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First Inauguration to be Telegraphed:
1845. James K. Polk's inauguration was the first to be reported by telegraph. Samuel Morse, inventor of the telegraph, transmitted news of the ceremony to Baltimore from a telegraph set up on the inaugural platform at the U.S. Capitol.
1850:
The Napier Ball (insert), held at the Willard in 1859 in honor of the British ambassador, drew more than 1,800 people and was one of the last great pre-Civil War social events.
The Willard Hotel:
The Willard Hotel, which has occupied the northwest corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and 14th Street since 1850, was where Julia Ward Howe wrote "Battle Hymn of the Republic" and Martin Luther King, Jr. penned his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. The hotel played host to many famous public gatherings and social events. The term "lobbyist" is said to have been coined by President Ulysses S. Grant at this site.
The Evening Star:
The Evening Star, founded in 1852, was the major evening newspaper in Washington for more than a century. In the late 1800s, it moved to a building on Pennsylvania Avenue and 11th Street that is a landmark today. |