120-585: Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove on the Potomac is located on Lady Bird Johnson Park (formerly known as Columbia Island ), in Washington, D.C. The presidential memorial honors the 36th President of the United States , Lyndon B. Johnson . The grove consists of two parts. The first area, commemorative in nature, is a Texas granite monolith surrounded by a serpentine pattern of walks and trails. The second area
240-539: A drainage area of 14,700 square miles (38,000 km ), and is the fourth-largest river along the East Coast of the United States . More than 6 million people live within its watershed . The river forms part of the borders between Maryland and Washington, D.C. , on the left descending bank, and West Virginia and Virginia on the right descending bank. Except for a small portion of its headwaters in West Virginia,
360-618: A European spelling of Patawomeck , the Algonquian name of a Native American village on its southern bank. Native Americans had different names for different parts of the river, calling the river above Great Falls Cohongarooton , meaning "honking geese" and "Patawomke" below the Falls, meaning "river of swans". In 1608, Captain John Smith explored the river now known as the Potomac and made drawings of his observations which were later compiled into
480-630: A gateway to Washington. The two bodies agreed to a proposal by urban planner C.A.S. Sinclair, who proposed a series of roads radiating outward from the Virginia end of the bridge. However, in December 1926, the CFA learned that Arlington National Cemetery was likely to expand eastward onto the property of the USDA Experimental Farm (which lay east of Arlington Ridge Road ). Because this significantly impacted
600-514: A grove of trees instead, and planning for the $ 2 million grove began in Spring 1973. Lady Bird Johnson Park was chosen as the site of the grove due to Johnson's love of the park and its panoramic views of Washington, D.C., and its monuments on the National Mall and elsewhere while he was president. The national memorial was authorized by Congress on December 28, 1973, and administratively listed on
720-602: A horseshoe bend at Wappocomo 's Hanging Rocks around the George W. Washington plantation, Ridgedale . To the west of Three Churches on the western side of South Branch Mountain , 3,028 feet (923 m), the South Branch creates a series of bends and flows to the northeast by Springfield through Blue's Ford. After two additional horseshoe bends (meanders), the South Branch flows under the old Baltimore and Ohio Railroad mainline between Green Spring and South Branch Depot , and joins
840-485: A map and published in London in 1612. This detail from that map shows his rendition of the river that the local tribes had told him was called the "Patawomeck". The spelling of the name has taken many forms over the years from " Patawomeck " (as on Captain John Smith 's map) to "Patomake", "Patowmack", and numerous other variations in the 18th century and now "Potomac". The river's name was officially decided upon as "Potomac" by
960-661: A northeastern course along the western side of Jack Mountain (4,045 ft), followed by Sandy Ridge (2,297 ft) along U.S. Route 220 . North of the confluence of the South Branch with Smith Creek, the river flows along Town Mountain (2,848 ft) around Franklin at the junction of U.S. Route 220 and U.S. Route 33 . After Franklin, the South Branch continues north through the Monongahela National Forest to Upper Tract where it joins with three sizeable streams: Reeds Creek, Mill Run, and Deer Run. Between Big Mountain (2,582 ft) and Cave Mountain (2,821 ft),
1080-503: A number of historic plantation farms adjoining it. En route to Romney, the river is fed by Buffalo Run, Mill Run , McDowell Run, and Mill Creek at Vanderlip . The South Branch is traversed by the Northwestern Turnpike ( U.S. Route 50 ) and joined by Sulphur Spring Run where it forms Valley View Island to the west of town. Flowing north of Romney, the river still follows the eastern side of Mill Creek Mountain until it creates
1200-605: A protected area in the United States is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Lady Bird Johnson Park Lady Bird Johnson Park , formerly known as Columbia Island until 1968, is an island located in the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. , in the United States. It formed naturally as an extension of Analostan Island in the latter part of the 1800s, and over time erosion and flooding severed it from Analostan, now known as Theodore Roosevelt Island. The U.S. federal government deposited material dredged from
1320-797: A role in Mike Lawson's The Second Perimeter , and in Phil Little and Brad Whittington's Hell in a Briefcase. Potomac River The Potomac River ( / p ə ˈ t oʊ m ə k / ) is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States that flows from the Potomac Highlands in West Virginia to the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland . It is 405 miles (652 km) long, with
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#17328560758601440-649: A water intake 725 feet (220 m) offshore, citing potential harm to Maryland's interests by an increase in Virginia sprawl caused by the project. After years of failed appeals within the Maryland government's appeal processes, in 2000 Virginia took the case to the Supreme Court of the United States , which exercises original jurisdiction in cases between two states. Maryland claimed Virginia lost its riparian rights by acquiescing to MDE's permit process for 63 years (MDE began its permit process in 1933). A Special Master appointed by
1560-608: A wavy green granite base, the statue stood atop a concrete plinth. In May 1934, the commission overseeing the memorial's construction asked the Works Progress Administration for a $ 100,000 grant to complete the granite steps. But no funds were forthcoming. Finally, funding for the memorial's completion began moving through Congress. With congressional support, the Works Progress Administration gave $ 39,000 to finish memorial in 1939. This included adding
1680-670: A year passed before the CFA approved pylon designs for Columbia Island in March 1929. But the great plaza and roads on the island needed further study. Work on the Boundary Channel Bridge began in the spring of 1929, but immediately ran into problems. An unstable rock shelf 13 feet (4.0 m) thick lay under the western abutment of the Arlington Memorial Bridge. This "rotten rock" had not been revealed by borings two years earlier, but now came to light as construction began on
1800-579: Is 302 mi (486 km). The river has two sources. The source of the North Branch is at the Fairfax Stone located at the junction of Grant , Tucker , and Preston counties in West Virginia . The source of the South Branch is located near Hightown in northern Highland County , Virginia. The river's two branches converge just east of Green Spring in Hampshire County , West Virginia, to form
