Petworth (Washington, D.C.)

Petworth is a residential neighborhood in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C. It is bounded to the east by the Armed Forces Retirement Home and Rock Creek Cemetery, to the west by Arkansas Avenue NW, to the south by Rock Creek Church Road NW and Spring Road NW, and to the north by Kennedy Street NW.[1][2]

For the English town, see Petworth.

Petworth
Neighborhoods in Washington, D.C.
Map of the District of Columbia, with Petworth highlighted in red
Coordinates: 38.942161°N 77.025525°W / 38.942161; -77.025525
Country United States
State/District District of Columbia
QuadrantNorthwest
WardWard 4
Advisory Neighborhood CommissionANC 4C; ANC 4D
Government
 • CouncilmemberBrandon Todd
 • Delegate to the U.S. CongressEleanor Holmes Norton
Area
 • Land0.91 sq mi (2.4 km2)
Elevation
188.0 ft (57.3 m)
Time zoneUTC-5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4
ZIP Code
20010, 20011
Area code(s)202
A sign in Petworth

The neighborhood is primarily residential with a mix of terraced houses and single-family homes. It is accessible via the Georgia Ave–Petworth station on the Green Line and Yellow Line of the Washington Metro. Petworth borders to two expanses of historic greenspace, Rock Creek Cemetery and President Lincoln's Cottage at the Soldiers' Home.

Petworth is represented on the Council of the District of Columbia by the Ward 4 council member: since May 2015, Brandon Todd.[3] Janeese Lewis George defeated Brandon Todd in the 2020 Democratic primary and is the councilmember-elect for Ward 4.[4] Muriel Bowser served as Ward 4 councilmember until she became the city's mayor on January 2, 2015.

History
John Tayloe III by Gilbert Stuart on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Petworth was the name of the 205-acre country estate of John Tayloe III, likely named for the ancient town in West Sussex, England. The estate was bequeathed to his son Benjamin Ogle Tayloe, located at the northeast corner of 7th Street Pike (later known as Brightwood Avenue, now Georgia Avenue) and Rock Creek Church Road. In 1887, it was sold by Tayloe's heirs to developers for $107,000.[5][6] In 1889, developers registered “Petworth” with the District surveyor as a 387-acre plat of subdivision containing the former Tayloe estate and the Marshal Brown estate.[7] In 1893, additional real estate deals formed "West Petworth," from land west of Brightwood Avenue, including the Ruppert Farm, which was sold for $142,680, the 20-acre Burnaby tract, and a 14-acre property known as Poor Tom’s Last Shaft.[8] In 1900, Henry J. Ruppert sold an additional 31.7 acres west of Brightwood and Iowa Avenues and south of Utica Street (now Allison Street)[9] to the District for a proposed municipal hospital.[10]

In the early 1900s, the expansion of a streetcar line along Georgia Avenue to the border of Silver Spring, Maryland, made Petworth more accessible.

Many of the thousands of similar brick row houses in the neighborhood were constructed by Morris Cafritz and by D.J. Dunigan Company in the 1920s–1930s. Dunigan donated the land that became the site for St. Gabriel's Church and School next to Grant Circle.

Demographics[11]
YearTotal ANC-4C population% Children% Black% White% Hispanic% Asian/P.I.Average family incomeMedian home sales price !
199019,87519%88%6%6%1%$77,679$166,000
200019,51923%72%6%20%1%$85,209$177,000
200519,54017%63%14%20%1%$92,009$491,000
201020,33019%57%15%26%2%Not Avail.$460,000

Community events

Since 2006, the Upshur Street Art and Craft Fair has been an annual event in December.[12]

The Petworth Community Market, a farmer's market, is held along 9th Street between Upshur and Taylor Streets weekly on Saturdays from May through October.[13] The market features produce, local vendors, and prepared foods.

The Petworth Jazz Project is a free music series of jazz performances held at Petworth Park at 8th and Taylor Streets from May through September.

Since 2014, the Celebrate Petworth street festival has been held annually during the late spring or early summer on Upshur Street between 8th and 9th Streets. In 2017 it was moved to September.[14] In 2018 it will likely be in the Fall again.

