Benning Road

Last updated

Benning Road
Benning Road Northeast
Maintained by DDOT
Length3.9 mi (6.3 km) [1]
Location Washington, D.C., U.S.
Coordinates 38°53′47.6″N76°57′27.8″W / 38.896556°N 76.957722°W / 38.896556; -76.957722
West endStarburst Intersection in Kingman Park–Carver Langston, DC
Major
junctions		DC-295.svg DC 295 in Mayfair, DC
East Capitol Street in Benning Ridge, DC
East endMarlboro Pike in Capitol Heights, MD

Benning Road is a major traveled street in Washington, D.C., and Prince George's County, Maryland. [2]

The street's western terminus is at the "Starburst intersection" in the northeast quadrant of the city at Bladensburg Road, Florida Avenue, Maryland Avenue, H Street and 15th Street. [3] It passes over the Anacostia River via the Ethel Kennedy Bridge into the neighborhood of Benning. It continues southeast across East Capitol Street into the southeast quadrant, crossing Southern Avenue and the D.C.-Maryland boundary into Maryland, ending at an intersection with Marlboro Pike (a former alignment of Maryland Route 4).

History

In the late 18th century, "Captain" William Benning came from Virginia and purchased 330 acres (1.3 km2) in the area. Around 1830 (though not all sources agree on the date), [4] [5] he bought what was then known as the Anacostia Bridge or the Upper Bridge as a toll bridge, one of the earliest crossings over the Anacostia River. [6] [7] The bridge would later be known as "Benning Bridge." "Benning's Road" appears on maps as far back as 1861, and the bridge was an important eastern route in and out of the District. [6] [8] [9] [10] An 1886 U.S. Geological Survey map shows Benning's Road ending at "Bowen Road", [9] which was later named Marlboro Pike in Maryland (and routed as Maryland Route 4 through about 1960).

In 1920, the Army Corps of Engineers used material dredged from the Anacostia to build Kingman Island and Kingman Lake, which Benning Road crossed over top of. Previously it had crossed the mudflats along the Anacostia on a causeway. In 1929, a concrete culvert was installed under Benning Road to create a connection between the two sections of Kingman Lake. At the time, 92% of the city's electricity passed under the road and the WB&A railroad ran along it. [11] The bridge created by the culvert was replaced in 2000 [12]

In 1955, the department of transportation built two ramps connecting Benning Road to DC-295. In 1988, the ramp from 295 to Benning road was rehabilitated. [12]

A 1956 photo of the original Benning Road Viaduct, built in 1919. The Original Benning Road Viaduct that existed from 1919-1961.png
A 1956 photo of the original Benning Road Viaduct, built in 1919.

Benning Road was long bisected by railroad lines owned by the Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington Railroad and the B&O Railroad. In 1917 work began on the Benning Road Viaduct and Bridge that would carry the road over the tracks. That work was completed in 1919. [13] In 1937, the road was widened and a 2nd viaduct built next to the 1919 one. [14] The old one became the eastbound bridge and the new one the westbound bridge. The westbound bridge was replaced in 1959 and the eastbound bridge in 1961, because the existing bridges could no longer carry the necessary weight. The westbound bridge had its entire deck removed and replaced in 1982 and the eastbound bridge deck was replaced in 1988. In 2007, the District Council voted to rename the Benning Road Viaduct and Bridge (by then called the "Benning Road Bridge") over the railroad tracks between 34th Street, N. E., and Minnesota Avenue, N. E. the Lorraine H. Whitlock Memorial Bridge. In 2020, the name was removed from the bridge by the same act that renamed a DC School for Whitlock. [15]

In 2008, the Benning Road Bridge over the Anacostia was renamed the Ethel Kennedy Bridge after the widow of the late Robert F. Kennedy, for whom a nearby stadium was named. [16] In a May 20, 2014 ceremony, the bridge was officially renamed the Ethel Kennedy Bridge to honor her for her devotion to many social and environmental causes during her later years, especially in the neighborhoods along and near the Anacostia River. [17]

In 2009, work commenced on a $38 million improvement project for the road which included adding streetcar tracks. [2] The DC Streetcar line was anticipated to open in 2014, [18] but it did not actually open until February 27, 2016.

