Weekly Washington - Free Stuff!

photo uploaded to flickr by mr_mayerGreater Greater Washington and Georgetown Metropolitan share a great story of the Dumbarton Bridge, a fascinating bridge connecting Georgetown with the Dupont Circle/Kalorama area. Somehow they manage to discuss the history of the Bridge without once commenting on what color Roald Dahl painted the bison's testicles. Oh well.

Washington Post covers the latest must-see attraction in DC: Georgetown Cupcakes. I don't know what is the more annoying trend in DC right now: cupcakes stores or I-hate-cupcake-stores stories. Without comment, then.

Sizable chunks of the new Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial arrived in Baltimore this week after a 47-day voyage from China. The Memorial is set to open next year.

Washington, DC's Congressional Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton took the Architect of the Capitol to task for numerous safety and managment problems at the new Capitol Visitor's Center. Politico reports failures in emergency communications and protocals, as well as some more mundane quality of work issues. Expect hearings on this matter come September.

Click to read more ...

"I cast thee out!"

Horror movie buffs will probably recognize the title line as that uttered by a Roman Catholic priest when performing an exorcism, or more precisely, from the eponymous movie (and book) of the 1970's.

Initially reported in the Washington Post and picked up by newspapers from around the country, the story of the 14 year old Mt Rainier boy who had successfully received an exorcism in the 1949 was a local legend for some time. An excellently researched full description of that incident is available here, but suffice it to say that a young boy, incorrectly reported to be living in Mt. Rainier, Md, on the outskirts of DC, was taken to the local Catholic parish for assistance. While details are contested, it seems that the Catholic Church did perform an exorcism for him, both here in DC and in St. Louis. A diary kept by one of the priests chronicling their struggle has been bandied about, or at least a few versions of it, and it makes for hair-raising reading. Much of it is chilling, but one particular bit leapt out at me:

(the boy) was transported back to Maryland for a short-lived visit and on one of the the train rides he became maniacal, striking Father Bowdern in the testicles and yelling, "That's a nutcracker for you, isn't it?"

Sorry, couldn't resisit that glimpse of the devil in action.

Father Bowdern recovered by all accounts, the mysterious boy as well, and the story died down and was largely forgotten, except for a young English major at Georgetown University at the time. William Peter Blatty was twenty years old when he heard the story, and would, twenty years later, write the novel and even produce the movie that brought the 1949 incident back to life. By all accounts, The Exocist is purely a work of fiction, and any connections to actual events are loose, but the story has been woven into the fabric of Georgetown ever since, helped in no small part by generations of college students who keep the legend alive.

Best known, of course, are the famed "Exorcist Steps", shown here. A popular stop in any college freshman's initial tour of the city, they have served to help many a young man to bring an evening to a successful conclusion by exploring the "haunted steps" with a date. At the risk of being a spoiler, I should warn you young ladies: the steps have had no reported ghosts, and were simply used in the movie for their undeniably spooky nature.

A bit of the original story did happen in Georgetown, though. The initial exorcism reportedly took place at Georgetown University Hospital, which is of course still there. While here, the possessed boy was supposed to have ripped part of the bed off and used it to attack the parish priest performing the ritual. I feel that I can attest that some portion of the demonic spirit still resides there. Both of my daughters were born at Georgetown and, from time to time, I sense that elements of the spirit remained with them. Screaming uncontrollably? Check. Spitting? Check. Striking testicles and laughing? Check. Strange utterances in Latin? Not yet.

Which isn't to say that we haven't had exorcisms in Washington, DC. Besides the 1949 incident, which, whatever the real state of the lad in question, was regarded as a real exorcism by the Catholic Church, another incident took place a bit earlier. In September of 1907, the Evening Star reported that "a fine old home" on the corner of 11th and D St, NW, had been having a misunderstanding with the spirit world. The owner had been having difficulty keeping tenants, what with the hauntings and all. He walked around the corner to St. Patrick's Church, which is still thriving on 10th Street today, and pressed two priests into service.

The priests were somewhat reluctant, but were eventually swayed by the persistence of the owner. At 11 pm, Father Boyle and his assistant arrived at the house and got to work. Working through the night, the priests chased the demon from room to room. Never visible, it made itself known through moaning and wailing that moved constantly. Finally, events reached a crescendo when the unknown spirit shook the house with winds "of gale force", scattering furniture, and forcing the priests from the house.

Father Boyle, undoubtedly wise in the ways of the spirits, understood that an exorcism is a process and not an event, and offered to return the next day and finish the job. However, at this point, the owner felt that if men of God were driven out, what chance had he, so he simply choose to raze the building and start anew. I imagine it didn't hurt that the house was on a quite valuable downtown lot.

Incidentaly, this corner no longer exists. D St was ended at 9th when the architecturally challenged FBI Headquarters was built many years ago. Near as I can tell, the house stood roughly where the Bank of America ATM is now, on the north side of the 1000 block of Pennsylvania Avenue. Which explains why it ate my card so many years ago.

