The Commerce Department Building used to cover what was once known as the city's most dangerous slum, Murder Bay. It is ironic that today's building, which houses the department responsible for tourism and consumer spending, was built on the site of some of the city's casinos and prostitution houses. The site was also home to the Battle of Manassas Panorama Building. That building, erected in 1885, housed a giant mural of various Civil War battle scenes.
In the basement of the building is the nation's oldest aquarium, the National Aquarium. Opened in 1873, and located in the Commerce Department Building since 1923, it still displays approximately 200 tanks of fish, turtles, and other aquatic creatures.
The District Building, built in 1908, serves as the city's governmental headquarters. The building was also the site of a terrorist attack on March 12, 1977. A group of angry Hanafi Muslims attacked the District Building, firing their weapons in the hallway outside the city council chambers. Maurice Williams, a radio reporter, was killed. A security guard was seriously wounded, as well as Marion Barry, who was in the city council at the time.
The complex was situated on the other half of what was once known as Murder Bay. Today, the site houses a complex of inter-related buildings, designed by Arthur Brown. The enormous parking lot which served the buildings was originally envisioned to become "The Great Plaza" garden. Nothing came about with the Great Plaza and the area turned into a parking lot. Now the lot is planned to become home to the International Cultural and Trade Center.
The Departmental Auditorium is also situated here. This ceremonial meeting hall has been the site of two historic events. In October of 1940, President Franklin Roosevelt spoke here in front of a huge crowd, and launched the Selective Service lottery. Less than a decade later, the auditorium was the site of the 1949 signing ceremonies of the NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) Treaty.
The complex also houses the U.S. Customs Service Building and the Interstate Commerce Commission.
The Internal Revenue Service Building is situated on the site where the Carusi's Assembly Rooms once stood. These social halls held the inaugural balls of Presidents John Quincy Adams through James Buchanan. The site was also once the heart of what was known as Hooker's Division. It was also home to Harvey's Oyster Salon, once one of the city's most popular restaurants. It was rumored that during the Civil War, Harvey's supplied Union soldiers with 100 to 500 gallons of oysters.
This site was once home to the Center Market, the major marketplace of downtown Washington. Now it is home to the National Archives. The building was designed by John Russel Pope and completed in 1935 as the storage place for thousands of documents, papers, letters, and other papers.
The archives are used by hundreds of historians and scholars each year. Newsreels, newspapers, ship logs, sheet music, divorce decrees, and photographs are all items stored in the National Archives. However, what attracts most people are three documents which happen to be most important in the nation's history: the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.
Outside of the building, facing Constitution Avenue, is an odd little memorial. President Roosevelt had asked that no memorial be erected in his memory. However, he added that if the people insisted, that it be as plain as possible and no larger than his desk. Thus, in 1965, a mere wedge of marble with a simple inscription was dedicated as the Franklin Delano Roosevelt monument.
This is the end of the Downtown tour.
If you'd like, you can return to the beginning or return to the Tour Starting Point.
