District of Columbia Organic Act of 1871

For the prior act that organized the district, see District of Columbia Organic Act of 1801.

Act of Congress

District of Columbia Organic Act of 1871

Long title| An Act to provide a Government for the District of Columbia
Nicknames| District of Columbia Organic Act of 1871
Enacted by| the 41st United States Congress
Citations
Statutes at Large| 16 Stat. 419
Legislative history

* Signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on February 21, 1871

The District of Columbia Organic Act of 1871 is an Act of Congress that repealed the individual charters of the cities of Washington and Georgetown and established a new territorial government for the whole District of Columbia. Though Congress repealed the territorial government in 1874, the legislation was the first to create a single municipal government for the federal district.[1] Direct rule by Congress continued until the 1973 passage of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, a century later.[2]

## History

[edit]

Evolution of the District's internal boundaries

The passage of the Residence Act in 1790 created a new federal district that would become the capital of the United States. Formed from land donated by the states of Maryland and Virginia, the capital territory already included two large settlements at its creation: the port of Georgetown, Maryland and the town of Alexandria, Virginia. A new capital city named in honor of President George Washington was founded to the east of Georgetown in 1791.

Shortly after establishing operations in the new capital, Congress passed the Organic Act of 1801, which organized the federal territory. The territory within the federal district east of the Potomac formed the new County of Washington, which was governed by a levy court consisting of seven to eleven Justices of the Peace appointed by the president, and was governed by Maryland law as of 1801. The area west of the river became Alexandria County which was governed by Virginia law. In addition, Congress allowed the cities of Washington, Alexandria and Georgetown to each maintain their own municipal governments. In 1846 Alexandria County was returned by Congress to the state of Virginia.

The outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861 led to notable growth in the capital's population due to the expansion of the federal government and a large influx of emancipated slaves.[3] By 1870, the District's population had grown 75% to nearly 132,000 residents.[4] Growth was even more dramatic within the County of Washington, where the population more than doubled as people escaped the crowded city.[5]

The individual local governments within the District were insufficient to handle the population growth. Living conditions were poor throughout the capital, which still had dirt roads and lacked basic sanitation. The situation was so bad that some lawmakers in Congress even suggested moving the capital out further west, but President Ulysses S. Grant refused to consider the proposals.[6]

## Effect

[edit]

Instead, Congress passed the Organic Act of 1871, which revoked the individual charters of the cities of Washington and Georgetown and combined them with Washington County to create a unified territorial government for the entire District of Columbia.[7] The new government consisted of an appointed governor and 11-member council, a locally elected 22-member assembly, and a board of public works charged with modernizing the city.[8] The Seal of the District of Columbia features the date 1871, recognizing the year the District's government was incorporated.[9]

The Act did not establish a new city or city government within the District. Regarding a city of Washington, it stated that "that portion of said District included within the present limits of the city of Washington shall continue to be known as the city of Washington".[8] In the present day, the name "Washington" is commonly used to refer to the entire District, but DC law continues to use the definition of the city of Washington as given in the 1871 Organic Act.[10]

In 1873, President Grant appointed an influential member of the board of public works, Alexander Robey Shepherd, to the post of governor. Shepherd authorized large-scale municipal projects, which greatly modernized Washington. In doing so however, the governor spent three times the money that had been budgeted for capital improvements, bankrupting the city.[11] In 1874, Congress replaced the District's quasi-elected territorial government with an appointed three-member Board of Commissioners. Direct rule by Congress continued until the 1973 passage of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, a century later.[2]

## Conspiracy theories

[edit]

The Act is the basis of several claims held by the sovereign citizen movement. According to these, the Act made the District, and consequently the whole United States, into a business corporation.[12] These claims stem from a misunderstanding of the term municipal corporation used in the Act.[13][14] There are many kinds of corporations; a corporation is any group authorized to legally act as a single entity; in this case, an incorporated, organized district of the United States. Most U.S. cities and counties are municipal corporations.

This was later used by QAnon supporters to falsely claim that former president Donald Trump would be sworn in as the 19th president of the "original United States" on March 4, 2021.[15] This date corresponds to the original presidential inauguration date because they claimed the Twentieth Amendment was not passed by the "original" United States, and is therefore invalid.

