Spencer Fullerton Baird

Historical marker location:

1000 Jefferson Drive Southwest, The National Mall, District of Columbia

( Marker can be reached from Jefferson Drive Southwest east of 12th Street Southwest, on the right when traveling east.)

Marker installed: 1976

1823 - 1887

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.