My Georgetown Home Portrait Series is Expanding!
I have been very busy in Georgetown of late and my historic watercolor house portrait series has grown substantially. And so has the number of architectural styles. Here are a few examples, ranging from Federal, Georgian, Neoclassical and Victorian.
As Georgetown is an area that is steeped in history, I thought you might be interested in some further information. Lined with quaint cobblestone streets and 18th and 19th century architecture, the neighborhood is the perfect blend of old and new. Georgetown was formally established in 1751 when the Maryland Assembly authorized a town on the Potomac River on 60 acres of land belonging to George Beall and George Gordon. “George Town” was named in honor of King George II and soon flourished as a shipping center. Tobacco was the lifeblood of the community, and Georgetown soon prospered as a shipping center with a profitable European and West Indian trade. Commerce and industry developed along the waterfront, where wharves and flour mills were constructed. During the Revolution, Georgetown served as a great depot for the collection and shipment of military supplies. When the town was finally incorporated in 1789, a textile mill, paper factory and more flour mills were established. Georgetown’s character was profoundly affected by the establishment of the nation’s capital to the east in 1791. Although it was included in the new Federal District, it retained its own character.
After the Civil War, the brick rowhouse made its appearance in Georgetown. The brick rowhouses of the 1870s and 1880s exhibited elaborate bracketed cornices and then corbelled cornices in the 1880s and 1890s. It is the Queen Anne rowhouse that found the greatest favor with Washington builders and was also used frequently in commercial architecture. Residential architecture of the 1890s took the form of a rowhouse in a minimalist late Victorian, late Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival styles and various combinations. Overall, Georgetown’s population continued to climb, as reflected in its construction of public schools. The Phillips School built in 1890 at 27th and N Streets was one of several schools constructed to serve the African American community.
In the Federal period, brick replaced stone in construction of both residential and commercial buildings. The mansions of wealthy shipowners, merchants and land speculators were built above the harbor on Prospect and N Streets. Hotels, taverns, banks and other commercial buildings were constructed along M Street and in the waterfront area.
In 1967 Georgetown was designated a National Historic Landmark and is included in the Inventory of Historic Places as well as the National Register of Historic Places. It will continue to be appreciated by all those who live there now and its many visitors and future generations.
All for now, Leisa
