Empire of Mud: The Secret History of Washington, DC

Empire of Mud: where J.D. Dickey puts paid to the idea that Washington might ever be "fixed."

But I'm getting ahead of myself. The trouble started when Congress furloughed the soldiers of the Pennsylvania Line who then mutinied and marched on Philadelphia, where the powers-that-be responded poorly (raise your hand if anything in this sentence surprised). Most alarming to Alexander Hamilton, these handful of militiamen made the state seem stronger than the country, a situation the Federalist could not abide. Hamilton masterfully manipulated events such that by the time the Constitution was adopted in 1787, Congress planned a federal district, separate and apart from any state.

And then the real fun began because while Philadelphia circa 1787 was a real city, the lands set aside for the federal district were farmlands and swampy, muddy bogs. Corn grew in the middle of Pennsylvania Avenue. No one would pay to pave (or even grade) the streets. Entire sections of the city were swamped at high tide. A few years ago, I read Dominion of Memories: Jefferson, Madison, and the Decline of Virginia, which basically consists of source after source bemoaning the state of state, and especially the roads. Washington City, which together with Georgetown and Alexandria (now Virginia) formed the federal district, was clearly made of the same muck.

Naturally, the arrival of politicians only worsened the situation. Because the infrastructure was so lacking, they clung together, with the city's boarding houses becoming the domain of various factions. All Ohio congressman might live in one house, while next door lodged only republicans from New York. Clannishness and partisanship is not new. In the dearly days of the district, they were particularly inclined to fight over slavery, literally brawling - repeatedly - on the floor of the House and Senate. The Civil War ended the physical altercations, but not the segregation and black codes that made life so difficult for so many.

Empire of Mud is the history of Washington you never knew, from the physical creation of the city to an accounting of the various types of brothels that operated in its boundaries, Dickey's history is far from the marble and monuments that spring to mind when thinking of the city today. This is the dark side of Washington, and it is a history buff's history, finely detailed and nuanced, asking questions as well as answering them. Beginning with, what if the Pennsylvania Line hadn't mutinied?