## See also

[edit]

* District of Columbia Organic Act of 1801
* History of Washington, D.C.
* District of Columbia home rule

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Tindall, William (1909). Origin and government of the District of Columbia. J. Byrne & co. pp. 9.
2. ^ a b "History of Self-Government in the District of Columbia". Council of the District of Columbia. 2008. Archived from the original on March 31, 2009. Retrieved December 29, 2008.
3. ^ McQuirter, Marya Annette. "African Americans in Washington, DC: 1800-1975". A Brief History of African Americans in Washington, D.C. Archived from the original on September 20, 2011. Retrieved August 12, 2011.
4. ^ "Historical Census Statistics on Population Totals By Race, 1790 to 1990" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. September 13, 2002. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 26, 2008. Retrieved August 13, 2011.
5. ^ "1870 Census Information". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 27 March 2010. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
6. ^ Bordewich, Fergus M. (2008). Washington: the making of the American capital. HarperCollins. p. 272\. ISBN 978-0-06-084238-3.
7. ^ Dodd, Walter Fairleigh (1909). The government of the District of Columbia. Washington, D.C.: John Byrne & Co. p. 4.
8. ^ a b "An Act to provide a Government for the District of Columbia". Statutes at Large, 41st Congress, 3rd Session. Library of Congress; Feb. 21, 1871, 41st Congress, 3rd session, chap. 62, 16 Stat. 419. Retrieved July 10, 2011. (Alt: PDF version)
9. ^ "Official Symbols of the District of Columbia". About DC. Archived from the original on 5 February 2006. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
10. ^ E.g., DC Code §9-502, banning overhead wires in the city of Washington, or DC Code §47-704, establishing a system of parcel designations for "the District of Columbia lying outside of the City of Washington".
11. ^ Wilcox, Delos Franklin (1910). Great cities in America: their problems and their government. The Macmillan Company. pp. 27–30.
12. ^ "U.S. Corp". Retrieved 19 August 2023.
13. ^ "The United States is a Corporation - Fact or Myth?". Retrieved 31 January 2021.
14. ^ "Did Legislation Passed in 1871 Make Washington, D.C., a Foreign Entity?". 28 January 2021. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
15. ^ Gilbert, David (January 25, 2021). "QAnon Thinks Trump Will Become President Again on March 4". Vice. Retrieved February 5, 2021.

## External links

[edit]

* An Act to provide a Government for the District of Columbia as enacted (16 Stat. 419) in the US Statutes at Large

* v
* t
* e

Washington, D.C.

* Capital of the United States

Topics|

* Outline
* Geography
* Media
* Metropolitan area
* Symbols
* Tourist attractions

Government|

* Elections
* Mayor of the District of Columbia (since 1975)
* Council
* Voting rights
* Home rule
* Code
* Congressional representation
* Shadow representation
* Ballot measures
* Statehood movement

Services|

* Fire
* Libraries
* Police
* D.C. National Guard
* Public Schools
* Transportation
* Court of Appeals
* D.C. Superior Court

Society|

* Abortion
* Architecture
* Culture
* Crime
* Demographics
* Economy
* Education
* Museums
* Music
* People
* Sports

History|

* History of Washington, D.C.
* Timeline
* Inventory of Historic Sites
* List of District executives (since 1790)
* Residence Act of 1790
* Organic Act of 1801
* Retrocession of 1847
* Emancipation Day, 1862
* Organic Act of 1871
* COVID-19 pandemic
* The former District and its subdivisions:
* District of Columbia (until 1871)
* Alexandria City
* Alexandria County
* Georgetown
* City of Washington
* Washington County

* Washington, D.C. portal

* v
* t
* e

Georgetown, Washington, D.C.

History|

* Organic Act of 1801
* Organic Act of 1871
* Street renaming
* The Exorcist
* Washington County, D.C.
* Washington and Georgetown Railroad

Historic sites|

* 1222 28th Street NW
* Car Barn
* Chesapeake and Ohio Canal
* City Tavern Club
* The Corcoran School
* Customhouse and Post Office
* Dumbarton House
* Dumbarton Oaks
* Evermay
* Exorcist steps
* Farmers and Mechanics Bank
* Forrest-Marbury House
* Georgetown Market
* Georgetown Neighborhood Library
* Georgetown University Astronomical Observatory
* Halcyon House
* John Stoddert Haw House
* Healy Hall
* Laird-Dunlop House
* Lauinger Library
* McDonough Gymnasium
* Old North
* Old Stone House
* Isaac Owens House
* Newton D. Baker House
* Prospect House
* Quality Hill
* Smith Row
* Statue of John Carroll
* Three Sisters
* Tidewater Lock
* Tudor Place
* Van Ness Mausoleum
* Vigilant Firehouse
* Volta Laboratory and Bureau

Houses of worship|

* Christ Church
* Dahlgren Chapel
* Georgetown Visitation Monastery
* Grace Episcopal Church
* Holy Trinity Catholic Church
* Kesher Israel
* Mount Zion United Methodist Church
* Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel
* St. John's Episcopal Church

