Burlieth

Burleith is a neighborhood of small, single-family row houses located in the northwest section of Ward 2. The 531 houses in the neighborhood were mostly developed in the 1920's. The neighborhood is wholly residential, nestled alongside Glover-Archibold Park.

The name Burleith was taken from an estate built on the site of the Visitation Convent around 1716 by Henry Threkeld (this estate included most of the present Georgetown Visitation School and the present campus of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, and was home to John Cox, Mayor of Georgetown from 1823-1845). Most of the houses in Burleith were built in the Roaring Twenties by Shannon and Luchs, although building continued for several years later.

Chinatown

Chinatown is a small, historic neighborhood east of downtown consisting of ethnic Chinese and Asian restaurants and small businesses along H and I Streets between 5th and 8th Streets, NW. The neighborhood is known for its annual Chinese New Year festival and parade and the Friendship Arch, a Chinese gate built over H Street at 7th Street. Other prominent landmarks include the Verizon Center and the Old Patent Office Building, which houses the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery and American Art Museum.

Chinese immigrants originally began to move into the area in the 1930s, having been displaced from Washington's original Chinatown along Pennsylvania Avenue by the development of the Federal Triangle government office complex.

In 2006, Chinatown underwent a $200 million renovation, transforming the area into a bustling scene for nightlife, shopping and entertainment, with restaurants, a movie theater, and a number of new shops and stores.

Downtown

Downtown is generally considered to be anything north of Constitution Avenue, NW, east of Rock Creek Park, south of M Street, NW, and west of the U.S. Capitol. Downtown is also commonly referred to as the District’s Central Business District.

The core of the downtown district east of Foggy Bottom, west of Penn Quarter, and south of Massachusetts Avenue is almost exclusively commercial. The majority of downtown is composed of office buildings of varying architectural styles, the oldest being the White House, the U.S. Treasury, Blair House, and the row houses that line Lafayette Square.

The Downtown DC Business Improvement District (BID), a tax-funded non-profit organization, works in various ways to enhance the downtown area, covering 138 city blocks, including over 800 properties.

Dupont Circle

The Dupont Circle neighborhood is bounded approximately by 15th Street, NW to the east, 22nd Street, NW to the west, M Street, NW to the south, and Florida Avenue, NW to the north and is centered around the Dupont Circle park and traffic circle. The park is maintained by the National Park Service.

Dupont Circle is located in the "Old City" of the District, the area planned by architect Pierre Charles L'Enfant. The neighborhood was first settled 125 years ago and includes residential areas, businesses, foreign embassies, renowned museums and institutions, and national and local historic buildings.

Originally called Pacific Circle and located at what was then the western boundary of the District, Dupont Circle was renamed in 1884 for Admiral Samuel F. DuPont of Civil War fame. The fountain, designed by Daniel Chester French and erected in 1921, is a memorial to the U.S. Navy.

Foggy Bottom

Foggy Bottom is one of the oldest neighborhoods in the District. It is situated west of downtown and bounded roughly by 17th Street to the east, Rock Creek Parkway to the west, Constitution Avenue to the south, and Pennsylvania Avenue to the north, with parts of the neighborhood bordering the Potomac River.

Foggy Bottom has a rich history and many old Victorian homes, an historic alley, and the infamous Watergate buildings. In addition, George Washington University and GWU Hospital, one of the most renowned medical centers in the District, are located here.

Georgetown

Founded in 1751, the city of Georgetown substantially predated the establishment of the city of Washington and the District of Columbia. Georgetown retained its separate municipal status until 1871, when it was assimilated into the city of Washington.

Georgetown is bounded by the Potomac River on the south, Rock Creek to the east, Burleith and Glover Park to the north, with Georgetown University on the west end of the neighborhood.

The primary commercial corridors of Georgetown are M Street and Wisconsin Avenue, whose high fashion stores draw large numbers of tourists as well as local shoppers year-round. Between M and K Streets runs the historic Chesapeake and Ohio Canal.

Hillandale

In 1922, Anne Archbold, daughter of oilman John Dustin Archbold, purchased 78 acres of forested land, broken by rolling meadows, as a site for a new home for herself and her children. She enlisted the services of architect Josephine Wright Chapman to design a composite of 14th century Tuscan villas and farmhouses that would provide a retreat from the city, but enjoy the conveniences of its proximity. The result was Hillandale, a home that saw more than four decades of culture, politics, and worthy causes.

Today, the private neighborhood of Hillandale at Georgetown retains the spirit of gracious living envisioned by Anne Archbold when she built the original Hillandale Villa in 1922.

Logan Circle

The Logan Circle neighborhood is bordered roughly by T Street to the north, 9th Street to the east, 16th Street to the west and K Street to the south. Logan Circle is located at the intersection of 13th Street, P Street, Rhode Island Avenue and Vermont Avenue. This much-used park was renovated in 2005.

Originally known as Iowa Circle, the park was renamed by Congress in 1930 in honor of John A. Logan, Commander of the Grand Army of the Republic and Senator from the state of Illinois, who lived at 4 Logan Circle from 1885 until his death. He is widely acknowledged as the Father of Memorial Day. Logan Circle is the only circle in L’Enfant’s original plan that has remained entirely residential. The neighborhood is home to both grand Victorian homes, as well as chic new lofts.

The Logan Circle Historic district was added to the National Register of Historic Place in 1972.

Penn Quarter

Penn Quarter is a neighborhood in the east end of Downtown and north of Pennsylvania Avenue, NW. Its boundaries generally extend to 5th and 10th Streets NW on the east and west, and H Street on the north where it partially overlaps with Chinatown.

The neighborhood has been rejuvenated over the past several decades, stimulated first by the Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation and later by the Verizon Center in Chinatown, which opened in 2000 and led to a renaissance of the area.

Over the past thirty years the neighborhood has transformed from a sleepy, nondescript part of downtown into a vibrant 24-hour residential and commercial community. Penn Quarter now boasts a variety of entertainment and commercial retail including museums, theaters, restaurants, bars, and cultural festivals. Residences are largely high-end condominiums and lofts.

Sheridan-Kalorama

Sheridan-Kalorama is located just north of the original city boundaries laid out by Pierre L’Enfant in 1791. Bounded by Connecticut Avenue on the east, Rock Creek Park on the north and west, and Florida Avenue on the south, this neighborhood is distinguished by its well-designed houses and apartment buildings. The area also features numerous embassies, chanceries, churches, and private schools. The neighborhood has been home to five presidents (before or after their presidencies), three chief justices of the Supreme Court, and numerous other influential persons.

The neighborhood obtained the "Sheridan" in its name from Sheridan Circle (named for Philip Sheridan, Union Civil War General) which - along with Massachusetts Avenue (aka Embassy Row) - flanks the western Rock Creek Park boundary. In 1807 Joel Barlow bought essentially all of current day Sheridan-Kalorama and named his home on the site Kalorama, from the Greek for "beautiful view."

West End

The West End neighborhood has a rich history and was the birthplace of jazz legend Duke Ellington. Since the authoring of the 1972 urban renewal plan, which set a course for its modernization, today’s West End features a mix of high-end hotels and condominiums.

The West End hosts modern buildings, and until recently was more commercial than residential, although this is changing with the opening of the Ritz Carlton Residences, the Columbia Residences at the old Columbia Hospital for Women, and the new residences around Francis Field.