Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C. (also known as simply Washington or D.C., and officially as the District Of Columbia) is
the capital of the United States. It is a federal district. The President of the United States, the United
States Congress, the United States Supreme Court and many major national government offices are in
the territory. This makes it the political center of the United States of America.
Washington was named after the first U.S. President George Washington. "D.C." stands for "District of
Columbia". At first, it was made up of a piece from Virginia south of the Potomac River and a piece from
Maryland north of the Potomac River. In 1847, Virginia's piece was returned to it, and is now Arlington
County and part of the city of Alexandria. Since 1847, all of the District of Columbia is on the north side
of the Potomac River. The District of Columbia used to have other small towns which used "D.C.".
Since 1800, the District of Columbia has been the home of all three branches of the U.S. government:
Congress, the President, and the Supreme Court. All of the major political parties are based here. It is
also the headquarters of the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the Organization
of American States (OAS). Because it is the home of the President and is important to American politics,
many groups often hold large demonstrations and protests here. These are often at the National Mall, a
large open park which has many monuments and museums. The District of Columbia’s many museums
and monuments make it a popular place for tourists to visit.
In 2020, the United States Census Bureau said that 689,545 people lived within the District of Columbia.
