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Imagining Washington Monuments and Nation Building in The Early Capital
Imagining Washington Monuments and Nation Building in The Early Capital
Imagining Washington Monuments and Nation Building in The Early Capital
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Imagining Washington
and
Monuments
In
the
Early
Nation
Building
Capital
by Rubil Morales-Vazquez
man is born with a bag of folly
which attends him through life.
GeorgeWashingtonwas born with a
small
bag, which he kept to himself,
very
and never impartedany of it on the world
until the metropolis of the nation was
founded, when he emptied the whole of it
in this city.
Historianshave prettymuchagreedwith
this assessment as evidenced by the most
enduring study of the early capital, James
Sterling Young's The WashingtonCommunity.
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WashingtonHistory, Spring/Summer2000
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Imagining Washington
mise: the creation of two seats of government- one on the Potomacand the other on
the Delaware.In the meantime,Trentonand
Annapolis would serve as the temporary
venues until adequatepermanentaccommodationsforCongresscould be provided.This
arrangement,however, was not universally
applauded.6
Although work on the equestrianstatue
had yet to begin, in at least one instance the
monumentto Washingtonfound itself in the
midst of the debate over the merits of the
so-called dual residence plan. Francis
Hopkinson, a signer of the Declaration of
Independence, "requestedto know in what
manner the house proposed to execute the
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WashingtonHistory, Spring/Summer2000
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Imagining Washington
December1784Congressdeterminedto
settle down at New YorkCity and abandon the dual residenceplan in favor of a
sitenearTrenton,
single,yet-to-be-determined
New Jersey.The retiredGeneralWashington,
althoughchagrined,was not overlydistressed
at this news. Forone thing southerners,with
his activebehind-the-scenesencouragement,
were preparedto block the necessaryappropriations.Washingtoncontinued to believe
that a federalseat on the PotomacRiver,lying at the (then) geographiccenterof the republicand in proximityto the growing Ohio
Valley,would be of greaterutilityin strengthening the bonds of nationhood.12
Washingtonand other like-mindedcentralists took a step closer toward establishing a permanentseat with the Constitutional
17
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After ForeignAffairsSecretaryJohnJay
suggestedthat the expenseand grandeurof
the proposedequestrianstatue of Washington
werea potentialfinancial burdenon the
young nation, Congresspostponedany
furtheraction on the memorial.Courtesy,LC.
18
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Imagining Washington
Mansion
intersectionof the Capitol-Executive
axes. Unfortunately,by the summer of 1791,
when UEnfantsubmittedhis plan of the city
to PresidentWashington,prospectsforbuilding the federalcity as a cooperativeventure
among the stateswere not propitious.16
The Compromiseof 1790,which placed
the federal seat on the Potomac, provided
that Congress first meet in Philadelphiafor
ten years.In effect,Congress,as with the earlier dual residenceapproach,had dealt with
the problem of creating a more unified republic by promoting multiple centers of
power. Philadelphiawould be the actual locus of federal authority,but only on a temporarybasis.TheCityof Washington,despite
being endowed with a hallowed name,
would remain more of an imaginary than
actual place for another decade. The result
was a continuationof regional rivalriesthat
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precluded the kind of cooperation envisioned by L'Enfant or by Madisonin TheFederalist.Retreatingfrom his earlier position,
Madison told the presidentshortly afterthe
compromise was struck that in light of the
circumstances,moniesfromCongressforany
improvementsat the new federal city were
"notprudent to count on."17
Pennsylvaniawas investingconsiderable
sums of money in the improvementof federal buildings at the temporary capital in
orderto induce Congressto remainin Philadelphia permanently.As a further inducement a handsome "President'sHouse" was
also eventually erected, which Washington
Thestubbornstudiouslyrefusedto occupy.18
ness of Americans in accepting any single
locus of power as supreme was inevitably
20
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Imagining Washington
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2000
Washington
History,Spring/Summer
This map,
printed on a
handkerchief,
was copied
from Andrew
Ellicott's
1792 version
of L Enfant's
plan. It was
widely
distributedin
hopes of
sparking
popular
national
interest in the
newfederal
city.