1920-423: Is a grass meadow and provides a tranquil refuge for reflection and rejuvenation of the spirit. The trails are shaded by a grove of hundreds of white pine and dogwood trees, and framed by azaleas and rhododendron . The memorial overlooks the Potomac River with a vista of the city of Washington. Visitors may listen to a recording made by Lady Bird Johnson at the entrance to the park facing The Pentagon . In
2040-456: Is at least 3.5 million years old, likely extending back ten to twenty million years before the present when the Atlantic Ocean lowered and exposed coastal sediments along the fall line. This included the area at Great Falls, which eroded into its present form during recent glaciation periods. The stream gradient of the entire river is 0.14%, a drop of 930 m over 652 km. "Potomac" is
2160-537: Is fed by Anderson Run and Stony Run. At McNeill , the South Branch flows into the Trough where it is bound to its west by Mill Creek Mountain (2,119 ft) and to its east by Sawmill Ridge (1,644 ft). This area is the habitat to bald eagles . The Trough passes into Hampshire County and ends at its confluence with Sawmill Run south of Glebe and Sector . The South Branch continues north parallel to South Branch River Road ( County Route 8) toward Romney with
2280-402: Is said that President Abraham Lincoln used to escape to the highlands on summer nights to escape the river's stench. In the 1960s, with dense green algal blooms covering the river's surface, President Lyndon Johnson declared the river "a national disgrace" and set in motion a long-term effort to reduce pollution from sewage and restore the beauty and ecology of this historic river. One of
2400-511: The Board on Geographic Names in 1931. The similarity of the name to the Ancient Greek word for river, potamos , has been noted for more than two centuries but it appears to be due to chance. The Potomac River brings together a variety of cultures throughout the watershed from the coal miners of upstream West Virginia to the urban residents of the nation's capital and, along the lower Potomac,
2520-632: The Confederacy , and the Union's largest army, the Army of the Potomac , was named after the river. The Potomac River runs 405 mi (652 km) from Fairfax Stone Historical Monument State Park in West Virginia on the Allegheny Plateau to Point Lookout , Maryland, and drains 14,679 sq mi (38,020 km ). The length of the river from the junction of its North and South Branches to Point Lookout
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#17328560758602640-1460: The Fall Line . This 108-mile (174-km) stretch encompasses the Potomac from a short distance below the Washington, DC - Montgomery County line, just downstream of the Little Falls of the Potomac River , to the Chesapeake Bay . Along the way the following tributaries drain into the Potomac: Pimmit Run , Gulf Branch , Donaldson Run , Windy Run , Spout Run , Maddox Branch , Foundry Branch , Rock Creek , Rocky Run, Tiber Creek , Roaches Run, Washington Channel , Anacostia River , Four Mile Run , Oxon Creek , Hunting Creek , Broad Creek , Henson Creek, Swan Creek, Piscataway Creek , Little Hunting Creek , Dogue Creek , Accotink Creek , Pohick Creek , Pomonkey Creek , Occoquan River , Neabsco Creek , Powell's Creek , Mattawoman Creek , Chicamuxen Creek , Quantico Creek , Little Creek , Chopawamsic Creek , Tank Creek , Aquia Creek , Potomac Creek , Nanjemoy Creek , Chotank Creek , Port Tobacco River , Popes Creek , Gambo Creek , Clifton Creek , Piccowaxen Creek , Upper Machodoc Creek , Wicomico River , Cobb Island , Monroe Creek , Mattox Creek , Popes Creek , Breton Bay, Leonardtown , St. Marys River , Yeocomico River , Coan River , and Hull Creek . The river itself
2760-547: The George Washington Memorial Parkway and administered by the National Park Service . Columbia Island is in part natural, and in part man-made. Columbia Island did not exist in 1818 and at that time, Analostan Island (now known as Theodore Roosevelt Island ) was largely rock and quite close to the D.C. shoreline. Due to deforestation and increased agricultural use upstream, the river eroded much of
2880-545: The Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin . The compact was amended in 1970 to include coordination of water supply issues and land use issues related to water quality. Beginning in the 19th century, with increasing mining and agriculture upstream and urban sewage and runoff downstream, the water quality of the Potomac River deteriorated. This created conditions of severe eutrophication . It
3000-637: The National Register of Historic Places the same day. By February 1975, $ 1.3 million for the memorial grove had been raised. A $ 15 silver medal and a $ 350 gold medal were designed in early 1975 and sold to help raise another $ 150,000. Plans for the grove were largely complete by May 1975. Landscape architect Meade Palmer designed the grove, which included a contemplative meadow and a small granite plaza among some trees. The grove covered 15 acres (61,000 m), and would be planted with white pine , dogwood trees, and flowering shrubs and bushes. A granite plaza
3120-568: The Neoclassical mall and bridge to the informal landscaping of Arlington National Cemetery. Medary's argument proved persuasive to the CFA, and in late May the commission and Kendall announced a revised treatment in which a great plaza would be built on Columbia Island. From this plaza, roads would lead across the island to bridges which would connect with the proposed Mount Vernon Memorial Parkway and Lee Highway . The traffic circles were eliminated, and Columbia Island would be reshaped to allow for
3240-572: The North Branch Potomac River is considered part of Maryland to the low-water mark on the opposite bank. The South Branch Potomac River lies completely within the state of West Virginia except for its headwaters , which lie in Virginia. All navigable parts of the river were designated as a National Recreation Trail in 2006, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration designated an 18-square-mile (47 km ) portion of
3360-597: The US Geological Survey and the Fish and Wildlife Service , began to identify fish in the Potomac and tributaries that exhibited "intersex" characteristics, as a result of endocrine disruption caused by some form of pollution. On November 13, 2007, the Potomac Conservancy, an environmental group, issued the river a grade of "D-plus", citing high levels of pollution and the reports of " intersex " fish. Since then,
3480-547: The 1980s, through sewage plant upgrades and restrictions on phosphorus in detergents. By the end of the 20th century, notable success had been achieved, as massive algal blooms vanished and recreational fishing and boating rebounded. Still, the aquatic habitat of the Potomac River and its tributaries remain vulnerable to eutrophication, heavy metals , pesticides and other toxic chemicals, over-fishing, alien species , and pathogens associated with fecal coliform bacteria and shellfish diseases. In 2005 two federal agencies,
