WASHINGTON — Long before there was a city of Washington or a District of Columbia, there was an area first known as the Town of George. The area most likely took its name from a Scottish merchant and wealthy landowner, George Gordon. The area’s name was later shortened to Georgetown.
Tobacco trading flourished there in its earliest days. In 1751, the Maryland General Assembly brought the locale into legal existence.
Georgetown had become a bustling port town by the mid-18th century. It was a vital link for trade and commerce. During the American Revolution, Georgetown served as a military supply depot.
Because of its strategic location along the Potomac River, near the Chesapeake Bay, it eventually functioned as a transportation hub for those traveling along the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal.
The Catholic order of Jesuits founded Georgetown College there in 1789, one of the first Catholic schools of higher learning in the United States, eventually taking university status.
In 1871, Georgetown merged with the federal District of Columbia and the City of Washington.
Georgetown was a center of social and political activity in the early 19th century, attracting numerous prominent persons.
During the Civil War, Georgetown became a center for recruiting troops and care for wounded soldiers. After the war, its commercial activity was renewed. The locality came to symbolize counter-culture in the turbulent 1960s.
Over the years, Georgetown maintained a unique character and culture. Its cobblestone streets, historic architecture, and popular commercial districts define it to this day.
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