A Metro station was opened at the intersection of Benning Road and East Capitol Street in 1980 but this is not within easy walking distance of the local facilities as the neighborhood has a suburban style with access mainly by automobile. [19]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Jersey Route 139</span> State highway in Hudson County, New Jersey, US

Route 139 is a state highway in Jersey City, New Jersey in the United States that heads east from the Pulaski Skyway over Tonnele Circle to the state line with New Jersey and New York in the Holland Tunnel, which is under the Hudson River, to New York City. The western portion of the route is a two-level highway that is charted by the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) as two separate roadways: The 1.45-mile (2.33 km) lower roadway (Route 139) between U.S. Route 1/9 (US 1/9) over Tonnele Circle and Interstate 78 (I-78) at Jersey Avenue, and the 0.83-mile (1.34 km) upper roadway running from County Route 501 and ending where it joins the lower highway as part of the 12th Street Viaduct, which ends at Jersey Avenue. The lower roadway is listed on the federal and NJ state registers of historic places since 2005. The eastern 1.32 miles (2.12 km) of the route includes the Holland Tunnel approach that runs concurrent with Interstate 78 on the one-way pair of 12th Street eastbound and 14th Street westbound. Including the concurrency, the total length of Route 139 is 2.77 miles (4.46 km).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">K Street (Washington, D.C.)</span> Major thoroughfare in Washington, D.C.; a metonym for the U.S. lobbying industry

K Street is a major thoroughfare in the United States capital of Washington, D.C., known as a center for lobbying and the location of numerous advocacy groups, law firms, trade associations, and think tanks. In political discourse, "K Street" has become a metonym for lobbying in the United States, the same way Wall Street in New York City became a metonym for the financial markets of the United States, since many lobbying firms are or at least traditionally were located on the section in Northwest Washington which passes from Georgetown through a portion of Downtown Washington, D.C.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northeast (Washington, D.C.)</span> Quadrant in the United States

Northeast is the northeastern quadrant of Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. It encompasses the area located north of East Capitol Street and east of North Capitol Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Interstate 695 (District of Columbia)</span> Highway in Washington, D.C.

Interstate 695 (I-695), also known as the Southeast Freeway, is a two-mile-long (3.2 km) auxiliary Interstate Highway in Washington, D.C.. It travels from an interchange with I-395 south of the US Capitol building east then south across the 11th Street Bridges to an intersection with I-295 and District of Columbia Route 295 (DC 295) in Anacostia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Massachusetts Avenue (Washington, D.C.)</span> Major road in Washington, D.C., U.S.

Massachusetts Avenue is a major diagonal transverse road in Washington, D.C., and the Massachusetts Avenue Historic District is a historic district that includes part of it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suitland Parkway</span> Parkway in Maryland and Washington D.C.

The Suitland Parkway is a limited-access parkway in Washington, D.C., and Prince George's County, Maryland, administered and maintained by the U.S. National Park Service (NPS), National Capital Parks-East. The road has partial controlled access with a combination of interchanges and at-grade intersections, but without property access for neighboring land-owners. Conceived in 1937, it was built during World War II to provide a road connection between military facilities in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. It fully opened on December 9, 1944 as the Camp Springs highway, so called because it connected Camp Springs in Prince George's County with Bolling Air Force Base. However one lane of the highway was opened in mid-October 1944.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Independence Avenue (Washington, D.C.)</span> Major east-west street in Washington, D.C.

Independence Avenue is a major east-west street in the southwest and southeast quadrants of the city of Washington, D.C., in the United States, running just south of the United States Capitol. Originally named South B Street, Independence Avenue SW was constructed between 1791 and 1823. Independence Avenue SE was constructed in pieces as residential development occurred east of the United States Capitol and east of the Anacostia River. Independence Avenue SW received its current name after Congress renamed the street in legislation approved on April 13, 1934. Independence Avenue SW originally had its western terminus at 14th Street SW, but was extended west to Ohio Drive SW between 1941 and 1942. The government of the District of Columbia renamed the portion of the road in the southeast quadrant of the city in 1950.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Streetcars in Washington, D.C.</span> Streetcars that existed in Washington until 1962

Streetcars in Washington, D.C. transported people across the city and region from 1862 until 1962.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Capitol Street</span>

South Capitol Street is a major street dividing the southeast and southwest quadrants of Washington, D.C., in the United States. It runs south from the United States Capitol to the D.C.–Maryland line, intersecting with Southern Avenue. After it enters Maryland, the street becomes Indian Head Highway at the Eastover Shopping Center, a terminal or transfer point of many bus routes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M Street (Washington, D.C.)</span> Four streets of the same name in Washington, D.C.

