Our National Capital, View from the South

This hand-colored drawing by Theodore R. Davis, titled Our National Capital, View from the South, was published in Harper’s Weekly magazine in 1882. The bird’s-eye view looks north from what is today Independence Avenue, with the Washington Monument, U.S. Department of Agriculture Building, Smithsonian Castle, National Museum (Arts and Industries Building) and the D.C. Armory all visible. Davis spotlights the Mall’s overgrown foliage, half-built monuments and mismatched buildings during the late 19th century. Description by Allie Richmond (GWU, M.A. ‘26, Art History). Theodore R. Davis, Our National Capital, View from the South, 1882. Albert H. Small Washingtoniana Collection, AS 183. Read more about this artwork on the center’s Evolution D.C. blog: https://evolutiondc.museum.gwu.edu/ ...