Tag: District of Columbia City Hall (Washington DC)

Wikipedia says: District of Columbia City Hall, also known as “Old City Hall” and the “District of Columbia Courthouse”, is an historic building at Judiciary Square in downtown Washington, D.C. facing Indiana Avenue. Originally built for the offices of the District of Columbia district government, the District’s City Hall was subsequently used as a Federal courthouse, and was the scene of several notable criminal trials including those of three accused presidential assassins. The building was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1960. It now houses the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.

History

The government of the District of Columbia held a competition for the design of a new district building in 1818. George Hadfield, who had supervised construction of the United States Capitol from October 1795 to May 1798, submitted a design for a new district building, but it was judged to be too costly. Hadfield eventually won the competition in 1820 with a revised version of his original plan, and construction began in August. The offices of the district government moved into the building in 1822. However, a lack of funds and other problems hindered construction and the building would not be completed in its entirety until 1849.

According to the NRHP nomination for the adjacent, compatibly-designed United States Court of Military Appeals Building (1910), the district building’s south side plan is attributed to George Hadfield, but the north side plan is attributed to Robert Mills.

To raise funds needed to finish the building, the district leased out space during construction to other federal government offices. Tenants included the U.S. Circuit Court and the Recorder of Deeds office, then headed by noted black leader and abolitionist Frederick Douglass, (1818–1895), who also later served as U.S. Marshal for the District. Following passage of the District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act in 1862, the Old City Hall was used to process payments to slaveholders.

The federal government rented additional space in 1863 during the American Civil War and later purchased the building from the District government to house the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia. In 1868, a statue of 16th President Abraham Lincoln sculpted by Lot Flannery was erected on the south side of the building, which became the first public monument in his honor. The offices of the District of Columbia government moved to the new District Building in 1908 and the Old City Hall was left to house the federal courts until they vacated the property in 1910.

In 1916, Congress approved funds for a complete building renovation. The building was stripped to its brick framing, and the stucco exterior was replaced with limestone blocks on a granite base. The building was rededicated as the U.S. Courthouse in 1922. The federal courts moved to the new E. Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse in 1952 and the Old City Hall eventually became the headquarters of the U.S. Selective Service System. The building was named a National Historic Landmark in 1960 and was returned to the District government two years later for use by the local courts.