Georgetown (Washington, D.C.) -- Description and travel; Georgetown (Washington, D.C.) -- History
But it was his desire for perfection which eventually was his undoing.
There was delay in submitting the Plan to President Washington, and also
he refused to take orders from any one except Washington, whereas he was
told to take them from the three Commissioners of the District of
Columbia: Thomas Johnson, David Stuart, and Daniel Carroll. Dr. David
Stuart had become the second husband of Mrs. John Parke Custis,
daughter-in-law of Mrs. Washington. Things went from bad to worse when
the nephew of Daniel Carroll the Commissioner, Daniel Carroll of
Duddington, started to build a house which abutted into a street laid
out on the Plan and Major L'Enfant had it demolished. Also there was
delay in getting the Map engraved.
Major L'Enfant lived at Suter's Tavern during the months he was working
in George Town. But where he actually did his work of drawing his famous
Map, where Andrew Ellicott had his office as surveyor, and where the
three Commissioners met for their business has never been settled.
The tradition is that their office was The Little Old Stone House, now
3049 M Street, and known for many years as "General Washington's
Headquarters." As General Washington never had need for military
headquarters here, for there was no fighting nearby, this tradition has
persisted that this was the office of the Commissioners.
On December 13th President Washington sent a letter to L'Enfant advising
him that he must work under orders from the Commissioners.
"Then before leaving for Philadelphia to superintend the engraving of
his "Plan" personally, L'Enfant wrote to the Commissioners asking for
supplies for the winter work, as follows:
'Georgetown Dec. 25, 1791.
'Gentlemen: Mr. Roberdeau, on whose activity and zeal I rely in the
execution of what is necessary to accomplish this winter, will
communicate to you a statement of the business I committed to this
care and I have to request you will make provision for the supply of
25 hands in the quarries and 50 in the city which in all will be 75
men kept in employment besides their respective overseers.
'There is an immediate necessity for a number of wheel-barrows and
above 100 will be wanted early in the spring. Therefore I beg you
will devise the mode of obtaining that number before the 15th of
March next--These wheel-barrows ought to be made light and should be
only roughly finished, though substantial, ...'
Next we find that L'Enfant addressed a long and comprehensive Report to
President Washington 'for renewing the work at the Federal City' in the
approaching season and giving an estimate of expenditures for one year
in the amount of $1,200,000."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account