|
History
Mount Pleasant's history reaches back into the early 1700s. Its
beginnings are rooted in colonial times when, in 1727, James Holmead
received a patent from Charles Carroll, Lord Baltimore, for a large
parcel of land that included the area to the east of Rock Creek and
south of  Piney Branch.
In 1740, just beyond the contemporary
boundaries (approximately the 3500 block of 17th Street) of Mount
Pleasant, Holmead built Holmead Manor. Anthony Holmead, a British
nephew, came to America to inherit the estate in 1750. Naming his
large tract "Pleasant Plains," he lived there until his
death in 1802. Holmead's estate was divided in two and the western
portion that embraced contemporary Mount Pleasant went to his son,
John. John's heirs gradually sold off large portions of the original
estate. They did hold on to that small portion that would become the
site of the village of Mount Pleasant. The Holmead family retained
the mansion and lived there as active members of the Mount Pleasant
community into the 1890's when the house was demolished.
In 1802, the Washington
Jockey Club rented part of the Holmead property for their Washington
Race Course, but in 1840 when the Club failed to renew its lease,
William Holmead attempted to subdivide the land into five-acre lots
suitable for country house construction. Despite an advertisement in
the October 29, 1836 Washington Globe describing the area as
"well suited for the residence of a gentleman of fortune,
having a commanding view of the city and surrounding country, and
every advantage for the display of taste in improvement," these
efforts to create suburban lots were premature and proved
unsuccessful.
When
its streets were first platted in the 1860s, Mount Pleasant was one of
Washington's first suburbs offering an escape from the city. Since that
time Mount Pleasant |
|
and the city have grown; at this time the community is
surrounded by dense urban development, located just over three miles north
of the White House, and situated between 16th Street and the
Washington National Zoo.
The neighborhood is a Historic District and was listed in
the National Register of Historic Places on October 5, 1987, reference
number 87001726.
Although few homes remain from
the first phase of the neighborhood's development, there are several
large, single-family homes that date to the late 19th-century. Many of the
townhouses and smaller apartment buildings in the neighborhood also
developed around the end of the streetcar line and were built between 1900
and 1925. Larger apartment buildings developed along 16th Street during
the 1930's. The small commercial district on Mount Pleasant Street is one
of the best examples of its kind, a commercial district that developed at
the turn-around of a streetcar line.
Do You Know Your House or
Building History? Allow Kelsey
& Associates to research the architects, builders, and owners
associated with your house or building over time.
|
|
|
|
|
Home
Organizations
History Discussion Forum
