U.S. Census Bureau Daily Feature for November 17: Seat of Government

WASHINGTON, Nov. 17, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following is the daily "Profile America" feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:

SEAT OF GOVERNMENT

Profile America — Thursday, November 17th. The United States Congress met for the first time in the District of Columbia on this date in 1800. Up until then, it did its squabbling, vituperating and, most importantly, legislating in Philadelphia. Ever since President George Washington laid the cornerstone for the Capitol in 1793, the District had been planned as the permanent home for the U.S. government. By 1800, enough of the Capitol had been completed for the members of the Sixth Congress to move in. One senator found D.C. to be "lacking in houses, cellars, kitchens, well-informed men [and] amiable women."  In 1800, the population of the District was 8,000. The current population of the nation's capital is just over 672,000. You can find more facts about America's people, places and economy, from the American Community Survey, at www.census.gov.

Sources:
Congressional move/accessed 9/1/2016: http://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/The_Senate_Moves_to_Washington.htm   
Quotation/accessed 9/1/2016: http://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Meeting_Places_Quarters.htm 
1800 population: Historical Statistics of the United States: Colonial Times to 1970, p. 26
Current D.C. population: http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/11000.html

Profile America is produced by the Center for New Media and Promotion of the U.S. Census Bureau. Statistics and accounts drawn from cited non-Census sources are employed for illustrative or narrative purposes, and are not attested to by the U.S. Census Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air, on the Internet at http://www.census.gov (look for "Audio" in the "Library" pull-down menu). 

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SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau

Related Links

http://www.census.gov

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