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Washington, DC
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Created municipal corporation: Feb.
21, 1871
Mayor: Adrian M. Fenty (to Nov. 2010)
Motto: Justitia omnibus (Justice to all)
Flower: American beauty rose; Tree: Scarlet oak
2000 census population (rank): 572,059
(21); % change: –5.7; Male: 269,366 (47.1%);
Female: 302,693 (52.9%); White: 176,101 (30.8%);
Black: 343,312 (60.0%); American Indian and Alaska
Native: 1,713 (0.3%); Asian: 15,189 (2.7%); Other
race: 21,950 (3.8%); Two or more races: 13,446 (2.4%);
Hispanic/Latino: 44,953 (7.9%). 2000 percent population 18
and over: 79.9%; 65 and over: 12.2%; Median age:
34.6.
2005 population estimate (rank): 550,521
(27)
Land area: 61 sq mi. (158 sq km);
Alt.: Highest, 420 ft.; lowest, sea
level
Avg. daily temp.: Jan., 34.6° F; July,
80.0° F
Churches: Protestant, 610; Roman
Catholic, 132; Jewish, 9;
City parks: 300 (800 ac.);
Radio stations: AM, 9; FM, 38;
Television stations: 19
Civilian Labor Force (MSA) April 2006:
286,800;
Unemployed: 15,000,
Percent: 5.2;
Per capita personal income (MSA)
2004: $46,7821
Board of Trade: Greater Washington Board of Trade, 1129
20th Street N.W., Washington, DC 20036
Chamber of Commerce: DC Chamber of
Commerce, 1213 K St. NW, Washington, DC 20005
1.
Washington–Arlington–Alexandria,
DC–Va.–Md.–W.Va.
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The District of Columbia—identical with the city of
Washington—is the capital of the United States. It is located
between Virginia and Maryland on the Potomac River. The district
is named after Columbus.
DC history began in 1790 when Congress directed selection of a new
capital site, 100 sq mi, along the Potomac. When the site was determined,
it included 30.75 sq mi on the Virginia side of the river. In 1846,
however, Congress returned that area to Virginia, leaving the 68.25 sq mi
ceded by Maryland in 1788. The seat of government was transferred from
Philadelphia to Washington on Dec. 1, 1800, and President John Adams became the first
resident in the White House.
The city was planned and partly laid out by Maj. Pierre Charles L'Enfant,
a French engineer. This work was perfected and completed by Maj. Andrew
Ellicott and Benjamin Banneker, a
freeborn black man who was an astronomer and mathematician. In 1814,
during the War of 1812, a British
force burned the capital including the White House.
The District of Columbia was administered by three commissioners
appointed by the president, until Nov. 3, 1967 when a mayor-commissioner
and a 9-member council, appointed by the president, took office. On May 7,
1974, a Home Rule Charter was approved, giving DC its first elected
municipal government in over a century. The district has one nonvoting
member in the House of Representatives and an elected Board of
Education.
A proposed constitutional amendment, which would give Washington a
voting representation in Congress, failed to be ratified by the requisite
38 states. Petition and bills for DC's statehood were introduced in 1983
and 1993 and the district continues its push for statehood.
The federal government and tourism are the mainstays of the city's
economy, and many unions, business, professional, and nonprofit
organizations are headquartered there. Among the city's many educational
institutions are the Catholic University of America,
Georgetown University,
Howard University, and
Gallaudet University.
Cultural attractions include the National Gallery of Art,
the Smithsonian Institution,
the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and the Folger Shakespeare
Library.
See also Encyclopedia: Washington, DC.
Selected famous
natives and residents:
-
Edward Albee
playwright;
-
Billie Burke
comedienne;
-
Ina Claire
actress;
-
John Foster Dulles
statesman;
-
Duke Ellington
musician;
-
Jane Greer
actress;
-
Goldie Hawn
actress;
-
Helen Hayes
actress;
-
J. Edgar Hoover
former director of the F.B.I.;
-
William Hurt
actor;
-
Noor al-Hussein
queen of Jordan;
-
Michael Learned
actress;
-
Roger Mudd
newscaster;
-
Eleanor Holmes Norton
government official;
-
Chita Rivera
dancer and actress;
-
Leonard Rose
cellist;
-
John Philip Sousa
composer;
-
Frances Sternhagen
actress.
Information Please® Database, © 2007 Pearson
Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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- D.C. Washington: Government - Government The present system of government (in operation since 1975) provides for an elected mayor ...
- D.C. Washington: Landmarks - Landmarks The city spreads out over 69 sq mi (179 sq km), including 8 sq mi (20.7 sq km) of water ...
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