Title: Washington, D.C. - History | Britannica
Headings: History of Washington, D.C.
History of Washington, D.C.
The creation of Washington
Growth and change

Content: Structural damage was extensive, and the morale of the local citizens sank. By 1817, however, a newly reconstructed White House welcomed Pres. James Monroe (served 1817–25), and Congress reconvened in the newly built Capitol in 1819, after having spent five years in the temporary Old Brick Capitol Building, which had been erected on the site of the present-day Supreme Court Building. Capitol prior to 1814 burning
The Capitol, Washington, D.C., as seen from Pennsylvania Avenue before it was burned by the British in 1814. Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Growth and change
Between 1830 and 1865 tremendous changes occurred in Washington, beginning with the arrival of Pres. Andrew Jackson (served 1829–37), who brought with him a retinue of new civil servants—beneficiaries of the “ spoils system ” who introduced democratizing social changes to the workplace and the community. Challenges were plentiful: the local economy was unstable; silt in the Potomac River restricted navigation; the construction of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal was delayed;