Streets and bridges|

* Aqueduct Bridge
* Dumbarton Bridge
* K Street Bridge
* Key Bridge
* L Street Bridge
* M Street
* M Street Bridge
* P Street
* P Street Bridge
* Pennsylvania Avenue Bridge
* Whitehurst Freeway
* Wisconsin Avenue

Education|

* British International School of Washington
* Duke Ellington School of the Arts
* Georgetown Female Seminary
* Georgetown University
* Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School
* Holy Trinity School

Parks and
cemeteries|

* Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park
* Dumbarton Oaks Park
* Georgetown Waterfront Park
* Francis Scott Key Memorial
* Glover-Archbold Park
* Georgetown University Jesuit Community Cemetery
* Montrose Park
* Mount Zion Cemetery
* Oak Hill Cemetery
* Presbyterian Burying Ground

Establishments|

* Baked & Wired
* Embassy of France
* Embassy of Mongolia
* Embassy of Thailand
* Embassy of Ukraine
* Embassy of Venezuela
* Filomena Ristorante
* Four Seasons Hotel
* Georgetown Cupcake
* Georgetown Park
* Georgetown Visitation Monastery
* House of Sweden
* Martin's Tavern
* MedStar Georgetown University Hospital
* Potomac Boat Club
* Ritz-Carlton
* Suter's Tavern
* The Tombs
* Washington Canoe Club
* Washington Harbour

* Northwest, Washington, D.C.
* Category

* v
* t
* e

Ulysses S. Grant

18th President of the United States (1869–1877)

Military career|

* Grant and the American Civil War
* Fort Donelson
* Shiloh
* Vicksburg
* Chattanooga
* Overland
* Richmond–Petersburg
* Appomattox
* Court House
* Commanding generalship

Presidency|

* First inauguration
* Second inauguration
* Scandals
* Grantism
* Pardons
* Cabinet
* Judicial appointments
* State of the Union addresses
* 1869
* 1870
* 1871
* 1872
* 1873
* 1874
* 1875
* 1876

| Foreign policy|

* Treaty of Washington
* Alabama Claims
* Korean Expedition
* Proposed annexation of Santo Domingo

|

Economic policy|

* Public Credit Act of 1869
* Copyright Act of 1870
* Currency Act of 1870
* Funding Act of 1870
* General Mining Act of 1872
* Timber Culture Act
* Specie Payment Resumption Act
* Desert Land Act

Government
reforms|

* Judiciary Act of 1869
* U.S. Department of Justice
* District of Columbia Organic Act of 1871
* Civil Service Commission
* Yellowstone National Park Protection Act
* Yellowstone National Park
* Post Office Act
* Electoral Commission Act

Social policy|

* Reconstruction
* Amnesty Act
* Native American policy
* "Peace Policy"
* Modoc War
* Great Sioux War
* Indian Appropriations Act of 1871
* Enforcement Acts
* Enforcement Act of 1870
* Second Enforcement Act
* Ku Klux Klan Act
* Naturalization Act of 1870
* Comstock Act
* Poland Act
* Civil Rights Act of 1875
* Page Act of 1875

Post-presidency|

* Bid for a third term
* World tour

Books|

* Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant

Life|

* Early life
* Birthplace
* Boyhood home
* Schoolhouse
* White Haven home
* farm
* Ulysses S. Grant Cottage
* Galena home
* Horsemanship
* speeding arrests
* Grant's Tomb

Elections|

* 1868
* convention
* election
* 1872
* convention
* election

Legacy|

* Bibliography

| Memorials|

* Grant Memorial
* Presidential library
* Grant Park
* General Grant ship
* General Grant tree
* grove
* Grant Cottage State Historic Site
* The Peacemakers
* U.S. Capitol statue
* Brooklyn relief
* Chicago statue
* Ohio Statehouse statue
* Philadelphia statue
* San Francisco bust
* U.S. Postage stamps
* Currency
* $5 bill
* $50 bill
* 1922 Grant Memorial coinage
* Grant High School
* U.S. Grant Hotel

|

Cultural depictions|

* Ulysses S. Grant (2002 documentary)
* Grant (2020 miniseries)

Family|

* Hannah Simpson Grant (mother)
* Jesse Root Grant (father)
* Julia Grant (wife)
* Frederick Dent Grant (son)
* Ulysses S. Grant Jr. (son)
* Jesse Root Grant II (son)
* Nellie Grant (daughter)
* Ulysses S. Grant III (grandson)
* Chapman Grant (grandson)
* Ulysses S. Grant IV (grandson)
* Julia Dent Grant (granddaughter)

* ← Andrew Johnson
* Rutherford B. Hayes →

* Category

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template