Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-08
OLD MARKET SITE
SET ASIDE IN 1897.
Washington Declared Area
Public Reservation While
He Was President.

As the picks and shovels of band
of housewreckers were being prepared
this week to demolish the rambling,
| -square-long building that housed
Center Market for nearly so years, 1t
was revealed that numerous private in
vestigations by heirs of original prop
erty owners of land in the District OF
Columbia and other interested parties
have been conducted recently with
view to ascertaining title to the area oc-
| cupied by the age-old market place.
Rumors that the original documents
deciding the property on the south side
of Pennsylvania avenue between Sew
enth and Ninth streets contained pro-
| vision that the site be designated per-
manently as a market place, and that
in the event 1t be discontinued as such
the property should revert to the origl-
nal owners led The Star to conduct an
investigation of the land records of the
District to determine definitely, II posi-
BILE, the status of the property.
Part Of Burnes Property.
Although a search of the records of
/ the Office of the Recorder of Deeds
failed to reveal trace of papers def
nitely referring to the squares contain
ing the market, it appears that the
property designated by President
George washington in 1897 as public
reservation No. Z, was part of the tract
of David Burnes, acquired by the Gov
eminent in March, 1871, under a joint
agreement with property owners in the
area designated by Congress to be &C
copied from Maryland and Virginia for
the seat of the Federal Government.
The Burnes farm, one of the largest
in the 10-mile-square district, was
bounded on the north by line roughly
al ~ 10 lie
nue., on the west by what is now Eight
zenith street, on the east by an irregu-
lar line running approximately north
and south at First street, and on the
south by what is now Ohio avenue. Ad-
jacent to the Burnes tract on the south
lay the property of Forrest, Stoddart
and Thompson.
Following the acceptance by Congress
Of the area coded by the States of
Maryland and Virginia for the seat Of
the Federal Government President
washington, in March, 1871, made a
rough exploration of the territory, ac-
companied by two surveyors, Andrew
Ellicott and Maj. Peter Charles Len
FAINT, according to Facility and Pratt's
Washington in Embryo" a historic
publication of 1874.
Commissioners Were Named.
President Washington by authorization
of Congress to secure lands for the
Government for public purposes also
accompanied the President on the tour.
Shortly thereafter meeting was held
to effect free agreement between the
property owners in the new district and
the United States commissioners, and
Washington's good counsel on that &C.
caSion had so favorable an effect that
t. 49, IL
evening for the agreement which was
signed and executed by 10 property
owners the next day, and thereby the
rights and titles to property within this
District may be said to have been de-
cided on that evening"
According to the agreement, the sub
scribers, in consideration of the great
benefits expected to be derived from
having the Federal City laid of upon
their lands, agree to bind themselves,
heirs, executors and administrators to
convey in trust to the United States or
its commissioners the whole of the re-
spective land it may be thought proper
to include within the lines of the Fed
eral City.
Value Put at $685. an Acre.
The agreement specified that the
President, empowered to direct the
planning Of the city, might retain any
number Of squares he may think proper
for any public Improvements or other
public uses, and the lots only which
shall be laid of shall be joint property
between the trustees on behalf of the
public and equally divided between the
public and the individuals as soon as
may be after the city shall be laid of :"
For the streets the proprietors shall
receive no compensation, but for the
squares or lands in any form which
shall be taken for public buildings Of
any kind of public improvements or
uses the proprietors whose lands shall
be so taken shall receive at the rate of
ELS ($6666) an acre"
According to John Clagett Proctor's
Washington, Past and Present" the
Commissioners for the Federal City in
1895 we're authorized by act of Congress
to sell some of the public land in the
City of washington. Two days before
his term expired President Washington
in an endeavor to prevent the sale of
pieces of land reserved II parcels, which
since have been known as public res
ervations.
Market Site Included.
In his appropriation Washington re-
terred TO the Center Market site as
parcel No. T." He authorized It as
follows: THE public appropriation be-
ginning at the Intersection of the north