The name "M Street" refers to two major roads in the United States capital of Washington, D.C. Because of the Cartesian coordinate system used to name streets in Washington, the name "M Street" can be used to refer to any east-west street located twelve blocks north or south of the dome of the United States Capitol. Thus, in all four quadrants of the city there are streets called "M Street", which are disambiguated by quadrant designations, namely, M Street NW, NE, SW, and SE.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingman Park</span> Place in the United States

Kingman Park is a residential neighborhood in the Northeast quadrant of Washington, D.C., the United States capital city. Kingman Park's boundaries are 15th Street NE to the west; C Street SE to the south; Benning Road to the north; and Anacostia Park to the east. The neighborhood is composed primarily of two-story brick rowhouses. Kingman Park is named after Brigadier General Dan Christie Kingman, the former head of the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barney Circle</span> Neighborhood in the United States

Barney Circle is a small residential neighborhood located between the west bank of the Anacostia River and the eastern edge of Capitol Hill in southeast Washington, D.C., in the United States. The neighborhood is characterized by its sense of community, activism, walkability, and historic feel. The neighborhood's name derives from the eponymous former traffic circle Pennsylvania Avenue SE just before it crosses the John Philip Sousa Bridge over the Anacostia. The traffic circle is named for Commodore Joshua Barney, Commander of the Chesapeake Bay Flotilla in the War of 1812.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingman Island</span>

Kingman Island and Heritage Island are islands in Northeast and Southeast Washington, D.C., in the Anacostia River. Both islands are man-made, built from material dredged from the Anacostia River and completed in 1916. Kingman Island is bordered on the east by the Anacostia River, and on the west by 110-acre (45 ha) Kingman Lake. Heritage Island is surrounded by Kingman Lake. Both islands were federally owned property managed by the National Park Service until 1995. They are currently owned by the D.C. government, and managed by Living Classrooms National Capital Region. Kingman Island is bisected by Benning Road and the Ethel Kennedy Bridge, with the southern half of the island bisected again by East Capitol Street and the Whitney Young Memorial Bridge. As of 2010, Langston Golf Course occupied the northern half of Kingman Island, while the southern half of Kingman Island and all of Heritage Island remained largely undeveloped. Kingman Island, Kingman Lake and nearby Kingman Park are named after Brigadier General Dan Christie Kingman, the former head of the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fairlawn (Washington, D.C.)</span> Neighborhood in Ward 8, United States

Fairlawn is a working class and middle class residential neighborhood in southeast Washington, D.C., United States. It is bounded by Interstate 295, Pennsylvania Avenue SE, Minnesota Avenue SE, Naylor Road SE, and Good Hope Road SE.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greenway (Washington, D.C.)</span> Neighborhood in Ward 7, United States

Greenway is a residential neighborhood in Southeast Washington, D.C., in the United States. The neighborhood is bounded by East Capitol Street to the north, Pennsylvania Avenue SE to the south, Interstate 295 to the west, and Minnesota Avenue to the east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ethel Kennedy Bridge</span> Bridge in D.C., U.S.

The Ethel Kennedy Bridge is a beam bridge built in 2004 that carries Benning Road over the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C. It is an eight-lane bridge with pedestrian lanes on both sides. A separate Washington Metro bridge carrying the Blue, Orange and Silver lines crosses over the bridge near its western terminus, and parallels the bridge on the north. A third bridge in the area carries Benning Road over Kingman Lake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chesapeake Beach Railway</span>

The Chesapeake Beach Railway (CBR), now defunct, was an American railroad of southern Maryland and Washington, D.C., built in the 19th century. The CBR ran 27.629 miles from Washington, D.C., on tracks formerly owned by the Southern Maryland Railroad and then on its own single track through Maryland farm country to a resort at Chesapeake Beach. The construction of the railway was overseen by Otto Mears, a Colorado railroad builder, who planned a shoreline resort with railroad service from Washington and Baltimore. It served Washington and Chesapeake Beach for almost 35 years, but the Great Depression and the rise of the automobile marked the end of the CBR. The last train left the station on April 15, 1935. Parts of the right-of-way are now used for roads and a future rail trail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue</span> Street in District of Columbia, USA

Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue is a major street in the District of Columbia traversing through both the Southwest and Southeast quadrants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Avenue Bridge (1890)</span> Bridge in United States of America

The Pennsylvania Avenue Bridge was a crossing of the Anacostia River in Washington, DC at the site of the present John Philip Sousa Bridge. It was constructed in 1890 and demolished around 1939.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anacostia Riverwalk Trail</span> 25 mile multi-use trail system in Washington D.C.

