Theodore Roosevelt Island
| Theodore Roosevelt Island National Memorial | |
|---|---|
the 17-foot Centerpiece Statue
|
|
 |
|
| Location | Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Coordinates | 38°53′50″N 77°3′51″W / 38.89722°N 77.06417°WCoordinates: 38°53′50″N 77°3′51″W / 38.89722°N 77.06417°W |
| Area | 88.5 acres (35.8 ha) |
| Established | May 21, 1932 |
| Visitors | 111,879 (in 2005) |
| Governing body | National Park Service |
| Website | Theodore Roosevelt Island |
Theodore Roosevelt Island is an 88.5-acre (358,000 m2) island and national memorial located in the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. The island was given to the American people by the Theodore Roosevelt Association in memory of the 26th U.S. president, Theodore Roosevelt; before that, the island had been known as My Lord's Island, Barbadoes Island, Mason's Island, Analostan Island, and Anacostine Island.
The island is maintained by the National Park Service as part of the nearby George Washington Memorial Parkway. The land is generally maintained as a natural park, with various trails and a memorial plaza featuring a statue of Mr. Roosevelt. No cars or bicycles are permitted on the island, which is reached by a footbridge from Arlington, Virginia, on the western bank of the Potomac. "In the 1930s landscape architects transformed Mason’s Island from neglected, overgrown farmland into Theodore Roosevelt Island, a memorial to America’s 26th president. They conceived a 'real forest' designed to mimic the natural forest that once covered the island. Today miles of trails through wooded uplands and swampy bottomlands honor the legacy of a great outdoorsman and conservationist."
A small island named "Little Island" lies just off the southern tip; Georgetown and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts are across the main channel of the Potomac to the north and east, respectively.
The Nacotchtank Indians, formerly of what is now Anacostia (in Washington, D.C.), temporarily moved to the island in 1668, giving its first recorded name, "Anacostine". The island was patented in 1682 as Anacostine Island by Captain Randolph Brandt (or Brunett), who left the island to his daughter Margaret Hammersley, upon his death in 1698 or 1699. The island was acquired by George Mason III in 1724.George Mason IV acquired the island in 1735 upon the death of his father and John Mason, the son of George Mason IV, inherited the Island in 1792 and owned it until 1833. John Mason built a mansion around 1796 and planted gardens there in the early 19th century. The Masons left the island in 1831 when a causeway stagnated the water. Following Mason's death in 1842, John Carter acquired the land. After Carter died in 1851, the island passed to William A. Bradley. From 1913 to 1931, the island was owned by the Washington Gas Light Company, which allowed vegetation to grow unchecked on the island. By 1935, the Civilian Conservation Corps had cleared much of the island and pulled down the remaining walls of the house; today, only part of the mansion's foundation remains.
...
Wikipedia