Ghosts in Navy Blue

After some time collecting stories of ghosts and hauntings in Washington, DC, a few themes start to jump out. Abandoned buildings will inevitably become haunted, often to the point where it becomes difficult to ascertain what happed first, the ghost or the owners moving out. For every good, solid, meaty story where the ghost does something tangible, there's at least a dozen "mysterious thumps in the night". Either ghosts were more active in the late 1800's and early 1900's, or newspapers were simply more amenable to reporting them, often as fact.

But I'm starting to notice that the tale of Washington ghosts overlaps quite heavily with the tales of Naval ghosts. It's entirely possible that as a former Naval Officer myself, I simply take not of them disproportionly. I mean, I love a good sea story as much as a good ghost story, so it's entirely possible that combining the two catches my eye.

Even considering this, I was surprised at how many ghosts in DC have a Navy or Marine Corps connection. In fact, we joked while developing the Capitol Hill loop of our tour that the problem was not finding stories, but finding stories where it wasn't a Marine doing the haunting. Which really shouldn't have caught us by surprise. Until relatively recently, the Navy Yard and it's associated Marine Barracks were the largest employers in town and Capitol Hill, especially the portion south of Pennsylvania Ave, was very much a Navy Town.

But even throughout the city, we stumble across ghosts associated with the sea services with astonishing regularity. The much haunted Halcyon House in Georgetown was built by the first Secretary of the Navy, Benjamin Stoddert. In yesterday's Vampire Story, the Brentwood Mansion was owned by a succession of Naval Officers, presumably when the vampire stalked the grounds. And in 1890, then Secretary of the Navy Benjamin Tracy refused to take head of warnings of a ghost in the house he purchased on Farragut Square not far from the White House. Sadly, the house caught fire and his wife, daughter, and maid were killed in the conflagration, which local lore says liberated the restless ghost.

Being a fan of the limited but fascinating Washington, DC Naval ghost genre, the natural place to search for ghosts is, of course, the Washington Navy Yard in southeast DC. Searchers need not be disappointed, either; it is well haunted. I particularly enjoy the tale of Capt. Thomas Tingey, the first Superintendent of the Navy Yard, who had the distinction of building it twice, the second time being after he ordered it burnt to deny it to the British in 1814. Commodore Tingey remains on watch at the Navy Yard, keeping a eye on things. In addition to his protective spirit assisting at Quarters A, originally his home and now the residence of the Chief of Naval Operations, he has been sighted late at night, inspecting the Yard. He wears the period fore and aft hat, familiar to any fan of pirate movies, and carries a spyglass. His authority is further confirmed by the sword belted to his waist, but somewhat dimmed in that it is belted over his nightshirt.

Fellow fans might enjoy Eric Mills new work, The Spectral Tide: True Ghost Stories of the U.S. Navy, which is an excellent collection of tales, well written and thoroughly researched, two traits often missing in the world of ghost stories. It highlights, among it's many stories, several of the ones listed above, including a great description of the Tracy House fire. I'l leave it to Mr. Mills to tell that one.

Ghosts in Navy Blue

Halloween for the Grown-ups

Sure, Halloween was fun as a kid. But whether you've managed to ditch them with a babysitter, or you are just unencumbered with little ones, you're going to want to experience the ghosts and ghouls of Washington, DC in your own way. Yesterday's post covered lots of great ideas, but let's be frank here. If you throw on a sheet, call yourself a ghost, and walk down East Capitol Street and don't have a kid or two in tow, at best you're going to get a few weird looks.

So let's take a look at a few ideas for adults:

1. Georgetown: This is the traditional place to go for a wild and crazy time in Washington, DC. It will be, as always, a madhouse, especially as this year Halloween falls on a Saturday night. That can either be a selling point or a warning to you. If you're looking for thousands of people decked out in costumes, hopping from bar to bar, with crowds spilling off the sidewalks, than this is for you. If not, go nowhere near it Halloween night (or probably the 30th as well). Keep reading and we'll find something more your taste. Now, I wonder if my wife and kids will notice if I sneak off after they've gone asleep....

2. Embassy Row: If you're looking for a different feel than the packed masses in Georgetown, head over to Dupont Circle and check out the Embassies along Massachusetts Avenue. This is another DC tradition, with most (but not all) of the Embassy's handing out goodies. It's a fun way to get a little culture in before you take advantage of the area's many bars and clubs.

3. H Street: H Street NE is relatively new to the Halloween scene, but it promises to be a good time. They are embracing the Dia de los Muertos theme this year for the week of Halloween. Many of the bars and restaurants are offering specials the week prior, and will be building, I kid you not, shrines to the dead in front of there stores. It culminates in a Thriller on H Street party on Friday, the 30th, at 9 pm. Costume contests, drink specials, and, believe it or not, a haunted golf course, will be on tap for Halloween night. I'm hard pressed to list a "favorite" H ST bar, but let's just say that Palace of Wonders can be spooky any day of the year. More about H ST can be found on The Hill is Home's Halloween round-up.

