The Georgetown Metropolitan

Phot courtesy of the Library of Congress

Introduction:

GM would like to introduce a new segment: Circa. For this segment, he will highlight an article about Georgetown from the Washington Post’s archive that captures a particular moment or issue from the past that has slipped into the fog of neighborhood history. The first article: “Georgetown Market’s Bitter Saga; Lease Drew Criticism, but Developer Says He Lost Millions” October 6, 1986. Hope you enjoy.

Background:

As early as 1795 there was a market at what we now call 3276 M St. Throughout the 19th century the market waxed and waned. At times it was a produce market at other times it was a slave auction house. Eventually it was torn down and replaced in 1865 with the building that stands today. In the 20th century it saw almost steady decline. From 1945 until the 1970’s it housed Southern Distributors, an autoparts wholesaler (seen above in 1966). By the mid 1970’s it sat empty.

Interestingly, almost since the beginning the local government has owned the property. It was first conveyed to the Georgetown Corporation in 1803 and then became the property of the District when Georgetown was absorbed in 1871. It remains a District-owned property to this day.

Circa October 1986:

Herb Miller’s Western Development took over a lease with the District in 1979 that called for it to operate the building as a market. Over the course of the convening six years, the market was a disaster. Continue reading →