Peter; Eliza Lawrence. $1,000, lot s; p.
Otterback, $780, the Harbaugh house, lot
8; James Birth as before, lots 10 to 13, on
X street; David Walker, father of D.
Walker, deceased, long of Lewis Johnson
& Co., bankers, 81 600, lot 10, and F. Dodge,
81, 900, lot 20, on 9th street.
Eastward is square 5, between Goth and