From 1993 to 2011, the DC Caribbean Carnival parade was held annual each June along Georgia Avenue, passing through Petworth en route to Howard University.[15]

Education

Petworth Neighborhood Library

The ​2 1⁄2-story Georgian Revival Petworth Neighborhood Library building opened in 1939 at the corner of Georgia Ave. NW, Kansas Ave. NW, and Upshur St. NW.[16] In addition to providing access to DC Public Library general circulation items, the library’s collection includes a Spanish Language collection, job and employment literature, and Adult Basic Education materials. In June 2009, the library underwent a two-part renovation and re-opened on February 28, 2011.

Public schools
Roosevelt Senior High School

It is a part of District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS).

Theodore Roosevelt Senior High School

Roosevelt Senior High School enrolls students in ninth through 12th grade. The high school is also home to Roosevelt S.T.A.Y. program, an alternative academic and career/technical program that will lead to a high school diploma or vocational certificate. The high school, located at 13th and Upshur streets NW, was built in 1932 to accommodate 1,200 students. In 2013–15, it received a $121 million renovation, during which classes were held at the nearby MacFarland Middle School campus on 13th Street NW.[17] The school reopened for the 2015–16 academic year.

During the renovation, The American Panorama, a 1934 New Deal–funded fresco by the Baltimore-born artist Nelson Rosenberg,[18] was uncovered in the school cafeteria in fall 2013.[19] The fresco was restored as part of the renovation.

Truesdell Education Campus

Truesdell Education Campus enrolls 480 students (2013–2014) in grades pre-kindergarten through eighth grade.[20]

Powell Elementary School

Powell enrolls students in pre-kindergarten through fifth grade.[21] The school opened in 1929 as a two-story brick building on Upshur St. NW near 14th St. NW, and was expanded in 1959 with a second structure. As of 2016, the school is undergoing a $42 million modernization and expansion.[22]

On March 4, 2014, President Barack Obama visited the school, where he announced the fiscal year 2015 budget and spoke about Powell's early childhood education program. "We know—and this is part of the reason why we're here today—that education has to start at the earliest possible ages," Obama said. "So this budget expands access to the kind of high-quality preschool and other early learning programs to give all of our children the same kinds of opportunities that those wonderful children that we just saw are getting right here at Powell."[23]

Charter schools
  • Breakthrough Montessori Public Charter School[24]
  • Bridges Public Charter School[25]
  • Center City Public Charter School – Petworth Campus[26]
  • E.L. Haynes Public Charter School[27]
  • Washington Latin Public Charter School[28]

Local businesses

In the 2000s, Petworth has seen more commercial establishments courting its growing urban population.[29][30] There are many restaurants and bars in the neighborhood[31] though the Upshur Street commercial corridor saw several restaurants close in late 2018.[32]

Public art
  • "The American Panorama," 1934, by Nelson Rosenberg. Fresco. Originally located in the cafeteria at Roosevelt Senior High School. Currently in storage by DC Department of General Services and awaiting restoration.[33]
  • "(Here I Stand) In the Spirit of Paul Robeson," 2001, by Allen Uzikee Nelson. Sculpture. Located at the corner of Georgia and Kansas Avenues NW
  • "Homage to a Community," 2002, by Andrew Reid and Carlos Alves. Mural and ceramic tile frieze. Located inside the metro station.
  • "New Leaf," 2007, by Lisa Scheer. Sculpture. Located outside the metro station at Georgia and New Hampshire Avenues.
  • Untitled Chuck Brown mural, 2012, by MacFarland Middle School students led by art teacher Charles Jean-Pierre. Mural. Located on the exterior of (unoccupied) 3701 New Hampshire Ave NW[34]
  • Untitled Ramones mural, 2018. Located on the 2nd Street NW wall of Slash Run, 201 Upshur Street NW.
  • "SHOWOFF," 2013, by Cita Sadeli (Also known as Chelove). Mural. Located on the southwest corner of Taylor Street NW and Georgia Avenue NW.
  • Petworth mural, 2015, by Juan Pineda. Mural Located in the alley on the 800 block of Upshur Street NW between Willow and Petworth Citizen.[35]
  • Senhora dos Tempos or "Goddess of Time," 2016, by Robezio Marqs and Tereza Dequinta (known as the "Acidum Project"). Mural Located at Kansas Avenue and Taylor Street NW.[36]

