To-day the name Anacostia, derived from the name of the small Indian tribe of Nacotchants, reminds us of the occupation of the District of Columbia by Indians. As has been said, they lived just below the Eastern Branch, in a suburb of Washington known as Anacostia. The great Anacostia Park, in the immediate vicinity, is named after them. They were a tribe of peaceful Indians, about 80 in number, and were kind and well disposed to Capt. John Smith and his explorers. The name of Anacostia was also given to an island near the shores of Virginia, at Georgetown. Later it took the name Analostian and also Anacostian Island. When George Mason, prominent delegate to the Virginia Legislature, purchased it in 1777, it came to be known as Masons Island. Later it was called Analostan Island. Stone implements and fragments of pottery and traces of Indian villages have been found in these locations, which give evidence of habitations of the Indians in the District of Columbia in those days. It was a region favored by the Indians for its game of all kinds, as well as fish. The soil was rich and fertile and crops were plentiful. Then, too, the climate was agreeable; that is, it did not have the extreme cold of the North, nor did the inhabitants suffer from the continued heat of a tropical sun. The latitude of Washington is 38° 52′ 37″ N. and the longitude 76° 55′ 30.54″ W.
Weather reports of a hundred years ago give 97° for the average of maximum in summer and 24° above zero for the winter. This mild climate has had its consequent effect on the flora of the District of Columbia. A report of the Botanical Society of Washington, made in 1825, gives us the names of 860 distinct species and varieties of plants in the District of Columbia. To-day grow here the oak, walnut, hickory, elm, maple, and other hardy trees; pine trees in all their varieties, and magnolia, also the rhododendron, laurel, box bushes, privet hedges, holly; and roses bloom in Washington almost the entire year. In spring the beautiful Japanese cherry trees add charm to the city.
WASHINGTON, 1792
Chapter III
DEVELOPMENT OF THE NATIONAL CAPITAL THE PLAN OF THE CITY
SITE OF THE FEDERAL CITY
The first mention of the upper Potomac and adjacent regions to Indianhead, about 35 miles south of Washington, is made by Capt. John Smith, who explored this region from the Jamestown settlement in Virginia in 1608. In 1634 Henry Fleet, who was taken captive by Indians, visited the falls of the Potomac. In 1635 a tract of land (400 acres) called Rome was laid out for Francis Pope, gentleman. The Capitol is said to be on this land. In 1790 the region in which the city of Washington has been built was in the form of 17 large farm tracts, as is shown on the following page. They were covered with woods and streams; the arable portions were tilled and produced wheat, maize, and tobacco. Two hamlets, Carrollsburg (where the War College now stands), and Hamburg (about where the Naval Hospital is located), which was then southeast of the thriving port of Georgetown, were within the limits of the early survey.
On April 30, 1783, 19 days after the proclamation of peace between the American Colonies and England, the subject of a permanent capital for the General Government of the States was brought up in Congress. The act of July 16, 1790, heretofore cited, provided for the selection of a permanent site on the upper Potomac River for the National Capital—
according to such plans as the President shall approve and prior to the first Monday in December, 1800, and suitable buildings for the accommodation of Congress, and of the President, and for the public offices of the Government of the United States.
On January 22, 1791, President Washington appointed three commissioners—Daniel Carroll and Thomas Johnson, of Maryland, and David Stuart, of Virginia.