Nob Hill
Metro Stop: Columbia Heights
- Green Line
- Yellow Line
Today Nob Hill is the home of the Wonderland Ballroom bar. (Credit: Jacob Kaplan)
Columbia Heights is a particularly history-rich neighborhood with several noteworthy sites. There is one in particular, though, which stands out. Nob Hill, which opened in 1953, was one of the first openly gay bars in both D.C. and the U.S. It catered mainly to gay African-American men who, at the time, were largely shut out of the queer nightlife scene in D.C. because of segregation. In 1957, it transitioned from being a private social club to a public bar, as it remained until closing in 2004.