Historic places
Adams Memorial by Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Rock Creek Church Yard and Cemetery
Entrance gate to St. Paul's Rock Creek Church Yard, Petworth neighborhood, Washington, D.C. December 2009

Notable people from Petworth

Notable people from Petworth include:

References
  1. "Google Maps search for Petworth". Google Maps.
  2. Lasky, Julie (May 15, 2015). "Petworth, Washington, D.C.: A Place of Porches". The New York Times.
  3. Sommer, Will (May 15, 2015). "New Councilmembers Sworn In, With Nods To Bowser". Washington City Paper.
  4. Nirappil, Fenit; Brice-Saddler, Michael (November 7, 2019). "Can the far left win in D.C. politics? After Ed Lazere's loss, activists look to 2022".
  5. "Another purchase of suburban property". The Washington Post. March 4, 1887. ProQuest 138151785.
  6. "Bits of Local News". The Washington Post. January 6, 1888. ProQuest 138253999.
  7. "The Plat of "Petworth" Filed". The Washington Post. January 17, 1889. ProQuest 138395748.
  8. "Sale of West Petworth". The Washington Post. July 27, 1893. ProQuest 138952276.
  9. "New Street Names". The Washington Post. August 2, 1905. ProQuest 144591749.
  10. "Hospital Site Chosen". The Washington Post. November 17, 1900. ProQuest 144159308.
  11. "Neighborhood Info DC". Retrieved September 26, 2012.
  12. "Upshur St Art & Craft Fair returns this Saturday, December 10th". Petworth News. December 6, 2016.
  13. "Petworth Community Market, Inc Website".
  14. "Celebrate Petworth is Saturday, Sept 9 and is going to be great!". Petworth News. September 2, 2017.
  15. Kiviat, Steve (July 17, 2013). "Will the Caribbean Carnival Ever Return to D.C.?". Washington City Paper.
  16. "Petworth Library History". DC Public Library.
  17. "Roosevelt High School Project". DC Department of General Services. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  18. "Nelson Rosenberg". Smithsonian American Art Museum. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  19. Wiener, Aaron (January 31, 2014). "Rough Ride: Can a new building, redrawn boundaries, and a changing neighborhood transform D.C.'s struggling Roosevelt High School?". Washington City Paper.
  20. "Truesdell Education Campus Profile". District of Columbia Public Schools.
  21. "Powell Elementary School Profile". District of Columbia Public Schools.
  22. "Powell Elementary School Modernization Project". DC Department of General Services.
  23. Brown, Emma (March 4, 2014). "Obama announces budget at D.C.'s Powell Elementary". The Washington Post.
  24. "Breakthrough Montessori".
  25. "Bridges Public Charter School".
  26. "Center City Public Charter School – Petworth Campus".
  27. "E.L. Haynes Public Charter School".
  28. "Washington Latin Public Charter School".
  29. Severson, Kim (January 14, 2009). "Chefs Settle Down in 'the Real D.C.'". The New York Times.
  30. STEINHAUER, JENNIFER (October 20, 2014). "Washington Has More on Its Plate". The New York Times.
  31. Hahn, Fritz; Krystal, Becky (February 9, 2017). "A guide to eating and drinking in Petworth". The Washington Post.
  32. "With Recent Closures, Is Upshur Street In Trouble?". DCist. Archived from the original on May 12, 2019. Retrieved May 12, 2019.
  33. "Roosevelt High School Project". DC Department of General Services.
  34. "MacFarland MS Students Create Mural Memorial for Go-Go Legend". DCPS.
  35. "An abstract artwork designed to complement a neighborhood's energy". Petworth News. August 11, 2015.
  36. "New mural on Kansas Ave celebrates the mysteries of nature". Petworth News. July 10, 2016.
  37. "DC Inventory of Historic Sites". DC Office of Planning. November 21, 2014.

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