Washington, D.C.: Shaw Neighborhood

When one thinks of Washington, D.C., images of the White House, the Lincoln Memorial, and the Washington Monument usually come to mind. Many tourists trek to the nation's capital every year just to see these attractions, and, yet, lesser-known sights like the Shaw district are just as worthy of visiting. Future travelers to Washington, D.C. can now access the Internet to find out about this neighborhood which represents a rich slice of American history and is the birthplace of one of the great black entertainers, Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington.

Prior to the Civil War, the Shaw district of Washington, D.C. was no more than forests and fields. During wartime, military camps were created in the area for former slaves escaping from the South. One of these "tent cities" evolved into a neighborhood named for Col. Robert Gould Shaw, the white officer who led the black Massachusetts 54th Regiment in the Civil War. The Shaw neighborhood grew rapidly in the late 1800s and early 1900s, with new homes and businesses springing up all over the district and the nearby Howard University offering continuing education to the black community.

Duke Ellington, the son of a White House caterer, was born in the Shaw district in 1899. He took piano lessons in his early years and eventually formed his own band in his late teens. Today, tourists can take a walking tour, "Duke Ellington's D.C.: A Tour of the Shaw Neighborhood," which features attractions that depict not only the life of the renowned jazz artist, but also the lives of other famous black Americans from the area like Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. As you can see by the data provided here, the Shaw district is definitely a place to visit on your next trip to Washington, D.C. and the Internet can help to prepare you with several online resources on this historical neighborhood and other regional attractions.