3600-638: The ABMC and Corps of Engineers, the United States Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) and the National Capital Parks Commission (NCPC) both had authority to approve aspects of the bridge. The CFA had extensive authority to review the look of the bridge. The CFA and NCPC first discussed the bridge approaches in January 1926, when they met jointly to discuss how the Virginia terminus would serve as
3720-615: The AMBC in April 1925 to jointly share the cost of dredging, which involved the removal of 2.5 million cubic feet (71,000 m ) of river bottom, and the construction of 2,000 feet (610 m) of seawall and 15,000 feet (4,600 m) of levee. About 40 acres (160,000 m ) of Columbia Island was to be removed in order to widen the main Potomac River channel, and the height of the island raised from 6 feet (1.8 m) above average water level to 22 feet (6.7 m) over two years. In addition to
Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove on the Potomac - Misplaced Pages Continue
3840-620: The Arlington Memorial Bridge Commission and an officer in the Corps of Engineers, formally opened Memorial Avenue and the Boundary Channel Bridge. (Memorial Avenue was only 30 feet [9 m] wide and unpaved, but the Corps was working to have it widened to 60 feet [18 m] and have it paved by July 1.) The worsening federal budgetary situation nearly led to a complete halt in Columbia Island's development. On April 7, 1932,
3960-620: The Boundary Channel Bridge had come to a standstill. Tracks of the Rosslyn Branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad ran along the Virginia shoreline. In order to avoid an at-grade crossing with Memorial Drive, the CFA proposed in June 1927 that these tracks be lower by 20 feet (6.1 m). Since that meant extending the Boundary Channel Bridge, new engineering studies of the bridge were needed. The Corps and CFA were still studying how to depress
4080-401: The Boundary Channel Bridge were also finished. By the end of June 1930, some additional filling in of Columbia Island was all that was needed to finish the Arlington Memorial Bridge. But no construction had occurred on the Columbia Island great plaza, its monumental columns, or the two pylons as the CFA had still not approved a final design for these. Additionally, work on the western half of
4200-400: The Boundary Channel Bridge. Additionally, a thin layer of sand and gravel was discovered lying atop the bedrock of the eastern abutment of the Boundary Channel Bridge. Both obstacles had to be removed before construction could proceed further. By June 30, 1929, the Arlington Memorial Bridge's western abutment was finished (except for exterior masonry facing), and many of the concrete columns for
4320-545: The Boundary Channel was approved in January 1942. In 1948, the northwesterly bridge connecting Columbia Island to Lee Boulevard (now Arlington Boulevard) was rebuilt. Another bridge linking Columbia Island and Virginia was proposed in 1958. At that time, one possible route for the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge was south of Little Island (the southern tip of Theodore Roosevelt Island which had become detached from
4440-565: The CFA in 1927) wrote to the Commission of Fine Arts in January 1928 after having seen Kendall's proposal. Medary argued that the National Mall ended with the Lincoln Memorial and the two great roads leading from it – the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway (RCPP) and the Arlington Memorial Bridge. Columbia Island, he said, should reflect a simple, formal dignity that helps ease the transition from
4560-400: The CFA, and Arlington Memorial Bridge consulting engineer W. J. Douglas to restudy the columns. The Washington Post reported that several AMBC and CFA members, as well as member of Congress, were increasingly worried as well about the huge cost of the columns. The columns themselves were estimated to cost at least $ 500,000, with another $ 100,000 needed for their foundations. The CFA took up
4680-517: The Columbia Island great plaza in January 1935, but again could come to no decision. Without funds, little action other than bridge construction or marginal improvements could be made. Improved landscaping designs for the Boundary Channel Bridge were also submitted in January 1935, and approved in March 1936. Seven months later, the CFA began studying the design for the lighting scheme for the Arlington Memorial Bridge, Columbia Island, and Memorial Drive. Minor elements of Columbia Island were completed in
4800-614: The D.C. and Virginia ends of the bridge; for the improvement of B Street NW as a new ceremonial avenue to link to the bridge; and for the construction of a roadway (eventually called Memorial Drive ) between the bridge and the main gate of Arlington National Cemetery as well as a new ceremonial entrance at this gate (subsequently known as the Hemicycle ). Preliminary designs for the bridge showed it terminating on Columbia Island, which necessitated expansion of Columbia Island. The United States Army Corps of Engineers already planned to dredge
4920-563: The House of Representatives deleted the project's entire $ 840,000 budget for fiscal year 1933 (which began July 1, 1932). Design and other work on the great plaza came to an immediate halt. So did the Corps' final push to fill in the island, as well as all landscaping and road grading. The CFA met in November 1932 to discuss how the incomplete work might be fixed to appear complete or become functional. Franklin D. Roosevelt took office as President of
Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove on the Potomac - Misplaced Pages Continue
5040-547: The Humpback Bridge began in January 2008. The bridge, which had not been renovated since its construction, now carried 75,000 vehicles a day – far more than it was designed for. Improvements included widening the bridge, adding balustrades to separate the sidewalks from the vehicular traffic lanes, and building an underpass through the Lady Bird Johnson Park side landing to allow pedestrians and cyclists to pass through
5160-540: The Lincoln Memorial and Arlington House in Arlington National Cemetery. William Kendall, however, was so adamant about retaining the memorial columns that he personally wrote President Hoover (who technically chaired the AMBC) in early October 1931 outlining his reasons for keeping the columns and telling Hoover to move the airport if they interfered with flight. On October 12, Hoover ordered AMBC staff, Kendall,