4. Ghost Tours! - You knew it was coming!. Without shame I'll push my outfit, Ghost Tours DC. We'll be running tours in Dupont Circle and Capitol Hill at 8 pm on the 23rd, 24th, 30th and 31st. If you must, here are a few other ghost tours going on:

• Old Town Alexandria: Alexandria Colonial Tours offers a walking tour of Old Town that ends up in a grave yard! Spooky stuff. Its popular so I would recommend booking early.
• Lafayette Park: Washington Walks, an excellent local tour company that offers a variety of walking tours, features a Most Haunted Houses tour Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights (seasonally). Lafayette Square across from the White House is probably the most ghost-intensive section of the city, and they cover a few of the ghosts of White House as well.
• Congressional Cemetery: Be sure to watch out for more discussion of this incredible place in the future, but for now I'd highly recommend their ghoulish Halloween tour they are giving on the 31st at 11 and 11:30 am. The Cemetery is easy to get to from the Blue and Orange Line. Exit at Potomac Avenue and walk up the Avenue to 18th St. The tours meet at the gatehouse on the corner.

This is just a few of the many offerings DC rolls out for Halloween. If you have any favorites I left out, leave them for others to see in the comments. And join DC Like a Local next week when we embark on a week of ghost stories set in your nation's capital.

Halloween for Grown-ups

Run for it!

When last we left them, our fearless American's were scampering down the Bladensburg Pike (now US 1) as fast as their little feet could take them. Naturally, upon their arrival in DC, those few residents who hadn't succumbed to full fledged panic felt this was a good moment to begin to do so.

But before we delve deeper into that panic, let's take a minute to discuss why our British friends decided to drop in for tea. Traditionally, in so far as the subject was even taught in school, we learn that the British were admonishing a brash young Republic, letting us know that we'll impress your seaman when and where we see fit and stir up Indians so your bold frontiersmen will live in fear. While not untrue, the full story, is, as is almost always the case, both more complex and more interesting.

It's not my intent to rehash the entire war here, but for a fascinating look at the origins of the war from the other side, take a look here. Specifically, two years into the poorly named War of 1812, the invasion of the mid-Atlantic region had several goals in mind, from diverting the Americans while operations were conducted in the north to attacking targets of opportunity. But in no small way, it was in direct retaliation for our burning of York (now Toronto), the capital of Upper Canada (now Ontario). And this is what I find interesting. As much as our history pits the United States as the underdog against the world-bestriding British Empire, the Canadians view it as standing up to the mighty Americans threating them from the south, perhaps even making them pronounce the letter O.

Anyway, back to Washington, DC. Having initially dismissed an attack on Washington as unlikely, President Madison and several members of the Cabinet were in the unfortunate position of getting personally refuted by Admiral Cockburn and the British. Having poorly prepared to defend the Capital, certainly the Americans were not ready to evacuate it in an orderly fashion.

The most famous tale of the retreat has infused itself so deeply into American History that even school groups that look at me blankly when I mention the War of 1812, respond immediately and enthusiastically when I mention this story. It is, of course, the story of Dolley Madison and the Gilbert Stuart portrait of George Washington. You know the one on the one dollar bill? Anyway, I don't need to recount to the whole story to you (pdf), but suffice it to say, thanks to Dolley, who almost alone seemed immune to the prevailing panic, the original White House Gilbert Stuart hangs in the East Room, not that you will be allowed to see it while you're here. However, if you do want to see a Stuart painting of Washington, just stroll down F St.

So where did Dolley go? Like many residents, she initially fled to Georgetown. Then a separate town within the District of Columbia, Georgetown was on the high ground across Rock Creek to the West. Easily defensible, it was where Gen. Winder was attempting to rally his militia, with all the leadership and command presence he had displayed at Bladensburg. Dolley initially stopped at Dumbarton Oaks, the residence of Declaration signer Charles Carroll. Dumbarton still stands and is well worth the visit in your time here in Washington. In fact, if you're here this weekend, they're hosting Dolley herself to help commemorate the War of 1812.

But by far the most visible sign of the retreating Americans was the burning of the Washington Navy Yard. Desperate not to let the supplies stored there fall into the hands of the British, English-born Commodore Thomas Tingey waited until word came of the American defeat at Bladensburg came, and ordered the Yard burned. Over half a million dollars of buildings, supplies, and ships caught fire, most notably the 32 gun frigate Columbia, due to be launched in ten days. No doubt due to the large amounts of pitch and tar laden supplies, the glow of the fire that night was reported to be seen as far east at the British warships on the Patuxant River and as far west as Leesburg, Virginia. As destructive as it was, some buildings survived, most notably the Latrobe Gate, shown above. The Navy Yard, or at the very least the Navy Museum, is near the top of my list of under appreciated sites in Washington, DC.

Coming tomorrow, the British!