DC Icons: Who’s Who in History
George Washington
Born: 1732
Died: 1799
The “Father of Our Nation,” George Washington was the first President of the United States of
America. As a young man, he joined the Virginia colony military and fought for the British. Not
long after, he married Martha. Their home in Virginia is called Mt. Vernon and is in Fairfax
County. In 1758, Washington got his start in politics when he was elected to the government of
Virginia. Because of his war experience, he was chosen as the Commander in Chief of the
Colonial Army in 1775. The next year, the Colonists declared their independence from the
British. Although General Washington’s Patriot troops were poorly trained, they won the war
and their freedom in 1781. Washington was unanimously elected President in 1789 and again in
1792. Both votes were unanimous. John Adams, who would become the 2nd US President, was
his vice-president. Washington's first inauguration took place in New York City, New York,
which from 1780 to 1790 was the first capital of the US. Washington's second inauguration took
place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which was the capital from 1790 to 1800. After his second
term, Washington retired to Mt. Vernon, where he died in 1799. After his death, the nation’s
capital was moved from Philadelphia to a new location right near Washington’s home. It was
named Washington, District of Columbia in his memory.
The Washington Monument, which honors everything George Washington did for the United
States, sits on one of the coolest spots in Washington, DC. Fly a kite on the grounds, stand at the
base and look all up (more than 555 feet), or see an awesome view of the city from the top!
Pierre L’Enfant
Born: 1754
Died: 1825
Pierre L'Enfant (Lhan FAHNT) was a Frenchman who came to America to help the colonists win
the Revolution. He arrived in 1777 with a group of French engineers. He served as an officer in
the Continental Army. After the war, L'Enfant stayed in the United States to work. In 1789,
President Washington chose L'Enfant for the job of planning the nation's capital city. L'Enfant
created a plan for a large city with broad avenues that would eventually become the National
Mall. He also thought that the streets should be organized on a grid. Without Pierre L'Enfant's
vision, Washington, D.C., would not be the city that it is today.
Some famous buildings on the National Mall include the Washington Monument and the
Lincoln Memorial. The Lincoln Memorial is a tribute to one of our most famous presidents.
Each year, 3.6 million people visit the 19-foot tall Lincoln who sits looking at the Washington
Monument. On the steps of the Memorial, Reverend Martin Luther King gave his famous “I
Have a Dream” speech to 250,000 people.
Frederick Douglass
Born: 1818
Died: 1895
Born into slavery, Frederick Douglas became one of the most important Americans in our
history. He not only freed himself, but he also helped many others gain their freedom by
speaking out against slavery. Frederick Douglass was a great writer and was famous across the
world when his autobiography was published in 1845. During the Civil War, he was one of
President Abraham Lincoln’s top advisors. President Lincoln and Douglass both believed that
there should be no slavery in the United States. As a powerful speaker, Douglass fought hard for
civil rights for African Americans and women. Frederick Douglass lived the last 20 years of his
life at this home, Cedar Hill, in Anacostia.
Clara Barton
Born: 1821
Died: 1912
A nurse during the Civil War, Clara Barton was known as the “Angel of the Battlefield.” She
was also a teacher, speaker, and founded of the American Red Cross. Clara’s group helped
people hurt in forest fires, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, and war; they provided health care,
food, and shelter for the victims. She led the Red Cross for 23 years and spent the last years of
her life outside of Washington, DC in Glen Echo, Maryland until she died at 91. Today, the Red
Cross continues to help people around the world. In the United States, each year, 500,000 Red
Cross volunteers and 35,000 employees help the victims of some 70,000 disasters. Through local
chapters, more than 15 million people gave the skills needed to prepare for and respond to
emergencies in their communities.
