By Allie Richmond, M.A. ‘26, Art History
By 1900, Washington’s architecture and landscape lacked the grand, cohesive character that Peter L’Enfant, the District’s original planner, had envisioned. Public criticism prompted architects, engineers and politicians to convene in the early 20th century to formulate a transformational plan for the future of the Mall and the city as a whole. As Washington, D.C., evolved, urban planning efforts became more important in shaping the city’s future, but these developments often carried significant racial and social implications.
The U.S. Senate established the Senate Park Commission in 1901 to study the city’s architecture and public parks. Tasked with recommending action for development and improvement, the commission revisited L’Enfant’s original plans under the guidance of Michigan Senator James McMillan, an advocate for the arts and promoter of civic culture.
A map from the Albert H. Small Washingtoniana Collection highlights how the McMillan Commission intended to recapture L’Enfant’s original plan while also tackling the District’s park system and water supply. However, the proposal posed new problems for residents. Establishing a comprehensive and detailed standard for developing the Mall and Washington’s greenspace would better cohere Washington’s landscape, but large-scale urban redevelopment also came at a significant cost to many local communities.
Architects Charles McKim and Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr., along with sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens, all formative figures in the City Beautiful Movement, joined McMillan to execute the commission’s work. Together they traveled to Europe in the Summer of 1901 to conduct an intensive study of classical urban architecture. With Olmsted’s photographs of Parisian gardens and Italian Villas, the commission returned to the United States prepared to begin designing an urban space that prioritized aesthetic beauty through architecture and sculpture.
The commission envisioned a kite-shaped corridor of greenspace, stretching from Capitol Hill towards the Potomac, with a new memorial dedicated to Abraham Lincoln capping off the western end of the Mall. A reflecting pool would extend from the Lincoln Memorial to the Washington Monument, and the tidal basin was designated as public recreational space and the future site of the Jefferson Memorial.
On January 15, 1902, the Corcoran Gallery of Art exhibited the Senate Park Commission Plan. The display highlighted the commission’s proposal of the National Mall as an extensive park, with inspirational photographs from their European tour and sketches of new marble government buildings like Union Station, which would replace the Baltimore and Potomac station.
James McMillan passed away in 1902, but his vision lived on, and the commission was permanently codified in 1910 as the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, which focused on advising locations for fountains, statues and monuments in public spaces. His efforts established a comprehensive design for future development on the mall that would encapsulate the spirit of L’Enfant’s plan in a timeless yet contemporary style, prompting a century of urban planning in the National Capital Region.
Urban planning in Washington expanded significantly during the 1910s and 1920s, leading to the creation of the National Capital Planning Commission to oversee the city’s development. When it was first established in 1924, NCPC focused on designating land for public parks. But its designs enforced racial segregation, and by the 1940s and 1950s, some public parks near the National Mall were labelled as “whites-only.” Additionally, the push for urban renewal led to the creation of the Redevelopment Act, aimed at addressing the city’s infrastructure and sanitation issues due to rapid population growth. The act proposed demolishing housing deemed “blighted” to make way for new buildings or highways, often disproportionately affecting predominantly African American neighborhoods.
Early urban planning decisions, beginning with the McMillan Commission, shaped the physical landscape of Washington, D.C. Much of the city’s greenspace and some iconic structures, like the Lincoln Memorial, are products of these transformational initiatives. They also left a legacy of inequality that continues to impact communities today.
Read other posts in this series:
The National Mall
L’Enfant’s Ambitious Avenue
A Patchwork National Mall
About the Author
Allie Richmond has a B.A. in art history and history and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in art history with a concentration in museum studies at GW. Interested in art historical research and museum management, she is the digital media editor for the Albert H. Small Center for National Capital Area Studies.
Header image: Map of the District of Columbia Showing Public Reservations and Possession and Area Recommended to be Taken for New Parks, 1901. Albert H. Small Washingtoniana Collection AS 2017.51.