Francis Griffith Newlands Memorial Fountain
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Francis Griffith Newlands Memorial Fountain
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| Location |
Chevy Chase Circle, N.W. Washington, D.C. |
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| Coordinates | 38°58′10″N 77°4′38″W / 38.96944°N 77.07722°WCoordinates: 38°58′10″N 77°4′38″W / 38.96944°N 77.07722°W |
| Built | 1938 |
| Architect | Edward Wilton Donn |
| NRHP Reference # | 07001058 |
| Added to NRHP | October 12, 2007 |
Francis Griffith Newlands Memorial Fountain is a historic fountain located at Chevy Chase Circle, on the border between the Chevy Chase neighborhood, Northwest, Washington, D.C., and the community of Chevy Chase, Maryland. The fountain was designed by Edward W. Donn, Jr. in 1933 and erected in 1938. The project was funded by Newlands' widow.
The fountain honors Francis G. Newlands, a U.S. senator and founder of Chevy Chase, Maryland. In 1902, Newland sponsored the Newlands Reclamation Act which allowed the federal government to begin irrigation of the West. He founded the Chevy Chase Land Co. which established neighborhoods on the D.C.-Maryland border. He purchased over 1,700 acres (690 ha) of land and named it "Chevy Chase" to honor his Scottish homeland. In 1990, the fountain was refurbished by the Chevy Chase Land Co. to recognize the 100th anniversary of the founding of Chevy Chase. The fountain was rededicated and recognized by the National Register of Historic Places.
In December 2014, a proposal was made by Gary Thompson, a member of the Advisory Neighborhood Commission, to rename the fountain due to Newlands' white supremacist views. Several of Newlands' descendants responded with a letter to the Chevy Chase Advisory Neighborhood Commission opposing renaming the fountain and asserting that the proposed resolution was misleading and discounted Newlands' legislative and civic accomplishments. Because the fountain is on National Park Service land and named by Congress, changes would likely require an act of Congress and agreement from several agencies including the National Park Service.
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