My DC Neighborhood Scavenger Hunt
Every neighborhood in DC is special, but no matter what neighborhood you’re in, you always know you’re in DC. How many of these DC items can you find in your neighborhood? Take pictures along the way, check off what you’ve found, and share your progress with us on Twitter or Instagram @dchistory or facebook.com/dchistory.

Funding provided by HumanitiesDC and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) as part of the 2020 Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act of 2020.

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First up, what neighborhood are you in?
Find a view of a major DC landmark, such as the Capitol dome, the Washington National Cathedral, the Washington Monument, the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.
From the lowest elevation at the Potomac River to the highest at Fort Reno in Tenleytown, the terrain of the city varies. Because of this, and because of DC’s low skyline, there are often great views to be found of the tallest monuments, churches, and other landmarks. View of the Capitol from Cedar Hill in Anacostia. Photo by Ted Eytan via Flickr, Creative Commons License
From the lowest elevation at the Potomac River to the highest at Fort Reno in Tenleytown, the terrain of the city varies. Because of this, and because of DC’s low skyline, there are often great views to be found of the tallest monuments, churches, and other landmarks.


View of the Capitol from Cedar Hill in Anacostia. Photo by Ted Eytan via Flickr, Creative Commons License
What can you see from your neighborhood?
A National Park in your neighborhood.  
In addition to the major sites such as the National Mall, C&O Canal, and Rock Creek Park, and Fort Dupont Park, the National Park Service manages many of the city’s triangles, circles, and squares. How to tell? Look for brown signs like these or visit https://www.nps.gov/locations/dc/parks.htm to find one near you. Fort Stevens sign, 2011, photo by MrTinDC via Flickr, Creative Commons License
In addition to the major sites such as the National Mall, C&O Canal, and Rock Creek Park, and Fort Dupont Park, the National Park Service manages many of the city’s triangles, circles, and squares.

How to tell? Look for brown signs like these or visit https://www.nps.gov/locations/dc/parks.htm to find one near you.


Fort Stevens sign, 2011, photo by MrTinDC via Flickr, Creative Commons License
What National Park is in your neighborhood?
A street name pattern.
You might have noticed that most streets in DC are laid out on a grid. The street names generally follow a pattern: north-south streets are numbered. East-west streets have names in alphabetical order, starting with letter streets, then streets named with two- and three-syllable words. Diagonal avenues are named after states. Can you find three streets in a row that follow the pattern? Map of Petworth, 1948, National Geographic
You might have noticed that most streets in DC are laid out on a grid. The street names generally follow a pattern: north-south streets are numbered. East-west streets have names in alphabetical order, starting with letter streets, then streets named with two- and three-syllable words. Diagonal avenues are named after states. Can you find three streets in a row that follow the pattern?

Map of Petworth, 1948, National Geographic
What streets did you find?
A building that was once used for something different than what you find there now.
For example, this building got its start as the Washington Public (Carnegie) Library, and today it is home to the DC History Center! Need a hint? Look up! Check for a name on the building that is different than the name on the door. Historic Carnegie Library at Mt. Vernon Square, by Anne McDonough, Historical Society of Washington, D.C.
For example, this building got its start as the Washington Public (Carnegie) Library, and today it is home to the DC History Center!

Need a hint? Look up! Check for a name on the building that is different than the name on the door.

Historic Carnegie Library at Mt. Vernon Square, by Anne McDonough, Historical Society of Washington, D.C.
What new use for an old building did you find?
The National Mall is full of monuments and museums that honor the history of our whole nation, but history happens right here in your neighborhood too. Find a historic marker (a sign, plaque, or statue) and share something you learned!
What did you learn by reading the historic marker?
In many DC neighborhoods, all the houses look similar because they were built at the same time, often by the same builder. In some neighborhoods, there’s greater variety from building to building. Can you find two different architectural styles side by side?
15th and N Sts NW by Tim Brown Creative Commons License
15th and N Sts NW by Tim Brown Creative Commons License
What are some of the differences you notice between the two buildings?
Find some neighborhood wildlife - a bird, squirrel, rabbit, or even a deer or fox if you live near Rock Creek Park. Maybe a duck or fish if you’re near the Potomac.
The state bird of DC is the woodthrush. DC’s woodthrush (Hylocichla mustelina), photo by Steve Maslowski, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
The state bird of DC is the woodthrush.

DC’s woodthrush (Hylocichla mustelina), photo by Steve Maslowski, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
What wildlife did you spot?
A bus stop, Metro station, (or even a streetcar stop)
Ever wondered how the bus lines got their names or numbers? Many simply repeat the names or numbers of the streetcars that originally ran along the same routes. In 1962 the last streetcars had been replaced by buses. Historical Society of Washington, D.C. (CR 206)
Ever wondered how the bus lines got their names or numbers? Many simply repeat the names or numbers of the streetcars that originally ran along the same routes. In 1962 the last streetcars had been replaced by buses.

Historical Society of Washington, D.C. (CR 206)
What bus, Metro, or streetcar did you find?
From military bands and jazz clubs to go-go and punk, DC has quite a musical history. Find a place in your neighborhood where you can hear music. It could be a church or concert venue, or a street corner or park where your neighbors provide the soundtrack to community life.
Chuck Brown on the Anacostia Big Chair, photo by Steven M. Cummings, Anacostia Community Museum, Smithsonian Institution
Chuck Brown on the Anacostia Big Chair, photo by Steven M. Cummings, Anacostia Community Museum, Smithsonian Institution
Where can you hear music in your neighborhood?
Find something in your neighborhood you’ve always wondered about. Maybe it’s a street name, an old building, or a manhole cover. Take a picture, tag us on social media @dchistory and let’s see what our community knows about it!  
What did you find in your neighborhood that you want to know more about?
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