LOCATION AND TOPOGRAPHY OF THE DISTRICT. 11 



II.— LOCATION AND TOPOGRAPHY OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. 



The District of Columbia lies just below the 39th parallel of latitude, 

 and on the Washington meridian of longitude. It is on the Potomac 

 River, 100 miles from its mouth, at the head of tide-water, and is between 

 the States of Maryland and Virginia. 



Formerly it was 10 miles square, occupying a portion of both States, 

 on either side of the Potomac River, thus making an area of 100 square 

 miles. 



Of this area 64 square miles were in Maryland and 36 in Virginia, 

 including the city of Alexandria. In 1846, by act of Congress, the Vir- 

 ginia portion of the District was retroceded to that State, so that there 

 remains since that date only that portion within the limits of Maryland, 

 containing 64 square miles of territory. 



Although the area of this territory is comparatively small, it presents 

 a sufficient variety of scenery to attract almost every species of bird 

 incident to the latitude and longitude. 



For convenience of description we will divide the District of Colum- 

 bia into three regions, namely : 1. The Potomac River region ; 2. The 

 Anacostia River region ; and, 3. Rock Creek region. 



1. THE POTOMAC RIVER REGION. 



The Potomac River coming down from the northwest makes a long 

 sweeping curve towards the east from the "Little Falls," passing around 

 Georgetown and Washington to the Arsenal Point, a distance of eight 

 miles, when it again makes a sharp turn to the south, passing Alexan- 

 dria. 



The tide reaches to the foot of the "Little Falls," just within the Dis- 

 trict line to the northwest. Here the river is confined in a narrow 

 gorge scarcely 100 feet across — a swift running torrent — bounded on the 

 southwest (Virginia side) by high, precipitous, rocky cliff's, and on the 

 northeast by a rocky river-bottom half a mile wide, reaching to the 

 cliff's on the Maryland side, which correspond in height with, but are 

 not so rugged as, those of the Virginia side. Along the base of the 

 northern cliff's runs the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. 



This river-bottom extends along the river toward the city for about 

 a mile and a half below the Little Falls, gradually becoming narrower 

 until it terminates at Edes's Mill. 



When the river is high this space is flooded, and in times of great 

 freshets the whole river-bed is converted into a raging, roaring torrent. 

 In the great freshet of November 26, 1877, the water rose until it en- 

 tered the canal, and was within 15 feet of the floor of the Chain Bridge, 

 which is 89 feet above the bed of the -stream, and 47 feet above mean 