5280-448: The Mt. Vernon Trail. A children's garden was constructed on Lady Bird Johnson Park in spring 2008. After President Johnson's death in 1973, Brooke Astor and Laurence Vanderbilt began planning a memorial grove in his memory. Johnson loved this park while he was president, and the national memorial was authorized by Congress on December 28, 1973. A grove with a monolith of Texas granite
5400-569: The National Park Service constructed a 300-foot (91 m) footbridge over the Boundary Channel in 1977 to connect a new, 30-car parking lot in the north Pentagon parking area to both. The cost of the footbridge and parking lot was $ 500,000. In spring 1987, the National Park Service repaved the South Washington Boulevard bridge to Lady Bird Johnson Park, and began planning to reconstruct the bridge by 1991. Reconstruction of
5520-679: The North Branch to form the Potomac. This stretch encompasses the section of the Potomac River from the confluence of its North and South Branches through Opequon Creek near Shepherdstown, West Virginia . Along the way the following tributaries drain into the Potomac: North Branch Potomac River , South Branch Potomac River , Town Creek , Little Cacapon River , Sideling Hill Creek , Cacapon River , Sir Johns Run , Warm Spring Run , Tonoloway Creek , Fifteenmile Creek , Sleepy Creek , Cherry Run , Back Creek , Conococheague Creek , and Opequon Creek . This section covers
5640-513: The Pennsylvania Railroad tracks three years later. Informal negotiations had, by the end of June 1930, come to an agreement that the line would be moved closer to the river, and that an underpass through the bridge (accommodating two side-by-side tracks) and the depressed tracks should be constructed first before the railroad took title to the new line. This would permit uninterrupted rail service. The Pennsylvania Railroad also agreed to cede
5760-544: The Potomac River and enlarge Columbia Island, so on April 1, Secretary of War John W. Weeks ordered the expenditure of $ 114,500 to dredge the river between the Highway Bridge and the Lincoln memorial. The dredged material was to be dumped on Columbia Island. To ensure the island could support the bridge, the Corps also planned to construct a 20-foot (6.1 m) levee around the island. The Corps reached an agreement with
5880-593: The Potomac River on the island between 1911 and 1922, and again from 1925 to 1927. The island was also reshaped by the government at this time "to serve as the western terminus of Arlington Memorial Bridge and a symbolic entrance into the nation’s capital." Located within the park are the Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove , Navy – Merchant Marine Memorial , and the Columbia Island Marina. The island, park, memorials, and marina are part of
6000-406: The Potomac River was repeatedly dredged to deepen the channel and to widen the distance between Analostan/Theodore Roosevelt Island and Columbia Island (so that the "Virginia Channel" west of Analostan/Roosevelt Island would not flood easily). Dredged material was piled high on Columbia Island, helping to build it higher, lengthen and broaden it, and give it its current shape. Filling in of the island
6120-437: The Potomac and its North Branch since both states' original colonial charters grant the entire river rather than half of it as is normally the case with boundary rivers. In its first state constitution adopted in 1776, Virginia ceded its claim to the entire river but reserved free use of it, an act disputed by Maryland. Both states acceded to the 1785 Mount Vernon Compact and the 1877 Black-Jenkins Award which granted Maryland
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#17328560758606240-556: The Potomac as its principal source of drinking water with the opening of the Washington Aqueduct in 1864, using a water intake constructed at Great Falls. An average of approximately 486 million US gallons (1,840,000 m ) of water is withdrawn daily from the Potomac in the Washington area for water supply , providing about 78 percent of the region's total water usage, this amount includes approximately 80 percent of
6360-966: The Potomac from just above Harpers Ferry in West Virginia down to Little Falls, Maryland on the border between Maryland and Washington, DC. Along the way the following tributaries drain into the Potomac: Antietam Creek , Shenandoah River , Catoctin Creek (Virginia) , Catoctin Creek (Maryland) , Tuscarora Creek , Monocacy River , Little Monocacy River , Broad Run , Goose Creek , Broad Run , Horsepen Branch, Little Seneca Creek , Tenmile Creek , Great Seneca Creek , Old Sugarland Run, Muddy Branch , Nichols Run, Watts Branch , Limekiln Branch, Carroll Branch, Pond Run, Clarks Branch, Mine Run Branch, Difficult Run , Bullneck Run, Rock Run , Scott Run, Dead Run, Turkey Run, Cabin John Creek , Minnehaha Branch, and Little Falls Branch . The Tidal Potomac River lies below
6480-411: The Potomac, including bass , muskellunge , pike , walleye . The northern snakehead , an invasive species resembling the native bowfin , lamprey , and American eel , was first seen in 2004. Many species of sunfish are also present in the Potomac and its headwaters. Although rare, bull sharks can be found. After having been depressed for many decades, the river's population of American shad
6600-889: The Potomac. As it flows from its headwaters down to the Chesapeake Bay, the Potomac traverses five geological provinces: the Appalachian Plateau , the Ridge and Valley , the Blue Ridge , the Piedmont Plateau , and the Atlantic coastal plain . Once the Potomac drops from the Piedmont to the Coastal Plain at the Atlantic Seaboard fall line at Little Falls , tides further influence
6720-419: The South Branch bends around the Eagle Rock (1,483 ft) outcrop and continues its flow northward into Grant County . Into Grant, the South Branch follows the western side of Cave Mountain through the 20-mile (32 km) long Smoke Hole Canyon , until its confluence with the North Fork at Cabins , where it flows east to Petersburg . At Petersburg, the South Branch Valley Railroad begins, which parallels
6840-417: The Spectrum , S.R. Larson's America Occupied , Allan Leverone's Final Vector , and Mary Eason's Killer Moves . Sean Flannery has mentioned the Columbia Island Marina and the Boundary Channel in his novel Moving Targets , as did Kim Stanley Robinson in his Forty Signs of Rain . Sheri Holman has mentioned the marina and the Pentagon Lagoon in her novel The Mammoth Cheese , and the marina has played
6960-399: The Supreme Court to investigate recommended the case be settled in favor of Virginia, citing the language in the 1785 Compact and the 1877 Award. On December 9, 2003, the Court agreed in a 7–2 decision. The original charters are silent as to which branch from the upper Potomac serves as the boundary, but this was settled by the 1785 Compact. When West Virginia seceded from Virginia in 1863,
