A Local Lens - January
Wednesday, January 19, 2011 at 8:41AM A monthly series by E. David Luria, Founder & Director of the Washington Photo Safari
Willard Hotel
Called by many “the residence of presidents” since nearly every president since Franklin Pierce has either stayed there or attended an event there, the Willard Hotel on 14th Street and Constitution Ave NW is one of Washington’s most stately and historically rich hotels.
A staging ground for peace and freedom, the Willard was the site of the Peace Congress in 1861, a last ditch effort to avert the Civil War; a mere 100 years later, in 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr. penned his I Have a Dream speech at the hotel before delivering it on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Moreover, it is said that the term “lobbyist” was coined here because of solicitors seeking favors from President Grant while he enjoyed his brandy and cigar in the hotel lobby.
