File:The story of Washington, the National Capital (1889) (14578096250).jpg

Identifier: storyofwashingto00todd (find matches)
Title: The story of Washington, the National Capital
Year: 1889 (1880s)
Authors: Todd, Charles Burr, 1849-
Subjects: White House (Washington, D.C.) United States Capitol (Washington, D.C.)
Publisher: New York London : G.P. Putnam's Sons : Knickerbocker Press
Contributing Library: Lincoln Financial Foundation Collection
Digitizing Sponsor: The Institute of Museum and Library Services through an Indiana State Library LSTA Grant

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64miles, and their united area 2,554 acres. The streetsof New York cover but thirty-five per cent, of her en-tire area. Mr. Mullett, fertile in expedients, at oncesuggested a remedy. He advanced the pavementsinto the streets a uniform distance, and reduced thecost of the former by sodding between them and thehouse fronts, thus giving each householder a frontyard, while the original width of the streets abovethe sidewalks was retained. Two hundred and eightmiles of these sidewalks were laid^seven miles offlag and concrete, the remainder of brick. Next came the equalizing of the grades of thecity. The plain, so called, on which Washington isbuilt presents many and great inequalities. A topo-graphical survey in 1871 would have shown abrupthills of peculiarly colored sand or clay standing onstratified metamorphic rock, ragged ravines cut by thewater-courses, and depressions of large area, which,before a system of drainage was inaugurated, hadbeen pools of half-stagnant water. To show this
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FOREIGN LEGATIONBUILDINGS.RUSSIAN. ENGLISH. SPANISH. 185 186 THE STORY OF WASHINGTON. inequality it is only necessary to give the altitude ofa few well-known points. The White House grounds,for instance, are fifteen feet above mean low-water;Capitol Hill, one mile east, is about ninety feetabove. Pennsylvania Avenue, connecting the two,is below high-water mark. Observatory Hill, twohundred and sixty rods west of the White House, isninety-six feet above tide. Yet between ObservatoryHill and the Capitol, in 1876, lay a ridge one hun-dred and three feet above tide-water. These hillswere cut down, the ravines and hollows filled up,and the site of the city made as nearly level as w^asdesirable to insure perfect drainage. Lastly, as the crowning work, the planting of thestreets and squares with shade trees was begun. A* Parking Commission, composed of William H.Smith, Superintendent of the Botanic Garden, Wil-liam Saunders, Superintendent of the HorticulturalDivision of the Department of Ag

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