7080-420: The United States in March 1933. Convinced that massive federal spending on public works was essential not only to "prime the pump" of the economy but also to cut unemployment, Roosevelt proposed passage of the National Industrial Recovery Act . The act contained $ 6 billion in public works spending. The act passed on June 13, 1933, and Roosevelt signed it into law on June 16. The Public Works Administration (PWA)
7200-453: The United States into World War II would put significant strain on the local road networks. A new arterial, Army-Navy Boulevard (now called Army-Navy Drive) was under construction to connect Pentagon City and points south to the Pentagon. The road then continued northwest past the Pentagon to Columbia Island, where it was to run up the center of the island and connect with the Arlington Memorial Bridge. A bridge carrying Army-Navy Boulevard over
7320-459: The Virginia side of the river, it was not completed until 1802. Financial troubles led to the closure of the canal in 1830. The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal operated along the banks of the Potomac in Maryland from 1831 to 1924 and also connected Cumberland to Washington, D.C. This allowed freight to be transported around the rapids known as the Great Falls of the Potomac River , as well as many other, smaller rapids. Washington, D.C. began using
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#17328560758607440-430: The agencies announced that PWA money would be used to construct bridges on the north and south ends of the island in anticipation of links with Lee Highway and a new highway the state of Virginia and Arlington County were discussing constructing in the south. (The southern bridge carrying the parkway became known as the Humpback Bridge because it had a slight rise in its center.) To connect to these bridges, completion of
7560-503: The airports. But no decision was made. By April 1932, work was well under way on relocating the Pennsylvania Railroad tracks. The new, slightly shifted route had been graded, tracks laid, and the western end of Boundary Channel Bridge designed. While there were some delays in completing the railroad underpass, work was well advanced. The formal dedication of the Hemicycle, Memorial Avenue, and Boundary Channel Bridge occurred on April 9. Colonel Ulysses S. Grant III , executive director of
7680-402: The approaches to the bridge, the CFA asked Kendall to restudy Sinclair's proposal for the Columbia Island terminus. Kendall presented the revised design for the street and highway approaches for the Virginia landing in May 1927. His plan was for a series of traffic circles on Columbia Island. By June 30, 1927, dredging of the Potomac River was nearly complete. The reshaping of Columbia Island
7800-484: The battles of Antietam (September 17, 1862) and Gettysburg (July 1–3, 1863). Confederate General Jubal Early crossed the river in July 1864 on his attempted raid on the nation's capital. The river not only divided the Union from the Confederacy, but also gave name to the Union's largest army, the Army of the Potomac . The Patowmack Canal was intended by George Washington to connect the Tidewater region near Georgetown with Cumberland , Maryland. Started in 1785 on
7920-441: The bridge and its connection to Arlington National Cemetery essentially finished, Congress hesitated to provide funds for Columbia Island. To cut costs, the CFA deleted the Green Revival temples and the many statues scheduled for Columbia Island. Rather than building extensive roads north and south on the island when no connections were ready to be made, the CFA also agreed that only short segments of these avenues be built adjacent to
8040-413: The bridge on the island's east side, and several larger-than-life Greek Revival and Romanesque Revival statues scattered about the island. Bids for the construction of the Boundary Channel Bridge were opened on July 18, 1928. The project was divided among several contractors. North Carolina Granite Co. provided the below-water granite, Hallowell Granite Works provided the granite for the voussoirs and
8160-417: The bridge rather than crossing the parkway. The reconstruction also removed the notorious "hump" in the middle of the bridge. However, the masonry facing of the bridge was retained to protect the historic character of the bridge. The bridge reconstruction was complete in 2011, and the bike/pedestrian underpass opened in November. The underpass connected the Columbia Island Marina and the LBJ Memorial Grove with
8280-416: The catching near Fletcher's Boat House of a Striped Bass estimated to weigh 35 lb (16 kg) was seen as a further indicator of the continuing improvement in the health of the river. The average daily flow during the water years 1931–2018 was 11,498 cubic feet (325.6 m ) /s. The highest average daily flow ever recorded on the Potomac at Little Falls, Maryland (near Washington, D.C.),
8400-428: The columns on September 29. Grant agreed that, should an investigation show a hazard, the columns would have to be eliminated. The CFA agreed that street lights should be placed alongside the roads on Columbia Island both as an aid to vehicular traffic and as a means of warning air traffic. But the CFA was adamantly opposed to floodlighting the memorial columns, for they would compete with the softer lighting illuminating
8520-445: The drinking water consumed by the region's estimated 6.1 million residents. As a result of damaging floods in 1936 and 1937, the Army Corps of Engineers proposed the Potomac River basin reservoir projects , a series of dams that were intended to regulate the river and to provide a more reliable water supply. One dam was to be built at Little Falls, just north of Washington, backing its pool up to Great Falls. Just above Great Falls,
8640-538: The eastern side of Lantz Mountain (3,934 ft) in Highland County. From Hightown, the South Branch is a small meandering stream that flows northeast along Blue Grass Valley Road through the communities of New Hampden and Blue Grass . At Forks of Waters , the South Branch joins with Strait Creek and flows north across the Virginia/West Virginia border into Pendleton County . The river then travels on
8760-564: The facing on the piers 10 feet (3.0 m) above mean low water level. The Woodbury Granite Company provided the coping granite and balustrades . Hallowell delivered its granite in May 1929, North Carolina Granite delivered its by June, and Woodbury Granite delivered roughly half its granite by June 30, 1929. The construction contract itself was awarded to the N.P. Severin Company in October 1928. Nearly
8880-527: The great plaza as late as January 1938, no improvements were made. Memorial Avenue was completed in September 1938. The final elements on Columbia Island were constructed in 1939 and 1940. In April 1939, Congress approved $ 100,000 to build the last connections between the bridges and central traffic circle on the island, as well as build sidewalks, trails, and parking lots and to improve landscaping there. The CFA, after four years of deliberation, finally approved
