Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-10-11


conner to the District of Columbia,
no. as C matter of history, was he &.
late conner to America, being, as
matter of fact. OF the first of the worlds
emigrantS to take advantage OF the opportunity
to settle in the country, and, indeed, TO
such an eno-mCuS eXtent was this carried on
that Great Britain soon became alarmed over
the situation. but as all emgrantS were
brought to this country during the Colonial
period in English ships and since the revenue
therefrom amounted to considerable, no de-
cided steps were taken to curtail or limit the
number permitted to come here
From our Colonial records, no one will ever
know how many Germans came to America
prior to 1880, fer serious attempt at keep
ing such records Sc ms to have been made be-
fore that date. However, an idea may be had
from the fact that between the years 1880 and
l776 10000 entries recorded alone at the
port of Philadelphia. Naturally, those who
came here prior to 1880 must have been nu-
merous, and when take into consideration
that shortly prior to the American Revolution
the approximate population OF the colonies was
only about two million and after peace had
been declared only something like three-and-a-
half million, We can conjecture, at least, as TO
the vast amount of German blood there must
have been in the colonies prior to the Revolu-
ton. and what enormous number Of our
people there must be today whoee ancestors
were of this thrifty, sturdy stock.
To the present confines of what is the
District of Columbia the Germans came At q
very early date. The first church erected In
Georgetown, in 1859. was a German Lutheran
church, and when LEnfant and E1lcott were
sent here early in 179l-one to plan the city,
and the other to survey the territory selected
in accordance with the act of Congress Of July
16, 1890, they found already laid out on the
site selected-4n addition to the thriving cities
Of Alexandria and Georgetown-the towns Of
GRrrollsburg and Hamburg or Ftlnkstovn. The
latter was laid out in 1853 by Jacob Funk, an
early German emigrant to America and for
whom FunkStown, Md.-abJut miles south OF
Hagerstown-is named.
I lAMBURG, as Jacob Funk named his new
] city, was carved out Of farm Of about
12o or more acres, and included In all 2s7 lots
and the necessary streets, the lots being about
100 feet front and a depth Of 200. As to the
location and area Of the town, about the best
description we have Is the one handed down
by that venerable Washingtonian, Christian
Hines who was born near Liberty, in Frederick
County, Md, in 1871, and who died in this
city on November %. 1874 and who sleeps IL;
Rock Greek Cemetery. In referring to Funks-
town, or Hamburg, he says:
81 have often endeavered to ascertain what
was the extent or exact location OF Funkstown
(known by many residents Hamburg), but,
SO far, have not been satisfactorily success
full AS far as have ascertained, however,
will venture to state. I think 1t must have
extended in a westerly direction, including
Camp or Observatory Hill, from about Nine
teenth street west to Twenty fourth street
west. and in a northerly direction from the
Potomac to about G street north judge so
from the fact of Mr.. Funk having reserved
lot on which to erect a German Church at the
corner of G. and Twentieth streets. Since then
a church has been erected there of which Rev.
MI Finkel is the pastor. Funk's house stood
near the old glass house, think between
Tyenty-second and Twenty-third streets The
bricks of which it was built it was said, we're
imported from Holland. They were much
smaller than the brick made in this country,
and very hard. have heard Observatory
Hill spoken of originally intended as a site
for a university; but that was many years ago"
This part of Washington has been for many
years solidly built up, and. during the days
when the city had limited franchise, 1t formed
o part of the first ward, where many Of the