Georgia Avenue
Georgia Avenue is a major north-south artery in Northwest Washington, D.C. and Montgomery County, Maryland. Within the District of Columbia and a short distance in Silver Spring, Maryland, Georgia Avenue is also U.S. Route 29. Both Howard University and Walter Reed Army Medical Center are located on Georgia Avenue.
Geography
Georgia Avenue begins north of Florida Avenue, which was the boundary of the Old City, and is a continuation of 7th Street. Traveling northward, the street passes Howard University and Fort Stevens. At Eastern Avenue, the road crosses into Montgomery County and passes through Silver Spring.
Where it crosses Colesville Road a mile into Maryland, Georgia Avenue splits off U.S. Route 29 and becomes Maryland State Highway 97. Georgia Avenue ends at the boundary with Howard County, where it becomes Roxbury Mills Road.[1] The total length of the road is about 24 miles (39 km), of which 5 miles (8 km) are in Washington, D.C.
History
The original Georgia Avenue was the road now named Potomac Avenue in Southwest and Southeast. Current-day Georgia Avenue was originally named 7th Street Extended and Brightwood Avenue.
Seventh Street Pike was built as a plank road from Boundary Avenue (now Florida Avenue) to the District Line in 1852.[2] Being a plank road, it was essentially paved with wooden planks that had to be replaced periodically due to rotting.[3] The road was also known as Brightwood Avenue.
The road was also the path of the Seventh Street Railway, which took riders from Brightwood to downtown. The railway consisted of cars dragged by horses, guided by metal tracks that protruded above the road.[4][5] On April 12, 1890, Seventh Street Railway became electrically powered; its cable cars were powered by overhead electrical lines, and the cars themselves were guided by metal tracks embedded in the road.[4][5] Other electrically powered railways were built elsewhere in the District in later years.[4]
In 1906, Georgia's senator Augustus Octavius Bacon was so dismayed that Georgia Avenue had become so neglected that he proposed to rename it Navy Yard Avenue and at the same time change the name of Brightwood Avenue to Georgia Avenue.[6] While Senator Bacon's proposal did not come to fruition, Wisconsin's senator John Coit Spooner offered the same proposal again in 1907.[7] Renaming of Brightwood Avenue was opposed by residents of Brightwood[6] and Park View.[8] The 1909 appropriations bill ended up changing the name of Georgia Avenue to Potomac Avenue and Brightwood Avenue to Georgia Avenue.[9]
Future
The Montgomery County Planning Board is undertaking a concept study to provide "a design framework for future master plans and projects from the District of Columbia to Howard County."[10] The study covers each neighborhood in the corridor, examining pedestrian safety, urban design, and public transportation issues.
Event
Every June, Washington holds the D.C. Caribbean Carnival, which includes a parade down the lower portion of Georgia Avenue, an area that is home to many Caribbean immigrants.[11]
Transit service
Metrorail
Starting just north of the Silver Spring station, the Washington Metro Red Line runs roughly parallel to Georgia Avenue.
Metrorail stations on or near Georgia Avenue include:
- Georgia Avenue–Petworth Green LineYellow Line
- Shaw-Howard University Green LineYellow Line
- Silver Spring Red Line
- Forest Glen Red Line
- Wheaton Red Line
- Glenmont Red Line
Metrobus
The following Metrobus routes travel along the street (listed from south to north):
- 70, 71 (Silver Spring station to 7th St.)
- 79 (Limited stop service from the Silver Spring station to 7th St.)
- 62 (Kansas Ave. to New Hampshire Ave.)
- 60 (Upshur St. to New Hampshire Ave.)
- K1 (PM southbound only from Eastern Ave. to Butternut St.; AM northbound only from Dahlia St. to Eastern Ave.)
- Y5, Y7, Y8, Y9 (Olney-Sandy Spring Rd. to Silver Spring station)
- Q2 (Veirs Mill Rd. to Silver Spring station)
- J5 (I-495 to Silver Spring station)
Ride On
The following Ride On routes travel along the street (listed from south to north):
- 28 Van Go shuttle (Southbound only from Bonifant St. to 13th St.)
- 33 (Glenmont station to Arcola Ave.)
- 51 (Hewitt Ave. to Glenmont station)
- 53 (Prince Phillip Dr. to Glenmont station, express south of Norbeck Rd.)
- 52 (Both directions from Olney-Sandy Spring Rd. to Hines Rd.; northbound only from Norbeck Rd. to Hines Rd.)
MARC
The following MARC train stop lies near the street:
- Silver Spring
In popular culture
The Wale song Chillin was filmed on Georgia Avenue.
References
- ↑ Google Maps, Georgia Avenue turns into Roxbury Mills Road
- ↑ Proctor, John Clagett, ed. (1930). Washington Past and Present 1. New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company Inc. p. 146.
- ↑ Proctor, John Cloggett (April 22, 1928). "Plank Road to Brightwood Was Historic Much Traveled Way". Sunday Star.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Proctor, John Clagett, ed. (1930). Washington Past and Present 1. New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company Inc. p. 164.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Proctor, John Clagett, ed. (1930). Washington Past and Present 2. New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company Inc. p. 731.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "East Washington Plans for Many Betterments". The Washington Post. September 9, 1906. p. A10.
- ↑ "More Money for District". The Washington Post. February 14, 1907. p. 4.
- ↑ "Object to Change in Name". The Washington Post. May 3, 1908. p. E1.
- ↑ "Pare District Budget". The Washington Post. May 22, 1908. p. 4.
- ↑ Montgomery County Planning Board, Silver Spring, MD (2008). "Georgia Avenue Concept Study."
- ↑ D.C. Caribbean Carnival
External links
- Stewart, Nikita (January 14, 2007). "Georgia Ave. Awakening". The Washington Post. p. A01. Retrieved 2007-01-14.
- D.C. Caribbean Carnival
- Why Is It Named Georgia Avenue?
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Coordinates: 38°59′4.9″N 77°1′35.8″W / 38.984694°N 77.026611°W