our Corridor

North Capitol main street

History of North Capitol Street & Bloomingdale

The history of North Capitol Street dates all the way back to Pierre Charles L'Enfant's famous 1791 plan for D.C. that included two streets emanating from the Capitol; one running east-west and another running north-south. North Capitol remained a site of continued growing pedestrian traffic and popularity with the developments of neighboring universities (Howard, Catholic, and Trinity Washington), and the expansion of the streetcar service. Today, North Capitol serves as a major thoroughfare for D.C. commuters while still being home to many of our most important small and local businesses.

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The development along North Capitol Street in the 19th century expanded popular bordering residential areas in the second half of the century including in Bloomingdale. Bloomingdale was at the frontier of the Civil Rights Movement and residential race relations in the District with locations like Mount Bethel Baptist Church serving as important gathering spaces. In recent years, businesses have been reoccupying formerly abandoned retail spaces transforming Bloomingdale into one of D.C.'s most desirable micro-commercial areas.