Courtesy,LC.
haps one measureof its effectivenessas a propaganda tool was its continued use in the
subsequent state and local elections. This
time, criticismwould focus most stronglyon
the Federalistproposalto build a mausoleum
for the recentlydeceased Washington.
local and nationalelections, included the issue among the sins of extravaganceperpetratedby the Federalists.Asked Bishop,"Do
you like the funding system, federalcity,foreign intercourse,stamp act, army,navy?"As
the presidentialelectionsdrew to a close, the
poet laureateof the JeffersonianParty,Philip
Freneau, summed up the feelings of the
Democratic Republican opposition to the
City of Washington:
An infantcitygrowsapace,
Intendedfora royalrace,
Herecapitolsof an awfulheight,
Alreadyboastuponthesite,
Andpalacesforembryokings,
Displaytheirfruitsandspreadtheir
wings.25
BenjaminLatrobeproposedthis design in
1800 as Congressdebatedwhetherto build a
grand mausoleumfor Washington'sremains.
Courtesy,LC.
It is difficult to assess the impact of the federal city on the Republicanvictory,but per-
22
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Imagining Washington
in the federalcity.26
Thisunusual requestwas
a reflectionof the sense of "nationalcalamity"with which the deathof Washingtonwas
received. In the late 1790s,with both Federalists and Democratic Republicans plying
their separate visions of American identity
against a background of domestic tension
and foreign intrigue, there was ample reason for leaders of either party to despair at
the passing of the man who, as the congressional resolutionphrased it, had given birth
to "a wide-spreading empire" and bequeathed "the WesternWorld its independence and its freedom." The resolution to
bring Washington'sbody to the new federal
city passed unanimously in both houses of
Congress.As with the 1783 resolution calling for the equestrianstatue of Washington,
the nation's legislators were drawing attention to their own standing as national leaders showing their "love and gratitude" in
honoring his memory27
But if therewas unanimityabout bring-
23
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ConnecticutFederalistRoger Griswold
explained the mausoleum's significance in
shapinga collectiveconsciousnessby saying,
"Thegrandeurof the pile will impressa sublime awe on all who behold it. It will survive
the presentgeneration It will receive the
homage of our children and our children's
children;and they will learn that the truest
way to gain honor amidst a free people is to
be ... virtuous." The DemocraticRepublicansin Congress,however,opposed the resolution. Although he supported the idea of
"bringing [Washington's] ashes from the
place that they now lie," John Nicholas of
Virginia preferred a less ostentatious and
costly receptacle.In place of a largetomb,he
envisioned a "plain tablet" on which each
mancould "inscribewhat his heartdictated."
But some Federalists regarded Nicholas's
suggestion as an insufficient tribute to
Washington's memory. Lee, for instance,
complainedthat the Britisharistocracybuilt
largerdwellings for theirmistressesthanthe
mausoleum contemplatedfor the Fatherof
his Country.This ill-consideredremarkelicited a vigorous rebuttalfrom NathanielMacon, a Republicanof North Carolina,who
retortedthat the monument "might indeed
adorn this city,"but at the price of emulating a countrylike Egypt. "Now is the time,"
he declared, "to make a stand against this
monument mania." Macon's protests notwithstanding,in January1801Congressappropriated $200,000 for the building of a
mausoleumby the close marginof 45-37.29
The stormover "monumentmania"that
beganat the tailend of theAdamspresidency
soon extendedbeyond the halls of Congress.
Republican publicist James Thomson Callender,in the secondeditionof his incendiary
BeforeUs,ridiculedthe
pamphlet,TheProspect
to the memory of the
mausoleum
a
of
"plan
chief magistrate."Although the Federalists
had estimatedthe cost at $170,000,Callender
claimed,"Allsuch estimatesfall greatlyshort
of the ultimate expenditure." He added,
"Americawould be fortunateif she escaped
for a final balanceof five hundredthousand
24
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Imagining Washington
of the City of Washington,one morecompatible with the tenets of the RepublicanRevolution, but also one that did not abandonthe
effort to assert the presence of the federal
authorityon the Potomac.
