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    John Denver
     
     
    "Country Roads" led to Maryland
    In 1970, a gig at the Cellar Door, a broken thumb and a drive through rural Montgomery County led to the creation of the song we know today.
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    World War I
     
     
    African American Women at War
    As the U.S. entered World War I, the Navy created a single unit of African-American Yeomanettes in Washington, who paved the way for others to follow in military service.
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    Margaret Gorman
     
     
    First Miss America was D.C.'s Own
    Over the course of just a few weeks in 1921, Margaret Gorman went from a teen playing marbles in her D.C. neighborhood to the most famous beauty queen in the country.
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    Sir Henry Tizard
     
     
    The Briefcase That Changed World War II
    The outlook of the allies effort in World War II changed dramatically when British Scientist Sir Henry Tizard came to Washington in 1940.
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    Clara Barton
     
     
    Angel of the Battlefield
    "I’m well and strong and young - young enough to go to the front. If I can’t be a soldier, I’ll help soldiers." -- Clara Barton
Virginia
This House, Undivided: Sarah Tracy’s Mount Vernon During the Civil War

This House, Undivided: Sarah Tracy’s Mount Vernon During the Civil War

06/02/2023 in Virginia by Isabel Sans

Mount Vernon is a priceless national treasure and symbol of America's foremost founding father. But were it not for a tiny staff guarding it through the 1860s, it might not have survived the Civil War. At the head of this skeleton crew was a soft-spoken, unassuming New York secretary who politely put her foot down and said: This is George Washington's ground, and your war will stop here.

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DC
The Sordid Story of Dupont Circle's Underground Tunnels

The Sordid Story of Dupont Circle's Underground Tunnels

05/26/2023 in DC by Hunter Spears

There's something below Dupont Circle, and it's not the Red Line! Tunnels were built for trolley cars in the 1940s, but they were abandoned shortly after. In the decades since, the tunnels have had quite a few interesting uses. What lays beneath the streets of one of the Districts' best known roundabouts?

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DC
Iconic D.C.: Lesser Known Monuments in Washington, D.C.

Iconic D.C.: Lesser Known Monuments in Washington, D.C.

05/12/2023 in DC by Emma O'Neill-Dietel

The new PBS documentary series Iconic America: Our Symbols and Stories explores US history and identity through iconic national symbols. Washington, D.C. is home to some of America’s most iconic landmarks and historic sites, like the Washington Monument, the White House, and the Smithsonian Castle. But locals know that beyond the national landmarks, there are hundreds of lesser-known symbols and landmarks that make the city unique and hold the memories of its residents. Over the years, Boundary Stones has highlighted many of them.

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DC
Luke, I Am Your... Gargoyle? : How Darth Vader Came to the National Cathedral

Luke, I Am Your... Gargoyle? : How Darth Vader Came to the National Cathedral

05/03/2023 in DC by Emma O'Neill-Dietel

A long time ago in a galaxy not so far, far away, the National Cathedral gained an unusual sculpture: a carving of Darth Vader to adorn its northwest tower. As it turned out, Darth Vader, the result of a design competition for children, is a very fitting figure for the Cathedral's decoration.

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DC
Who Stands Atop the Dome of the U.S. Capitol Building?

Who Stands Atop the Dome of the U.S. Capitol Building?

04/28/2023 in DC by Katherine Brodt

Even though most Washingtonians know that there is a statue atop the U.S. Capitol dome, many don’t actually know what it’s a statue of. Can you blame us? It’s hard to get a good look at it. Let's take  a closer look!

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DC
A Cartographer’s Lament: The D.C. - Virginia Boundary That Wouldn't Stay Put

A Cartographer’s Lament: The D.C. - Virginia Boundary That Wouldn't Stay Put

04/21/2023 in DC by Jane Winik Sartwell

For decades, the land on the western bank of the Potomac River that is currently home to the Pentagon, Ronald Reagan National Airport, Roache’s Run Bird Sanctuary, and part of the George Washington Memorial Parkway was disputed territory. Did it belong to Virginia? The District? No one seemed quite sure.

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DC
How an Electrician Saved the U.S. Capitol After the Devastating Gas Explosion of 1898

How an Electrician Saved the U.S. Capitol After the Devastating Gas Explosion of 1898

04/14/2023 in DC by Hunter Spears

Although the Capitol has withstood plenty of attacks from foreign and domestic adversaries over the years, sometimes the most destructive forces can come from something as common as a gas leak... How did a series of accidents and events lead to one of the most devastating incidents in the Capitol's history? What priceless artifacts were lost forever, and who were the people risking their lives to prevent further destruction of the nation's history?

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DC
"DC" Really Stands for Demon Cat... Which Haunts the U.S. Capitol

"DC" Really Stands for Demon Cat... Which Haunts the U.S. Capitol

03/17/2023 in DC by Hunter Spears

A guard patrolling the basement of the Capitol during the Civil War is attacked -- not by enemy soldiers, but by a giant, demonic cat! Over a hundred years later, the "Demon Cat" is still one of Washington's greatest ghost stories, which is saying something in a city with as many phantom residents as the capital. What is the real story of this mystical mouser?

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DC
From the Mixed-Up Files of the Smithsonian Museum of American History: The Heist of 1981

From the Mixed-Up Files of the Smithsonian Museum of American History: The Heist of 1981

03/10/2023 in DC by Jane Winik Sartwell

On a cold, overcast Tuesday morning in February 1981, something caught the eye of a museum technician as he walked through the “We the People” exhibit on the second floor of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History: The silver pen of President McKinley’s Secretary of State John Hay was missing. The 7 ¼-inch Parker Jointless pen had been used to sign the 1898 Treaty of Paris, ending the Spanish-American War.

But now, to the technician’s horror, its case was empty -- and there were more alarming discoveries to come.

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DC
The "Capitalsaurus": How a Dinosaur That Never Existed Became an Official Mascot of D.C.

The "Capitalsaurus": How a Dinosaur That Never Existed Became an Official Mascot of D.C.

03/03/2023 in DC by Hunter Spears

While digging a sewer near the Capitol in 1898, a construction crew makes an incredible discovery- a fossil! Only, when it's brought to the Smithsonian, no one is able to say for certain what kind of dinosaur it might belong to. Could this be a clue to a dinosaur found only in the District? See how generations of paleontologists dispute the identity D.C.'s oldest resident, and how a group of school kids played a factor in solidifying its legacy.

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Categories

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Boundary Stones explores local history in Washington, D.C., suburban Maryland and northern Virginia. This project is a service of WETA and is supported by contributions from readers like you.

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