...rnment beginning in 1800, the District of Columbia as named for Christopher Columbus. It as created from land ceded by the states of Virginia and Maryland, and it incorporated the existing seaport tons of Alexandria, Virginia, and Georgeton, Maryland. The district as originally 259 sq km 100 sq mi, or 10 miles square, as established under the Residence Act of 1790. The central ton site as laid out by French architect Pierre Charles LEnfant in 1791. The remaining land as an open area stretching north to the border ith Maryland. It as designated as ashington County. In 1846 Congress returned that portion of the federal district that had originally been ceded by Virginia.In 1871 the cities of ashington and Georgeton ere consolidated ith ashington County to become ashington, D.C., making the city, the county, and the federal district one and the same. ashington, D.C. has a total area of 176 sq km 68 sq mi, and the ashington metropolitan regionhich in addition to ashington, D.C., contains 24 counties in the surrounding states of Maryland, Virginia, and est Virginiahas a total area of 17,920 sq km 6920 sq mi.In his plan for the city of ashington, LEnfant attempted to represent symbolically the ne United States and its republican government. He gave prominence to each of hat ere then the primary elements of governmentthe executive and the legislative branches. He also featured the states in giving their names to broad diagonal avenues. These he arranged both according to geography and to each states prominence in the nation-building process. Massachusetts, Virginia, and especially Pennsylvania, ith its associations both ith the Declaration of Independence and the signing of the Constitution, gained the most prominence. Avenues named after other states ith prominent roles in ratifying the Constitution, notably Delaare and Ne Jersey, intersected at the Capitol. Also, LEnfant hoped that the intersection of diagonal avenues ith the citys straight grid of numbered and lettered streets ould provide squares here each state ould locate facilities, thereby giving them the same symbolic importance in the capital city that they held in the federal system.BPatterns of Settlement and Development Initially ashington as slo to develop the dense pattern of settlement characteristic of cities. By the 20th century, hoever, ashington had filled its open spaces and dominated the surrounding area, hich remained largely rural. This pattern changed after orld ar II 1939-1945, as the city lost population to the suburbs of Virginia and Maryland. hile the federal presence remained concentrated in ashington, it also expanded considerably to the suburbs. At the same time, ne private businessthe fastest-groing source of regional employmentconcentrated almost exclusively in the areas outside the city.hile the metropolitan area expanded outard, it did not do so randomly. Groth tended to follo the location of federal facilities outside the city and the development of major transportation routes. During orld ar II, the construction of the Pentagon as the headquarters of the Department of Defense spurred development nearby on the Virginia side of the Potomac River. Groth as also stimulated by other key facilities, notably the Central Intelligence Agency CIA in Langley, Virginia and the Atomic Energy Commission AEC, the National Bureau of Standards no the National Institute of Science and Technology, and the National Institutes of Health NIH , all in Maryland.CPublic Buildings ashington is home to many famous and interesting public buildings and monuments. Many of these are associated ith the federal government. The Capitol of the United States is located on a hill rising 27 meters 88 feet above the Potomac and consists of to ings that branch from a central rotunda. The north ing is occupied by the Senate, and the south ing by the House of Representatives. The rotunda is croned by an immense dome, topped ith a statue of a oman representing Freedom. East of the Capitol is the Supreme Court Building, ith its portico modeled after a Greek temple. North of the Capitol, at the end of Delaare Avenue, stands massive Union Station, no a retail center as ell as a train station that has long been a hub of the city.From the Capitol, Pennsylvania Avenue runs slightly northest and Constitution Avenue runs directly est. Beteen 6th and 15th streets N the to avenues form an area knon as the Federal Triangle. ithin this triangle are concentrated a number of government buildings, including those of the Federal Trade Commission FTC, the Internal Revenue Service IRS, and the departments of Justice and Commerce. Also in the triangle is the National Archives Building, hich contains the original drafts of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution of the United States, and the Bill of Rights.Just north of the triangle, on Tenth Street N, is the J. Edgar Hoover Building, the headquarters of the Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI. On the block north of the Hoover building, also on Tenth Street, is Fords Theatre, here President Abraham Lincoln as shot in 1865, and across the street is the Petersen House, here he died. Together they make up Fords Theatre National Historic Site.Northest of the triangle, at 16th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, is the oldest federal building in ashington, the hite House, official residence of the U.S. president. The mansions foundations ere laid in 1792, and every president except George ashington has occupied it. Tours are conducted daily through the most-famous ground-floor and first-floor rooms, such as the East Room, the Blue Room, and the State Dining Room.Flanking the hite House are the Treasury Department Building to the east and the Executive Office Building to the est. Across the street is Blair House, the official guest house for visiting heads of state and other dignitaries. Blair House, built in 1824, served as a temporary executive mansion for President Harry S. Truman and his family from 1948 to 1952, hile the interior of the hite House as being extensively reconstructed.North of the hite House is Lafayette Square, ith a statue of General Andre Jackson made from a melted-don cannon captured by Jackson during the ar of 1812. est of the hite House, at Ne York Avenue and 18th Street N, is one of ashingtons oldest landmarks, the Octagon. Completed in 1801, the Octagon houses a museum dedicated to architecture and the early history of ashington, and is also home to the American Architectural Foundation. It as one of the first residential structures built according to LEnfants plan. During the ar of 1812, British troops set fire to the hite House, destroying its interior. President James Madison and his family lived in the Octagon hile the hite House as being rebuilt.South of the Federal Triangle is the Mall, a narro park stretching roughly 1.6 km 1 mi from the Capitol to the ashington Monument. Although the Mall officially ends at 14th Street, landscaped greenery extends to the Potomac. T...
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