Washington, D.C. - History

Washington, D.C

History

The site for the capital was chosen by George Washington, the first American President, and named after him. The capital was designed by the French architect Pierre L’Enfant in the late 18th century.

Although later several other architects participated in designing the city, L’Enfant’s original plan of the magnificant capital was always respected. The city was divided into four quandrants: Northwest NW, Southwest SW, Northeast NE and Southeast SE with the Capitol as the center. Streets and avenues were laid out on a grid scheme: the streets were numbered, the avenues were named after the states of the Union.

Washington became the seat of the Congress in 1800.The Height [hait] Buildings Act (1910) stated that no buildings could be higher than the Capitol, that is why you cannot see any skyscraper there.