Georgetown Car Barn
| The Car Barn | |
|---|---|
 M Street elevation | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Location | Georgetown, Washington, D.C., United States |
| Coordinates | 38°54′19″N 77°4′12″W / 38.90528°N 77.07000°W |
| Current tenants | Georgetown University |
| Construction started | 1895 |
| Opened | May 27, 1897 |
| Height | |
| Architectural | 140 feet (43 m) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 4 |
| Floor area | 81,765 square feet (7,596.2 m2) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Waddy Butler Wood |
The Car Barn is a historic building in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. in the United States. Designed by architect Waddy Butler Wood, it was built between 1895 and 1897 by the Capital Traction Company as a terminal for several Washington and Virginia streetcar lines. During the construction of the Car Barn, the Exorcist steps were erected in order to connect M Street with Prospect Street. Intended dually as a station for passengers and as a storage house for the streetcars, the Car Barn initially operated Washington's only cable car system. Almost immediately after the building's opening, the system was electrified and the Car Barn was converted to accommodate electric streetcars. Throughout its history as a terminal and storage facility, the Car Barn was never utilized to the extent anticipated by its construction.
Not long after its opening, the building began to fall into a state of disrepair. Changing ownership over time, it maintained its original function of housing streetcars until 1962, when it was redeveloped. Today, the building is used as an academic building by Georgetown University.
History
The foundation on which the Car Barn is built originally supported a tobacco warehouse that was constructed in 1761,[1] which stored tobacco for auction unloaded from ships docked at the site of the present-day Key Bridge. The warehouse was converted to keep horses and their trolleys around 1861. On August 23, 1894, Congress authorized the extension of an existing trolley line that terminated at the intersection of Bridge and High Streets (now Wisconsin Avenue and M Street, respectively) to the intersection of M and 36th Streets. With the authorization, Congress required that a union station be erected at the site.[2]
Construction
_-_Capital_Traction_Company_Union_Station,_3600_M_Street_Northwest_HABS_DC,GEO,84-11.png)
Construction on the building then known as Union Station began in early 1895 under the direction of architect Waddy Butler Wood. The superintendent of the Capital Traction Company was in charge of the construction.[2] Prior to the construction of the Car Barn, the two streets were joined by a steep, rocky hillside and carried Lingan Street (36th Street). Large amounts of earth had to be excavated, creating the sharp cliff that exists today. Adjacent to the car barn are a set of stairs commonly known as the Exorcist steps and a large retaining wall, which were built at the time the car barn was constructed, to connect M and Prospect Streets.[3] The steps receive their name and notoriety from being the location of the scene in the film The Exorcist where the priest is thrown down the stairs to his death.[4] After the Car Barn was built, the large edifice obstructed the view of the Potomac River and Virginia from the homes on Prospect Street,[5] including the well-known cottage of E. D. E. N. Southworth. For this reason, some considered it a "desecration" of the local scenery.[3]
_-_Capital_Traction_Company_Union_Station,_3600_M_HABS_DC,GEO,84-10.png)
The three-story, 180-by-242-foot (55 by 74 m) building was opened on May 27, 1897, containing offices for the several tenant trolley companies and waiting rooms that were decorated with red oak wainscot panelling, ornate iron stair railings, and stuccoed ceilings. Its tower, which reached a height of 140 feet (43 m), contained an elevator that shuttled passengers between the terminals.[2] Many of the building's decorations reflect its original function. The pediment facing M Street reads "Capital Traction Company" and contains three decorative flywheels.[6]
The M Street-facing first floor served the Washington and Georgetown Railroad. The second and third floors were connected with steel trestles to allow trolleys coming across the Potomac River from Rosslyn serving Washington, Arlington, Falls Church, and projected to serve Great Falls and Old Dominion. The roof, which was level with Prospect Street, was used by the Metropolitan Railroad and had a covered walkway for passengers to get from the elevator to the street.[2]
The station operated as Washington's only cable car trolley terminal for less than one year.[2] Almost immediately after opening, the Car Barn was converted to operate the new electric streetcars.[6] The Virginia lines never made use of the terminal and the Metropolitan Railroad did not use the station to the extent intended. It was to place storage tracks on the roof of the building, but never did.[2]
Later uses
_Entry_-_Capital_Traction_Company_Union_Station,_3600_M_Street_Northwest,_Washington,_HABS_DC,GEO,84-3.png)
Beginning in 1900, the car barn experienced continual deterioration. When the Capital Traction Company ceased to exist, the building came under the ownership of its successor, the DC Transit System, in 1956. By then, the building had fallen into such a state of disrepair that the company deliberated over demolishing it entirely. Seeking to preserve the historic structure, it elected to redevelop it.[2] The building continued to serve its original purpose of housing streetcars until 1962.[6]
Today, the Car Barn is owned by Douglas Development Corporation and the primary tenant of the building is Georgetown University. After two years of renovation by the university that ended in 2017, the first floor was converted from a garage to house the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and the Georgetown University Press.[7] The building today has four floors and has a floor area of 81,765 square feet (7,596.2 m2).[8]
References
- ^ "The old Georgetown Car Barn, Washington, D.C." Library of Congress. Archived from the original on October 11, 2018. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b c d e f g "Our Projects: The Historic Car Barn". Douglas Development Corporation. Archived from the original on February 21, 2008. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b "Why Do the Exorcist Steps Exist in the First Place?". The Georgetown Metropolitan. October 30, 2015. Archived from the original on September 28, 2018. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Spirits in Our Midst: In Georgetown, We Are Haunted by History". The Georgetowner. October 25, 2017. Archived from the original on October 11, 2018. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Krepp, Tim (2013). Ghosts of Georgetown. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. p. 45. ISBN 9781625845795. Archived from the original on November 17, 2018. Retrieved November 17, 2018 – via Google Books.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b c "One Last Remnant of Washington's Cable Cars Lives on in Georgetown". The Georgetown Metropolitan. September 16, 2011. Archived from the original on August 31, 2018. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Wallender, Andrew (January 31, 2017). "University Completes Two-Year Renovation of Car Barn First Floor". The Hoya. Archived from the original on March 23, 2018. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "The Car Barn". Douglas Development Corporation. Archived from the original on January 26, 2018. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
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External links