9000-419: The great plaza. Eliminating the statuary on the island and on the Boundary Channel Bridge saved $ 478,000. Due to settling, additional dredged material was deposited on Columbia Island in October and November 1930. The new goal was to raise the island to 30 feet (9.1 m) above the average water level. There were still problems in designing the final segment of Boundary Channel Bridge in November 1930, but
9120-553: The huge memorial columns planned for Columbia Island would be a risk to aviation. Both bodies ignored him. On September 28, 1931, the United States Department of Commerce told the CFA that the tall columns were a risk to aviation. The Commerce Department said that the columns would seriously interfere with air traffic using Hoover Field, and demanded that the CFA either eliminate the columns or floodlight them brightly. The Washington Board of Trade added its opposition to
9240-517: The island underwent a natural process of settling . By 1941, settling had damaged the abutments of the Boundary Channel Bridge, and the Bureau of Public Roads placed steel struts under each abutment in April to shore them up. Bridge work on Columbia Island continued in the 1940s. In January 1942, the United States Department of Defense realized that rapid expansion of the Pentagon workforce due to entry of
9360-485: The island. CFA members began to question whether the columns were effective in memorializing the reunited North and South, although there was still agreement that they were integral to the great plaza's design. Nonetheless, Kendall was asked to restudy the issue yet again. Additionally, by now the Great Depression was having a severe and negative impact on funding for the entire Arlington Memorial Bridge project. With
9480-484: The issue at its regular meeting in early November. But when CFA members expressed skepticism about the issue, Senator Hiram Bingham (an aviation enthusiast) began organizing aviation interests to oppose them. Bingham also threatened to introduce legislation in Congress to bar any aviation hazards from being erected in the D.C. area. On November 27, 40 postal and air transport pilots wrote to President Hoover demanding that
9600-620: The junction of Grant , Tucker and Preston counties in West Virginia. From the Fairfax Stone, the North Branch Potomac River flows 27 mi (43 km) to the man-made Jennings Randolph Lake , an impoundment designed for flood control and emergency water supply. Below the dam, the North Branch cuts a serpentine path through the eastern Allegheny Mountains. First, it flows northeast by the communities of Bloomington , Luke , and Westernport in Maryland and then on by Keyser , West Virginia to Cumberland , Maryland. At Cumberland,
9720-462: The lamppost design for the island in January 1940. The last major improvement to the island came in September 1940, when a "racetrack" feature – a larger outer traffic circle – was constructed to handle the rapidly increasing north–south traffic on the island. This permitted north–south motorists to avoid the bottleneck at the traffic circle (which now largely handled just east–west traffic). With filling operations on Columbia Island suspended in 1932,
9840-459: The last years of the 1930s. A second northern bridge, designed to link with Lee Boulevard (now known as Arlington Boulevard ) was approved in 1937. The Joseph A. LaVezza & Sons construction company immediately began work on the $ 24,875 bridge. This new bridge, and (at last) the bridge over the Pennsylvania Railroad tracks were completed in July. Although the CFA continued to confer on plans concerning
9960-520: The main island due to erosion). District of Columbia officials asked permission in January 1958 to build a small approach bridge to the Roosevelt span over Boundary Channel, but the CFA refused a month later. By June 1958, the bridge's location had shifted north to the southern end of Theodore Roosevelt Island, making a bridge over Boundary Channel moot. In 1958, the northwestern bridge linking Columbia Island to Arlington Boulevard (the former Lee Boulevard)
10080-547: The memorial grove and establish a maintenance fund. The memorial was dedicated on April 6, 1976. It is administered by the National Park Service , as part of the George Washington Memorial Parkway . A $ 500,000 footbridge between the memorial and a 30-car parking lot along Boundary Channel was constructed to make it easier to visit the Grove. The bridge was designed by landscape architect Meade Palmer and dedicated by Lady Bird Johnson on October 12, 1977. This article related to
10200-454: The much larger Seneca Dam was proposed whose reservoir would extend to Harpers Ferry. Several other dams were proposed for the Potomac and its tributaries. Operational Non-Operational Planned, but never built When detailed studies were issued by the Corps in the 1950s, they met sustained opposition, led by U.S. Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas , resulting in the plans' abandonment. The only dam project that did get built
10320-633: The nation's capital was to be located on the river. The 1859 siege of Harper's Ferry at the river's confluence with the Shenandoah was a precursor to numerous epic battles of the American Civil War in and around the Potomac and its tributaries, such as the 1861 Battle of Ball's Bluff and the 1862 Battle of Shepherdstown . General Robert E. Lee crossed the river, thereby invading the North and threatening Washington, D.C., twice in campaigns climaxing in
10440-537: The new parkway alignment with the old. Veterans of the United States Navy and the United States Merchant Marine had long argued that there was no memorial commemorating their service anywhere in Washington, D.C. Congress rectified this in the 1920s, and a memorial designed by 1922. However, fund-raising for the memorial took far longer than expected. Ground on Columbia Island for the memorial
10560-483: The northern bank and widened the gap between Analostan Island and the shore and simultaneously large deposits of silt built up around Analostan Island. By 1838, Analostan had almost doubled in length toward the south and by 1884, the new southern part of Analostan Island was defined and built up, and supported a well-established wetland . However, the river gradually eroded the center of Analostan Island, severing Columbia Island from its parent body. Between 1911 and 1922,
10680-703: The north–south roadway to pass along the axis of the island. The great plaza was intended to contain two 166-foot (51 m) high columns representing the Union and the South . The two columns were to be surmounted by gold statues of Nike . Additionally, the CFA concluded that there should be two 40-foot (12 m) high pylons at both the eastern and western ends of the bridge. These pylons were to be inscribed with bas-relief images representing national accomplishments, and topped by statues of golden eagles. Kendall's design also included two large, round Greek Revival temples close to
