Washington Navy Yard: Maker of Weapons
Tour of Duty: Barracks Row Heritage Trail
The white brick wall in front of you marks the original northern boundary of the Navy Yard. The yard grew from its original 12 acres to 128 acres at its peak in 1962. In 2003 it consisted of 73 acres with 55 acres making up the adjacent Southeast Federal Center.
After the War of 1812, the Navy Yard's shipbuilding dwindled. the Anacostia River was too shallow and remote from the ope sea for building large vessels. By the 1840s, weapons production dominated activities.
In 1886, the Naval Gun Factory was established. During World War II it was the world's largest, producing everything from precision gunsights to enormous 16-inch battleship guns. By 1962 missiles and aircraft made elsewhere had decreased demand for guns, so the factories closed. The yard became an administrative and supply center, with museums and parks. Operations slowed until 2001, when the Navy adapted dozens of manufacturing spaces for offices and the number of employees doubled.
The "castle" to your right is the old Navy Yard Car Barn, built in 1891 by the Washington and Georgetown Rilroad Company for a brief experiment with cable cars. Cars traveled between the Navy Yard and Georgetown, pulled by a moving cable buried in a slot between the rails. Capitol Hill resident J. George Butler wrote of how pranksters would "use a hooked wire to engage the cable, and then swoop down the street on roller skates until some killjoy policeman hove into sight." In 1897 cable cars were discontinued in favor of the new electric streetcars, and the car barn was devoted to their storage and maintenance.
Marker is on 8th Street, SE 0 miles north of M Street, SE, on the right when traveling south.
Courtesy hmdb.org
