Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-06

streets grow from Just ordinary thor
ouehfares into great white ways and there Is
probably nothing tlo. that will make one renect
To a greater extent than to be brought lace 10
face with photograph of an almost forgotten
scene of his childhood. even though everything
nav NAV be changed and different and almost
unrecognizab,e
However though charmed as the venerable
native may be, yet many OF the younger gem
Grafton also manifest keen interest IN OLD
views and many a newcomer to our city de-
lights as well in comparing the old with the new
Washington-the Washington Of George WASH
ingtons time of Andrew Jacksons time, OF
Lincolns time, and of our own time.
After all. maybe it is retrospection that makes
us feel Younger FOR no doubt if we always looked
ahead we could possibly see but one thing-the
grand finale and fireworks but living IN the
paSt brings back fond memories, and fond men,
cries bring smiles and smiles make life happy,
and our own happiness spreads JOY to others
and makes life wcrth while.
Views of old Washington do not 60 back so
very far-that is. Photographic views-for pho
tography-as we lock upon it today-is not
very old invention. Indeed it is quite probable
that s. F. B. Morse made the first daguerreo-
tyne pictures in New York in September, 1889
and none were made in this city earlier than
1912 or 1843. Even these were Of more-or-
less experimental character However photog-
faphy advanced rapidly from that time on
which accounts for an excellent view Of F street
which was taken about 1857.
Of course the stork that brought the writer
10 this city did not arrive early enough for him
IN remember it as it then looked but he does
confess that he recalls it when it was largely
residential street with very few business houses
and a pump on every other corner or SO.
u STREET from Ninth to Fifteenth street
was one of the first sections to be built up
after the "Ten-mile Square" was selected as the
Nations Capital and for q number of years
afterward marked the boundary of the city; the
area to the north consisting mainly Of farms
and forests
Passing east along street from Fifteenth
street. ut least as far as Eleventh street, the
observer can easily see the decided slope OF the
land toward Pennsylvania avenue and farther
On to where once ran Tiber Greek, later con-
yerted into the Washington Canal, while the
Avenue, especially the nearer the Capitol is ap-
proached was low and generally marShy
ground which accounts for the pilng for all
large structures in this area.
Indeed, not only was there marshy ground to
the south of street. but much wet ground to
the north as well. An early writer in describing
this area tells us that:
1.-THE Presidents house and offices were sit
uated on grounds between and G and Fiji
tenth and Seventeenth streets on what was
termed F street ridge The rain and snow
falling on this ridge divided, and part ran of
30 the north and part to the south. That to
the north of the ridge flowed into what is now
called street and that which ran from the
ridge to the south flowed into what was then
the Avenue, below the Presidents house. Con-
sequently, there was no outlet at that time from
Twentieth street in an easterly direction, to
Eleventh street, by which the water produced
by rain and snow could run of into Tiber
Greek, so that a large body of water, as far up
rs street. flowed to G street until it found an
!. Nutlet to Eleventh street. This caused it at
times to have the appearance of small creek"
IT so happened that the plan of the city placed
street along the brow of this HILL which
early became known as F Street Ridge and
quite naturally. due to its situation and its
hearness to the White House--the corner stone