From: Tom Lynch
Date: 2/21/00
Time: 8:45:20 PM
Remote Name: 207.103.134.2
Thomas E. Lynch III History of the U.S., 1600-1870 Week 6 Assignment Designing the Capital The city of Washington D.C. was not created in a haphazard way. From the beginning, the city was designed to meet specific goals and needs of the new nation's capitol. This is evident in Jefferson's letter to Charles L'Enfant. The founders wanted the new capitol to be a blending of their European heritage while also adding something different and unique. Jefferson provided the designer with the city plans of classic European cities like Paris, Marseilles, and Milan in order to incorporate their basic designs in the new city. Later in the letter Jefferson says that the President's house have a more modern feel. Also, the city was to have large public areas and wide, convenient walkways to create a open and welcoming feel for the city. Finally, Jefferson predicted that the city would be a major area of commerce. It would utilize the rivers surrounding the city to create a booming trading industry. The layout of the city suggests that the founders expected the city to be an open and welcoming place for everyone. All of the major thoroughfares are angled and intersect with all of the smaller streets to provide maximum access to all of the areas of the city. Each thoroughfare leads to the major centers of government, like the President's house or the Capitol. This leads me to believe that the founders wanted to give the impression that government was open to everyone and access to the powers of government were readily accessible.