The Georgetown Metropolitan

Photo by Ian Stedman.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Kevin Plank’s mansion is back on the market for $24 mil.
• GU students press for the school to offer reparations to the descendants of the enslaved people sold by the university.

Dumbarton Oaks

Dumbarton Oaks

If you’ve passed Holy Rood Cemetery just north of Georgetown recently, you may have wondered what the large construction is about. The construction is part of an ambitious plan to save the crumbling cemetery and bring it into use again.

The cemetery has a strong connection to the Georgetown community. It was the final resting place of generations of Catholic Georgetowners. It is also the location of one of the largest cemeteries for free and enslaved African Americans. It was first established by Holy Trinity Catholic Church in 1832. The church maintained it until Georgetown University took over control in 1942. Burials declined sharply. Only a handful of individuals who had purchased plots decades before were allowed to be buried there into the 1990s. In the 1980s, the university explored removing the graves and developing the property. That never came to pass.

But in the meantime, the cemetery turned to ruins. Grave stones were broken and toppled all over the property. GM criticized the university harshly for their disgraceful custodianship of the cemetery over ten years ago. (GM has hardly the only party criticizing GU). And to the university’s credit, they finally came up with a plan to restore the cemetery, which was announced last year. Continue reading →

Photo by Thomas Hawk.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Here’s a great chance to see the classic Nosferatu film with live pipe organ playing.
• Great article on Stachowski’s and its Buffalo, NY roots.

Montrose Park

There are several street repaving projects about to be carried out around Georgetown. Unfortunately the manner in which DDOT is handling the projects is leaving residents upset.

For some reason, despite the fact that repaving projects typically can finish a block in a day or two, DDOT has eliminated parking on the affected blocks for extended periods. For instance, on Volta Place, the city is planning to repave it from Wisconsin Ave to 34th St. But there is no parking for all 24 hours through Saturday. Continue reading →

Photo by Ian Stedman.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Nice food guide for Georgetown.
• Unfortunately Corridor Coffee has closed.

Dumbarton Oaks

This week on Georgetown Time Machine, GM is returning to the fantastic archive of the Historical Society of Washington, DC. The photo is of the old streetcar barn that once stood where the Georgetown Park mall is.

You may not realize it, but just about the entirety of the mall footprint was once a giant streetcar storage facility. You can see from this map near the turn of the 20th Century:

You can see how this facade looks today: Continue reading →