taken through their efforts. By the same token,both men had been fearfulof what they
felt was Hamilton'sflirtationwith monarchical government, and Jefferson,finding the
idea of a monumental tomb to Washington
in the Capitolantitheticalto republicanprinciples, tried to circumvent Thornton's rotunda design.32Yet despite having attained
the reins of federal power at the head of a
political party that embodied the Anti-federalist fears regarding the predatory metropolis, as president Jeffersonwould continue the work of completingthe Capitoland
thusanchorCongressto the Potomac.He was
not, however, able to escape criticism over
monument-building at the seat of government- mostly by the Federalists,but some
of it by Republicansas well. Out of this concernover the costs of monumentsin the federalcity would come a rethinkingof the role
25
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Imagining Washington
Jefferson'sTreasurySecretaryAlbert Gallatin
urged the spending offederalfunds on roads
and canals in the various states and
territories.Courtesy, LC.
27
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WashingtonHistory, Spring/Summer2000
This classical revival statue of George
Washington by Horatio Greenough was
commissioned by Congress in 1832, the
last time Congress attempted to move
Washington's remains from Mount Vernon
to a tomb in the Capitol. The half-nude
statue dismayed the public and was briefly
displayed in the rotunda. Today it can be
seen in the National Museum of
American History. Courtesy, LC.
to the states over a ten-yearperiod. The federalcity would surelyhave benefitedas well;
Jeffersonwas eager to improve not just public buildings but the roads in the District of
Columbiain order to ensure the "destinies"
of the Potomac capital. But federal funds
would not be limited to the ten miles square
and contributeto a capitalhidden by an "impenetrablewall of gold" as the Anti-federalists had feared.Instead,under Jeffersonand
Gallatin'splan,the monies thatstreamedinto
the City of Washingtonwould flow backoutward to all statesand territoriesof the United
States.40It would be the distribution of the
proceeds of the general treasury- not a
monumentto Washington- thatwould help
bind the nation together.
Before Gallatin's plan could be implemented, however, the weight of foreign affairs, beginning with the EmbargoAct and
culminating in the War of 1812, wiped out
the federal surplus. Worstof all, in August
1814Britishtroops burned most of the public buildings in the federal city. In the aftermathof the conflagration,therewould be one
last attemptbefore the Civil Warto remove
the federal seat to a site in the North, an initiative that originated with a Republican,
RepresentativeJonathanFisk of New York,
and which requiredthe spur of party unity
to quell.41
Throughout the ensuing debate, Madison was determined to maintain the capital
on the Potomac.Two months later,with the
outcome still uncertain, the president and
Congress responded quickly to restore the
capital. A congressional investigating committee assessed the damage at $1.2 million
and accepted a loan of $500,000from a consortium of Washingtonbanks for the repair
of the publicbuildings.Localobserverscame
to see the burningas something of a blessing
in disguise. In October1814the Georgetown
FederalRepublicanannounced, "The public
edifices, if executive influence is effective,
will be rebuilt on a plan of improved magnificence,and the city will rise againin splendor, and become the pride and boast of a
The City of
great and increasing empire."42
would
not
be a privihowever,
Washington,
the
center.
The
of
capital
price keeping
leged
on the Potomacwas acceptingits role as one
of many localities contesting for federal
money.But competitionwith other localities
would result just as often in the neglect toward improvementsin the federalcity.Such
was the case with the national monument to
Washington.
At the onset of the federal republic, the
suggestion was made that "every succeeding President should be honored with the
title of 'Washington.'"Thus,in a way his successorswould embody the spiritof Washington. Congress had actually done something
similar in requesting that his remainsbe interredin the Capitolrotunda.Foryears after
his death the expectationcontinued to exist,
at least in some quarters, that his remains
would one day rest in a tomb constructed
underneaththe finished rotunda.But it was
not to be. On the anniversaryof Washington's
100th birthday in February 1832, the 22nd
Congress made a last attempt to inter his
body in the federal city. But conflicting loyalties that this action provoked - did
Washington'sbody belong to Virginiaor to
the nation?Whatdebtswere owed to his wife
and family?- made it well nigh impossible
to achieve a consensus, and it was probably
with a sense of relief that Congress acquiesced to the requestof Washington'sheirsnot
to remove him fromhis grave. As it had half
a centuryearlierwith the dual residencyapproach, Congress split the difference.
Washington'sbody would remainat Mount
28
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Imagining Washington
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