It was 50 years ago this weekend that the District's extensive network of streetcars was scrapped in favor of buses. more ›

A quick update to a story we noted back in August -- the District's Historic Preservation Review Board has officially granted landmark status to the Wonder Bread Factory (officially known as Dorsch's White Cross Bakery) at 641 S Street NW in Shaw. more ›

Washingtoniana is the largest special collection at the D.C. Public Libriary, flush with old photographs, local maps, rare books, millions of newspaper clippings and the D.C. community archives. This weekend, the history collection is having its first book sale in the division's 107 year history. more ›

On this day in 1964, District voters cast their first presidential ballots since the city was established in 1800. more ›

The District's is seeing something of a drinking revival these days, but it didn't have to be that way -- a new book finds that prior to prohibition, the District was a drinkers paradise. more ›

Like many of you, we at DCist love historic photography of our town. So when a reader sent us a link to this collection of rare negatives from news photographer Alexander Lmanian, we couldn't wait to dive in. more ›

If you've ever got questions about legislation in D.C. -- that which passed, and that which didn't -- the D.C. Council's Legislative Information Management System is an invaluable tool. more ›

As we look towards a pleasant weekend, here's a roundup of all of the bike-related news you might have missed this week. more ›

We've certainly seen better times for Washington's history, but there's still hope on the horizon. more ›

Though it is excellent, Dream City isn't the only book about the District of Columbia you should read. Here's a few others we'd suggest. more ›

While recently doing some research for a post on the killing of diplomats in Washington, I came across a hugely helpful online historic archive of Washington Post articles dating back to the late 1800s. The history nerd in me came out in full force, and next thing I knew I was searching for names, neighborhoods and events over the course of the last 150 years. more ›

Rock Creek Park is something of an urban gem, a natural getaway only minutes from most of the District. But when officials were debating creating the park in the late 1800s, they almost went for an option that would have made the park, and the District, a very different place -- a lake. more ›

Earlier this month, we passed along the news that the Wonder Bread/Hostess Cake Factory at 641 S Street NW in Shaw was being considered for inclusion on the D.C. Inventory of Historic Sites as it underwent redevelopment. Now we know how new owner Douglas Development would like to update the site. more ›

The District's Historic Preservation Review Board is going through a long-standing vacancy crisis, but that doesn't mean that it isn't considering buildings for preservation. The latest high-profile nominee to cross the HPRB's desk? The Wonder Bread Factory at 641 S Street NW in Shaw. more ›

Who doesn't love a sidewalk cafe? Getting in some people watching as you down your meal is often one of the highlights of living in the city -- though don't tell that to the people who were running this city in 1961. more ›

There are quite a few words, many of them fiery, being uttered about the National Mall these days. What better time, then, to dive into some historical maps which document the space? more ›

If you're an American history buff, you'll want to check out this video by the Nationals Archives, which details historians' efforts to try and figure out what President Richard Nixon and his chief of staff H.R. "Bob" Haldeman were talking about during an 18 1/2-minute gap in a recording made shortly after five men were arrested for breaking into the Watergate complex in 1972. more ›

The History Channel is currently featuring a rather fascinating series, How The States Got Their Shapes -- and a recent episode covered the return of the District's ten miles square to Virginia, or how "George Washington's perfect diamond was torn apart." more ›

Ten years ago today, Robert Randall died. Had it not been for the Metropolitan Police Department, Randall could well have lived the rest of life in complete anonymity. But a chance raid of his Capitol Hill apartment in 1975 made Randall -- then slowly going blind because of severe glaucoma -- the unwitting father of the fight for medical marijuana. more ›

Here's a pretty fantastic video -- the result of "years of painstaking work and research" by Dan Bailey, director of the Imaging Research Center (IRC) at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County -- which attempts to show what Washington, D.C. looked like 200 years ago. more ›

Pretty much everyone in D.C. knows of the Cairo apartment building in the Dupont area, on 17th and Q. The tallest residential building in the city, it was responsible for the height laws now in place. more ›

Club Bali, formerly at 1901 14th Street, was a popular place where jazz greats like Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong, and Cab Calloway performed. the building used to be home to Arena Stage's Community Engagement Studio, but now is vacant. more ›

"It's always about people." So goes one of the more famous quotations attributed to nonviolent activist Cesar Chavez. Of course, we're relatively certain that Mr. Chavez didn't have parents of children at a Washington charter school which bears his name when he made that enlightened statement. more ›

The Volta Laboratory and Bureau, founded in the 1880s by Alexander Graham Bell, has been the home of research for deaf and hard of hearing persons. The building, located on 35th and Volta Place in the Georgetown neighborhood was built in 1893 and is a National Historic Landmark. more ›