Bloomingdale Preservation

Bloomingdale today appears much as it did a century ago.  Composed almost entirely of solidly-built row houses – a dwelling type still popular today – most of the buildings in the neighborhood are intact.  The demolition that has occurred has been due largely to the construction of commercial buildings, primarily at the intersection of North Capitol Street and Florida Avenue or for the widening of North Capitol Street to accommodate commuter traffic. One of the rows that was compromised by the construction of commercial buildings is in the 1600 block of North Capitol Street, NW.  Designed by prominent turn-of-the century architect B. Stanley Simmons and built in 1901, the row of five houses now consists of only two. Truxton Circle is also gone, a victim of traffic accommodation.  Named for Emily Beale’s father, Revolutionary War commodore Thomas Truxton, the circle was laid out as part of the original Bloomingdale subdivision.  In the tradition of L’Enfant, it was intended to mark the intersection of two major thoroughfares – North Capitol Street and Florida Avenue — but also to provide a park for the residents of the neighborhood and, thereby, increase the value of the lots.  Built in 1900, the circle was razed in 1946 for the widening of North Capitol Street.