10800-426: The old right-of-way to the government once the new tracks and tunnel were operational. Otherwise, construction on the Boundary Channel Bridge was complete. The CFA again considered designs for the Columbia Island plaza in July 1930. Repairs to the levees on Columbia Island were made that same month. In September, the CFA reviewed but did not approve designs for the memorial columns, and for additional landscaping on
10920-679: The park are the Lyndon B. Johnson Memorial Grove, the Navy–Merchant Marine Memorial, and the Columbia Island Marina. Lady Bird Johnson Park is accessible from downtown Washington via the Arlington Memorial Bridge , from Arlington National Cemetery via Memorial Drive, and from Northern Virginia via the George Washington Memorial Parkway. The Mount Vernon Trail runs along the side of the island facing
11040-645: The park between 1965 and 1968. These plants were paid for by the National Park Service, the Society for a More Beautiful National Capital and the 1965 Presidential Inaugural Committee. Columbia Island was renamed Lady Bird Johnson Park by the United States Department of the Interior on November 12, 1968 in honor of her work on the beautification campaign. After the 1976 dedication of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove within Lady Bird Johnson Park,
11160-547: The pillars be eliminated. Three days later, the Board of Trade also contacted Hoover directly to lobby against the columns' erection. Faced with overwhelming opposition, the AMBC voted to eliminate the columns in December 1931, and asked Kendall for yet another new design for Columbia Island. In the wake of the AMBC's decision, proposals came from the public and architects outside the project to add either high-spouting fountains or towers which would retract whenever planes took off from
11280-413: The plaza. Design issues surrounding the Columbia Island great plaza were resolved in late 1931 not by the CFA, but by President Herbert Hoover . Two airfields, Hoover Field and Washington Airport , existed in Virginia just south of Columbia Island. In the spring of 1931, AMBC executive officer Ulysses S. Grant III (then a lieutenant colonel with the Corps of Engineers) advised the AMBC and CFA that
11400-435: The proposed Arlington Memorial Bridge . It awarded the design commission to the firm of McKim, Mead and White , which appointed architect William Mitchell Kendall to be the lead designer. Congress subsequently authorized construction of Kendall's bridge on February 24, 1925. The legislation authorizing construction of the bridge also provided for the construction of approaches (on-ramps, off-ramps, and pedestrian areas) on both
11520-534: The question of West Virginia's succession in title to the lands between the branches of the river was raised, as well as title to the river itself. Claims by Maryland to West Virginia land north of the South Branch (all of Mineral and Grant Counties and parts of Hampshire , Hardy , Tucker and Pendleton Counties) and by West Virginia to the Potomac's high-water mark were rejected by the Supreme Court in two separate decisions in 1910. A variety of fish inhabit
11640-419: The recording, the former First Lady talks about the creation of the park, the trees, and the views of major Washington, D.C., landmarks. Former President Lyndon B. Johnson died on January 22, 1973. Soon after, Johnson's admirers proposed constructing a statue in Washington, D.C., in his memory, but concern that it would be defaced led to rejection of that idea. Brooke Astor and Laurence Vanderbilt suggested
11760-548: The rest of the District, leading to Theodore Roosevelt Island in one direction and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on the other. The Pentagon is visible from the western side of the island near the marina at the southern tip. Lady Bird Johnson Park is a popular location which authors like to include in their fiction novels, sometimes using the old name Columbia Island. It is mentioned in Anthony S. Policastro's Dark End of
11880-541: The river as it passes through Washington, D.C., and beyond. Salinity in the Potomac River Estuary increases thereafter with distance downstream. The estuary also widens, reaching 11 statute miles (17 km) wide at its mouth, between Point Lookout, Maryland, and Smith Point , Virginia, before flowing into the Chesapeake Bay. The source of the North Branch Potomac River is at the Fairfax Stone located at
12000-647: The river bank-to-bank from the low-water mark on the Virginia side while permitting Virginia full riparian rights short of obstructing navigation. From 1957 to 1996, the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) routinely issued permits applied for by Virginia entities concerning the use of the Potomac. However, in 1996 the MDE denied a permit submitted by the Fairfax County Water Authority to build
12120-491: The river has improved with a reduction in nutrient runoff, return of fish populations, and land protection along the river. As a result, the same group issued a grade of "B" for 2017 and 2018. In March 2019, the Potomac Riverkeeper Network launched a laboratory boat dubbed the "Sea Dog", which will be monitoring water quality in the Potomac and providing reports to the public on a weekly basis; in that same month,
12240-622: The river in Charles County , Maryland, as the Mallows Bay–Potomac River National Marine Sanctuary in 2019. The river has significant historical and political significance, as the nation's capital of Washington, D.C. is located on its banks, as is Mount Vernon , the home of "Father of his Country" George Washington . During the American Civil War, the river became the boundary between the Union and
12360-430: The river turns southeast. 103 miles (166 km) downstream from its source, the North Branch is joined by the South Branch between Green Spring and South Branch Depot , West Virginia from whence it flows past Hancock , Maryland and turns southeast once more on its way toward Washington, D.C. , and the Chesapeake Bay . The exact location of the South Branch's source is northwest of Hightown along U.S. Route 250 on
12480-497: The river until its mouth at Green Spring . In its eastern course from Petersburg into Hardy County , the South Branch becomes more navigable allowing for canoes and smaller river vessels. The river splits and forms a series of large islands while it heads northeast to Moorefield . At Moorefield, the South Branch is joined by the South Fork South Branch Potomac River and runs north to Old Fields where it
12600-417: The road across Columbia Island connecting Arlington Memorial Bridge with Boundary Channel Bridge was finished in December. The CFA continued to wrestle with Columbia Island's great plaza design in 1931. The commission again discussed the columns in January, and eliminated a granite balustrade around the great plaza (saving $ 400,000). But by September, the agency still had come to no resolution on redesigning
