Washington, D.C., formally the
District of Columbia and commonly referred to as
Washington, "
the District", or simply
D.C., is the
capital of the
United States. On July 16, 1790, the
United States Congress approved the creation of a
federal district to become the national capital as permitted by the
U.S. Constitution. The District is therefore not a part of any
U.S. state. It was formed from land along the
Potomac River donated by the states of
Maryland and
Virginia; however, the Virginia portion was
returned by Congress in 1846.
A new capital city named after
George Washington was founded in 1791 to the east of the preexisting port of
Georgetown. Congress consolidated the City of Washington, Georgetown, and the remaining
unincorporated area within the District under a single
municipal government in 1871. The city shares its name with the U.S. state of
Washington, located on the country's Pacific coast.
(Wikipedia)