UNIVERSITY

Turbulent beginings
viu.edu
Located minutes away from the national
capital, VIU is now an even more attractive
venue for scholars from all over the world
in the fields of business, technology, education,
public and international affairs, and
communication. Within a 20 mile radius of
VIU’s campuses, one can find headquarters
and satellite offices of over 10,000 technology
companies. Opportunities in other
fields are also incredibly abundant.
THE BIRTH OF
WASHINGTON, DC
Washington, DC did not exist when the thirteen colonies
declared their independence from Great Britain in 1776. As the
US Constitution went into effect on March 4, 1789, the capital
of the United States was New York City, where it remained until
December 5, 1790. It then moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
until May 14, 1800. Since 1800, Washington, DC has been the
nation’s capital.
The primary reason for the establishment of Washington was
to ensure the safety of the federal government. The catalyst for
the move was the 1783 Pennsylvania Mutiny during which
demobilized soldiers threatened to attack Congress (then meeting
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) unless they received their back pay.
Congress asked the Governor of Pennsylvania to call out the state
militia to disperse the soldiers, but instead the governor chose to
side with the soldiers. Remembering the mutiny, the writers of the
Constitution included Article One, Section 8 that allowed, but did
not require, Congress to establish a federal district separate from
any state where the Federal government would not be dependent
on a state government for its safety.
In 1790, the US Congress passed the Residence Act, which
established the future capital of the US on the Potomac River,
and Virginia and Maryland agreed to donate land for the
city. President George Washington, whose home is on the
Virginia shore of the Potomac at Mount Vernon to the south
of Washington, was given the responsibility of choosing the
exact location and establishing the boundaries of the new
capital, which he did in 1791. A noted member of the group that
surveyed the borders of the capital was Benjamin Banneker, an
African American surveyor and scientist. The capital originally
consisted of a square, 10 miles on each side, whose corners
oriented north-south and east-west; thus, the city appeared
diamond-shaped on a map.
The original boundaries of the capital included the town of
Georgetown, Maryland (founded 1751) and a portion of the
town of Alexandria, Virginia (founded 1749), both seaports of
By John L. Bennett
some importance. DC also included all of what is today
Arlington County, Virginia. However, because virtually no
development occurred in the portion of DC that was once part
of Virginia, Alexandria and Arlington were returned to Virginia
in 1846.
In 1791, President Washington appointed three commissioners
to oversee the design, planning, and construction of the capital.
These included Thomas Jefferson who would be the third
President of the US. The commissioners chose to name the city
after President Washington and to name the federal district as a
whole Columbia, a widely used name for the US derived from the
name of Christopher Columbus. Today, the city of Washington
and the District of Columbia occupy the same borders; however,
Washington originally occupied only a portion of the District
while Georgetown, for example, remained an independent city
within the District until 1871.
Construction of the District of Columbia began in September
1793. President Washington oversaw the construction of the
White House, but it was John Adams, the second President
of the US, who first lived there, starting in November 1800.
Congress first met in the unfinished US Capitol building in
November 1800.
During its first 60 years, Washington grew slowly, but during the
Civil War (1861–1865) its population jumped 75 percent to well
over 100,000. Other growth spurts were associated with the two
world wars while growth of the Washington, DC Metropolitan
Area (i.e., the city of Washington and its suburbs in Virginia
and Maryland) as a whole really took off during and following
World War II.
Underneath all of its modern constructions, bustling streets,
and towering office buildings, DC is a deeply historic city. The
next time you are able to visit, take some time to explore and
learn more about the fascinating landmarks and events vital to
the existence of the capital city we know today.
32 University Magazine, VIU Summer 2014
Summer 2014 University Magazine, VIU 33