Posts by Kent Boese — Guest Contributor
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Then and Then and Now: The Firemen’s Insurance Building
Then (top): Photographed ca. 1900, the Firemen’s Insurance Company moved into their new building at 303 Seventh Street, NW in 1882. The building was designed in a restrained Queen Anne style. Rather than using detailing common to the style, the building relies on volumetric complications which adapt well to the shape of the lot. Then (bottom left): By the late 1960s,… Keep reading…
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Lost Washington: The Capital Garage, 1320 New York Avenue
The Capital Garage was built in 1926 at the corner of New York Avenue and H Street (1320 New York Avenue). When it was built, it was the largest parking garage in the country. It was torn down in 1974. The same location is now occupied by the largely nondescript Daon Building. More photos below. Keep reading…
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Lost Washington: Steamer District of Columbia
The District of Columbia was the last of the Norfolk and Washington Steamboat Company’s ships to be put in service. It was built late in 1924 at Wilmington by Pusey & Jones to replace the Newport News which had burned earlier that year. When the US Government requisitioned both the Northland and Southland for wartime use, only the District of Columbia was left in company… Keep reading…
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Mount Vernon Square, 1887
While we tend to think of most of the circles and squares in Washington as having been planed to be exactly what they are today, most of them changed as new monuments and buildings were planned for the city. Here we have Mount Vernon Square ca. 1887. Instead of a building dominating the square, it is an open park with a fountain in the middle. The old City Library that is there… Keep reading…
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Lost Washington: The Van Ness House
The Van Ness House was constructed in 1813-1816 in the Greek Revival style by the superintendent of government buildings, Benjamin Henry Latrobe. It was located on the block bounded by C Street, Constitution Avenue, 17th Street, and 18th Street. The home was built for Mr. and Mrs. John Peter Van Ness. Van Ness and his wife moved into their new home in 1816 and made it a social center… Keep reading…
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