Nannie Helen Burroughs
Born: 1879
Died: 1961
Nannie Helen Burroughs was an educator, religious leader, and social activist who founded the
National Training School for Women and Girls in 1909. Burroughs fought for women’s rights,
civil rights, and religious activism. Determined to teach her students to become independent
women, she stressed the three Bs— Bible, Bath, and Broom—with lessons in faith, hygiene, and
housekeeping. Students also learned dressmaking, printing, and how to run a business. The
school trained thousands from the United States, Africa, and the Caribbean until Nannie died in
1961. In 1964, the school was renamed the Nannie Helen Burroughs School, and it taught
nursery through sixth grade. She also helped start the Women’s Auxiliary of the National Baptist
Convention. In 1954, she invited Martin Luther King, Jr., the young son of her friends Martin
Luther King and Alberta King, to talk to the Women’s Auxiliary. In a letter to King, Jr., thanking
him, she wrote, “What your message did to their thinking and to their faith will be seen day by
day in their good works in their communities.”
Langston Hughes
Born: 1902
Died: 1967
Langston Hughes, one of the most famous authors of the 20th century, wrote from 1926 to 1967.
In that time he wrote more than 60 books, including poems, novels, short stories, plays,
children's poetry, musicals, operas, and autobiographies. He was the first African American to
support himself as a writer, and he wrote from his own experience.
After high school, Hughes
traveled in Mexico, Europe. After traveling, he moved to Washington, DC, where his mother and
brother lived. In the 1920s, many African American musicians and authors lived and visited DC.
Langston lived around 7th St. NW from 1924 to 1926, and his experiences inspired his first two
novels. He was also an important figure during the Harlem Renaissance. The Harlem
Renaissance was an African-American cultural movement in New York City that focused on
writing, music, theater, art, and politics. One of his favorite things to do was to sit in clubs and
listen to blues music as he wrote his poetry.
Eleanor Holmes Norton
Born: 1937
A third generation resident of Washington, DC, Eleanor Holmes Norton shows her love for the
District by serving as its delegate to the House of Representatives since 1990. In her position, she
is able to serve on and vote with committees, as well as speak from the House floor. However,
she is not permitted to vote on final passage of any legislation because she is not a full member
of Congress because she represents DC. Eleanor has been working hard to try to get DC full
voting representation in the Senate and the House of Representatives and more freedom from the
federal government. She also is a law professor at Georgetown University, and she teaches a
course there every year.
Eleanor Holmes Norton, the US Senators, and the US Representatives work in the Capitol
building. The Senate and the House of Representatives make up Congress, the legislative branch
of the government. The Capitol is where Congress has met since 1800 to write national laws and
where presidents are sworn in. The dome on top of the Capitol is 288 feet and is the fourth tallest
dome in the entire world.
Marvin Gaye
Born: 1939
Died: 1984
Legendary R&B artist Marvin Gaye, also known as the Prince of Soul, grew up a few blocks
from Kenilworth Elementary. As a boy, he learned how to play the piano and the drums and
would often sing with his friends in the park. At Cardozo High School, he discovered R&B
music. After high school and a brief period in the Air Force, he traveled around the country
singing with different groups. In 1961, he was signed to the Motown Label in Detroit, Michigan.
Some of his greatest hits are: “I Heard it Through the Grapevine,” “What’s Going On,” “Ain’t
No Mountain High Enough,” and “How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You).” In 2006, DC
rededicated Watts Branch Park as Marvin Gaye Park. A portrait of him can be found at the
corner of Burroughs and Sheriff Ave.
Vincent Gray
Born: 1942
A life-long community member of Washington, Vincent Gray is the mayor of DC. After
graduating from Dunbar High School and George Washington University, Vincent Gray got his
start in politics helping people with mental disabilities and homeless youth. He then became the
Ward 7 DC Council member and later the DC Council chairman. As chairman, he led the
Council in passing a bill that allows more DC children than ever before to attend pre-
kindergarten. In 2010, he defeated Mayor Adrian Fenty in the DC mayoral election. He currently
lives in the Hillcrest neighborhood in Ward 7.
Who Runs the City?
The federal government, which is in charge of the whole country, is based in Washington, DC,
but the city itself is run by the mayor and DC Council. DC residents elect the mayor every four
years. He makes sure services are provided and laws are enforced. The council members are also
elected every four years and represent different wards of the city. They vote on new laws, study
important issues, and decide how much money the city will spend each year and what it will be
spent on. Although the mayor has all of these powers, he and the Council still need to get the
approval of Congress on many decisions. Mayor Gray, like Eleanor Holmes Norton, is pushing
for DC to get more freedom and more representation so that it will be easier to run DC.