12720-410: The roads on Columbia Island was also needed. These roads were staked out in January 1934, and the CFA and NCPC began discussing whether a new, large traffic circle should be added to the center of the island to replace the bottleneck that a simple cross-axis would be. The engineering and architectural design for the northern bridge was approved in October 1936. The CFA further discussed what to do with
12840-511: The rock's age at a billion years. A flagstone walkway winding through the grove was included in the design. Four quotes from Johnson's public speeches, selected by Lady Bird Johnson, were carved into flagstones placed around the orthostat. But $ 600,000 was still needed in May 1975 to complete the memorial. The orthostat was delivered to the site in August 1974, and emplaced on August 13, 1975. In December 1975, Congress authorized $ 1 million to complete
12960-519: The significant pollution control projects at the time was the expansion of the Blue Plains Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant , which serves Washington and several surrounding communities. Enactment of the 1972 Clean Water Act led to construction or expansion of additional sewage treatment plants in the Potomac watershed. Controls on phosphorus , one of the principal contributors to eutrophication, were implemented in
13080-581: The watermen of Virginia's Northern Neck. Being situated in an area rich in American history and American heritage has led to the Potomac being nicknamed "the Nation's River". George Washington , the first President of the United States , was born in, surveyed, and spent most of his life within, the Potomac basin. All of Washington, D.C., the nation's capital city , also lies within the watershed. The First United States Congress by act of July 16, 1790 stated that
13200-504: The wavy green granite steps, creating a concrete plaza around the memorial, installing two flagstone walks to lead to the memorial, and landscaping the area. During the latter part of the 1960s and the early part of the 1970s, the National Park Service relandscaped Columbia Island extensively as part of a nationwide, urban-beautification campaign sponsored by then– First Lady Lady Bird Johnson between 1964 and 1968. More than one million daffodils and 2,700 dogwood trees were planted on
13320-469: Was Jennings Randolph Lake on the North Branch. The Corps built a supplementary water intake for the Washington Aqueduct at Little Falls in 1959. In 1940 Congress passed a law authorizing the creation of an interstate compact to coordinate water quality management among states in the Potomac basin. Maryland, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and the District of Columbia agreed to establish
13440-581: Was broken by Secretary of the Navy Charles Francis Adams , Secretary of the Treasury Andrew W. Mellon , Marine Corps Major General Ben H. Fuller , Coast Guard Commandant Rear Admiral Frederick C. Billard , and Assistant Secretary of Commerce David Sinton Ingalls on December 2, 1930. Work on the memorial stopped for nearly three years. The statue itself was finally emplaced in 1934. However, lack of funds meant that instead of
13560-462: Was complete in the spring of 1924. The new island received its name in about 1918 from an unnamed engineer working for the District of Columbia and the first use of this name in The Washington Post was in April 1922, the same year it was transferred to the National Park Service. In 1922, Congress authorized the Arlington Memorial Bridge Commission (AMBC) to hold a design competition for
13680-431: Was finished and the light removed in September 1964. A year later, in September 1965, a new bridge just west of the South Washington Boulevard bridge opened. The George Washington Memorial Parkway was expanding north of its old terminus at Arlington Memorial Bridge, but this necessitated moving the parkway's southbound lanes onto the Virginia shoreline and off the northern part of Columbia Island. The new bridge connected
13800-579: Was finished, and the 200-acre (810,000 m ) island had risen to 22 feet (7 m) feet above water. The following month, work began on the engineering and architectural drawings for the Boundary Channel Bridge . This bridge would cross Boundary Channel (which separated Columbia Island from Virginia) to connect Arlington Memorial Bridge with the planned Memorial Drive. Kendall's May 1927 design for Columbia Island generated lengthy debate for two years. Architect Milton Bennett Medary (who left
13920-488: Was immediately established to disburse the funds appropriated by the act. On July 13, just a month after the PWA was formed, the agency announced a $ 3 million grant to finish work on Columbia Island and other parts of the Arlington Memorial Bridge project. The CFA and NCPC met in November to decide how to proceed on Columbia Island, which had only one link to Virginia – and that led only to Arlington National Cemetery. On December 4,
14040-487: Was in March 1936 when it reached 426,000 cubic feet (12,100 m ) /s. The lowest average daily flow ever recorded at the same location was 601.0 cubic feet (17.02 m ) /s in September 1966 The highest crest of the Potomac ever registered at Little Falls was 28.10 ft, on March 19, 1936; however, the most damaging flood to affect Washington, DC and its metropolitan area was that of October 1942. For 400 years Maryland and Virginia have disputed control of
14160-474: Was installed in 1975, along with walking trails and a grove of hundreds of white pine and dogwood trees among the grass fields. The memorial was dedicated on April 6, 1976. The Boundary Channel of the Potomac River separates Lady Bird Johnson Park from the Virginia shoreline, while the main stream of the Potomac surrounds the island on the other three sides. As of 2007, the island consisted of 121 acres (490,000 m ) of landscaped parkland. Located within
14280-499: Was intended for the center of the grove, on which a 45-short-ton (41 t), 19-foot (5.8 m) high pink granite orthostat (or "standing stone") quarried in Texas was to be placed. Stone carver Harold Vogel worked the exterior of the stone to give it a dynamic, rough-hewn look reminiscent of Johnson's personality. The Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Texas estimated
14400-402: Was widened to six lanes from four. The northern bridge carrying the George Washington Memorial Parkway over Boundary Channel was realigned in late 1962 as part of a larger road realignment allowing Arlington Boulevard to link to the new Theodore Roosevelt Bridge. A traffic light, the only one anywhere on the parkway, was installed to control traffic during the realignment process. The new bridge
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