John J. Donovan, Jr.

Historical marker location:

604 11th Street Northwest, Penn Quarter, District of Columbia

( Marker is on 11th Street Northwest near F Street Northwest, on the right when traveling south.)

The city was built on a swamp: The area that is now Washington, D.C. was originally a swampy, marshy region along the Potomac River. The construction of the city involved extensive drainage and landfill projects to make the land suitable for building.