DC History

At most art museums, visitors typically view and admire the final product, with few opportunities to witness the creative process or the heavy lifting that occurs behind the scenes. However, Sightlines: Chinatown and Beyond, the…

What does gentrification feel like?  The answer is complex, it’s safe to say. Perspective matters. If you have been displaced or if the neighborhood you grew up in is no longer recognizable, maybe you feel anger and resentment. If you…

Capital Fringe’s new digital, audio and video project “Down to Earth” highlights local artists as they explore the intersections of climate, sustainability, history, culture and community in Ward 7’s Kenilworth neighborhood. Capital…

When documentary filmmaker Cintia Cabib was showcasing two films at the Historical Society of Washington, D.C.’s 2014 conference on local history, she spotted an intriguing painting of the corner of Rhode Island Avenue and 3rd Street NW…

Painted City is a charming 26-minute documentary about Perry Frank’s passion for cataloging and preserving murals throughout the District. At a time when gentrification is leading to the destruction of many of these paintings in DC, Frank…

The 108-year-old gift of more than 3,000 cherry blossom trees from Tokyo to Washington, DC, finds fresh life in a vibrant new keepsake book from Smithsonian Books, Cherry Blossoms: Sakura Collections From the Library of Congress. The slim,…

Whether it’s planting an indigenous tree or heading to a neighborhood festival, DC is serving up plenty of ways to honor local heritage this weekend. A record fair, classical music concerts, Art All Night, a back-to-school festival and…

For DC tour guides accustomed to sharing details about the White House, the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial with visitors to the nation’s capital without much knowledge of local DC and its history, Cultural Tourism DC’s annual…

It’s been nearly 15 years since baseball returned to Washington, and even if you’ve never set foot inside Nationals Park, you’ve probably seen the ubiquitous red W caps all over Metro on a warm spring night. That sartorial development is…

As an art student at Howard University in 1949, David Driskell spent his evenings working as a taxicab driver to make extra income. But it was his daytime job that sparked his lifelong career as a scholar, painter and authority on…

You probably know that Duke Ellington was a Washington native. But would the iconic jazzman be the best cover subject for a book about local jazz? The new book Washington, DC, Jazz, by Regennia N. Williams and the Rev. Sandra…

DC has been the home of so many significant events over the years that anniversaries are bound to spring up frequently. This week, we dive into some notable occurrences that took place in and around the District in years past. The…

Amid a roomful of local political and education luminaries, Mayor Muriel Bowser and former Mayor Sharon Pratt recently kicked off the Institute of Politics Policy and History (IPPH), a new scholarly endeavor to be housed at the University…

DC has been the home of so many significant events over the years that anniversaries are bound to spring up frequently. This week, we dive into some notable occurrences that took place in and around the District in years past. Boss…

America’s capital city hosts so many significant events that it only makes sense that there are notable historical anniversaries every week of the year of local and national renown. Here are some notable occurrences in and around the…

America’s capital city hosts so many significant events that it only makes sense that there are notable historical anniversaries every week of the year of local and national renown. Here are some notable occurrences in and around the…

A new book from historian Mary-Elizabeth B. Murphy reveals how African-American women used the national and international platform of the nation’s capital to press the struggle for civil rights forward. In Jim Crow Capital: Women and…

Logan Circle has a reputation for many things: beautiful architecture, expensive homes and marvelous eateries and bars. Generally not included in this list is the 19th-century Korean Legation at 15 Logan Circle NW. For the 40th annual Logan…

Last month’s pivotal midterm election provoked heightened frustration over DC’s lack of a vote in Congress. District residents on Nov. 6 may have found themselves longingly gazing across the Potomac River to spy on Arlington County, where…

DC’s annual LGBTQ film festival, Reel Affirmations, showcased a wide variety of films that highlight LGBTQ subjects and issues during its four-day run in early November. Notably, the film roster included a 50-minute TV special by first-time…