Part 8 (1/2)
[Whose residence was at 3348 M Street.]
'Wednesday, 30th.
'The parties to whom I addressed myself yesterday evening, having taken the matter into consideration, saw the propriety of my observations; and that whilst they were contending for the shadow they might loose the substance; and therefore mutually agreed and entered into articles to surrender for public purposes, one half of the land they severally possessed within the bounds which were designated as necessary for the City to stand with some other stipulations, which were inserted in the instrument which they respectively subscribed.
'This business being thus happily finished and some directions given to the Commissioners, the Surveyor and Engineer with respect to the mode of laying out the district--Surveying the grounds for the City and forming them into lots--I left Georgetown, dined in Alexandria and reached Mount Vernon in the evening.'”
The ”others,” with whom he dined, were evidently the proprietors of the land, sixteen, who next day signed before witnesses the agreement drawn up that day. It is too long to quote in its entirety, but in effect these were the conditions: ”that in consideration of the good benefits they were to derive from having the Federal City laid off upon their lands the President may retain any number of squares he may think proper for public improvements or uses at the rate of 25 ($66.66 in Penn.
currency) per acre. For the streets they should receive no compensation.
Each proprietor was to retain full possession of his land till it should be sold into lots.” The men who signed, in order of signing, were: Robert Peter, David Burnes, James M. Lingan, Uriah Forrest, Benjamin Stoddert, Notley Young, Daniel Carroll, of Duddington; Overton Carr, Thomas Beall, of George; Charles Beatty, Anthony Holmead, William Young, Edward Peirce, Abraham Young, James Peirce, and William Prout. At a later date the following men joined in the agreement and are often counted among the original property holders: Robert Morris, Samuel Blodget, William Bailey, Samuel Davidson, William Deakins, Jr., James Greenleaf, Thomas Johnson, Robert Lingan, Dominick Lynch, John Nicholson, John H. Stone, Comfort Sands, Benjamin Oden, John P. Van Ness, George Walker, and the legal guardians of Elizabeth Wheeler.
It was in this little town that the President issued his proclamation concerning the permanent seat of government of the United States. It reads thus:
Done at George Town, aforesaid, the 30th day of March in the year of our Lord, 1791 and in the Independence of the United States the fifteenth.
By the President, GEORGE WAs.h.i.+NGTON.
THOMAS JEFFERSON.
Having satisfactorily accomplished this business, General Was.h.i.+ngton proceeded to Mount Vernon, whence he wrote on April 3, 1791, to the Commissioners to proceed at once with the Attorney-General in regard to deeds so that the sale of lots and public buildings might commence as soon as possible. He quotes a letter from Mr. Jefferson:
... that on the 27th of March a bill had been introduced in the House of Representatives for granting a sum of money for building a Federal Hall, a house for the President, etc.
At a meeting of the Commissioners on September 9, 1791, in reply to a letter from Major L'Enfant a letter was written saying:
... that the t.i.tle of the map he was making was to be, ”A Map of the City of Was.h.i.+ngton in the Territory of Columbia,” and that the streets were to be named alphabetically one way and numerically the other, etc.
(Signed by) THOMAS JOHNSON, DAVID STUART, DANIEL CARROLL.
L'Enfant aimed to make an original plan for the Federal City, adapted to the topography, but he endeavored to secure ideas from plans of great cities of Europe that might be found possible of adaptation so he wrote to Jefferson who sent his notable reply and plans of a number of cities that he had secured evidently while our minister to France.
”June 30th Was.h.i.+ngton noted, 'The business which brot. me to Georgetown being finished and the Comrs. instructed with respect to the mode of carrying the plan into effect, I set off this morning a littel after 4 o'clock, in the prosecution of my journey towards Philadelphia....'”
”Thereupon the building site for the city took on intense activity.”
Pierre Charles L'Enfant was the son of Pierre L'Enfant, an artist who painted battle scenes and also designed tapestries for the Gobelin Works. L'Enfant himself was an artist and it was his artistic temperament which caused him trouble. At the age of 22 he had come to America to volunteer his services in the war against England. He became an officer of engineers, and also helped Gen. von Steuben drill the Army at Valley Forge, and worked on fortifications. After the war he was a practicing architect in New York City for several years but when he heard of the Federal City to be created he longed to be the author of its plan and as I have said wrote to Was.h.i.+ngton asking for the job.
But it was his desire for perfection which eventually was his undoing.
There was delay in submitting the Plan to President Was.h.i.+ngton, and also he refused to take orders from any one except Was.h.i.+ngton, whereas he was told to take them from the three Commissioners of the District of Columbia: Thomas Johnson, David Stuart, and Daniel Carroll. Dr. David Stuart had become the second husband of Mrs. John Parke Custis, daughter-in-law of Mrs. Was.h.i.+ngton. Things went from bad to worse when the nephew of Daniel Carroll the Commissioner, Daniel Carroll of Duddington, started to build a house which ab.u.t.ted into a street laid out on the Plan and Major L'Enfant had it demolished. Also there was delay in getting the Map engraved.
Major L'Enfant lived at Suter's Tavern during the months he was working in George Town. But where he actually did his work of drawing his famous Map, where Andrew Ellicott had his office as surveyor, and where the three Commissioners met for their business has never been settled.
The tradition is that their office was The Little Old Stone House, now 3049 M Street, and known for many years as ”General Was.h.i.+ngton's Headquarters.” As General Was.h.i.+ngton never had need for military headquarters here, for there was no fighting nearby, this tradition has persisted that this was the office of the Commissioners.
On December 13th President Was.h.i.+ngton sent a letter to L'Enfant advising him that he must work under orders from the Commissioners.
”Then before leaving for Philadelphia to superintend the engraving of his ”Plan” personally, L'Enfant wrote to the Commissioners asking for supplies for the winter work, as follows:
'Georgetown Dec. 25, 1791.