The Anacostia Riverwalk Trail is a multi-use trail system in Washington, DC, which, when complete, will be ~25 miles long, spanning both sides of the Anacostia River, the Washington Channel waterfront, and projecting into neighborhoods away from the Anacostia. It has more recently been branded as part of a larger Anacostia Riverwalk Trail Network which includes an additional 8 segments and 15 miles of trail. On the north end it connects to the Anacostia Tributary Trail System; on the south end it will connect to the Oxon Hill Farm Trail and on the west it connects to the Rock Creek Park Trail and the 14th Street Bridge. Of the 19 planned segments, 14 are complete for a combined total of 16 miles.

References

  1. ↑ Google (May 16, 2019). "Benning Road" (Map). Google Maps . Google. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
  2. 1 2 Ashley Halsey III (December 14, 2009). "Renovation of Benning Road in NE D.C. nears completion". The Washington Post .
  3. ↑ Neibauer, Michael (September 29, 2014). "New Gateway to H Street NE? Mixed-Use Building Proposed for Site Next to Starburst Intersection". Washington Business Journal. Retrieved September 30, 2014.
  4. ↑ Linda Wheeler (October 25, 1997). "Benning Heights' Twists and Turns". The Washington Post . Retrieved May 7, 2010.
  5. ↑ "Local roads scholars give streets'history". The Washington Times . June 25, 1992. Retrieved May 7, 2010.("Benning Road, for example, was named after the late William Benning. He was responsible for constructing the Anacostia toll bridge in 1805...."
  6. 1 2 Lapp, Joe. Kenilworth: A D.C. Neighborhood by the Anacostia River Archived May 27, 2010, at the Wayback Machine (Humanities Council of Washington D.C. 2006), Accessed May 7, 2010
  7. ↑ "Historic Bridges over the Eastern Branch" (PDF). August 18, 1912. Retrieved June 30, 2017.
  8. ↑ Joe Lapp (November 2005). "Kenilworth: A Northeast Neighborhood by the Anacostia River" (PDF). East of the River. Retrieved May 7, 2010.[ permanent dead link ]
  9. 1 2 Upper Marlboro-East Washington, DC Quadrangle, Northwest Quadrant, USGS (1886)("Benning's Road" appears on 1886 USGS Map)
  10. ↑ Benning Road Corridor Redevelopment Framework Plan Archived May 27, 2010, at the Wayback Machine (District of Columbia Office of Planning, 2008)("Benning Road has historically been a significant thoroughfare in the District")
  11. ↑ "CONCRETE CULVERT FOR KINGMAN LAKE NEARS COMPLETION". The Washington Post. January 27, 1929.
  12. 1 2 "Benning Road Bridges" (PDF). Retrieved November 29, 2019.
  13. ↑ "New Bridge Waiting on Driveway Surface". The Evening Star. July 20, 1919.
  14. ↑ "Washington's Bridges: Historic and Modern". THE DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAYS OFFICE OF PLANNING, DESIGN AND ENGINEERING. Retrieved December 1, 2019.
  15. ↑ "D.C. Law 23-157. Lorraine H. Whitlock Elementary School Designation Act of 2020" . Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  16. ↑ Lorraine H. Whitlock Memorial Bridge Designation Act of 2007 (PDF). 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 11, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  17. ↑ DeBonis, Mike (May 21, 2014). "Ethel Kennedy Bridge is dedicated, at long last". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
  18. ↑ Di Caro, Martin (July 15, 2014). "DDOT Best-Case Scenario Targets November Opening For D.C. Streetcar". WAMU Radio. Retrieved September 30, 2014.
  19. ↑ Washington at home: an illustrated history of neighborhoods in the Nation's capital, Columbia Historical Society (Washington, D.C.), 1988, p. 225, ISBN   9780897812054
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.