Racing at Brightwood kennedy and 14th streets at colorado avenue nw
fresh water springs in this pleasant high ground once drew European settlers. Farmers called this area “Crystal Spring.” In 1859 the half-mile Crystal Spring Racetrack opened on land just west of this intersection. For 75 cents, Washingtonians hopped a stagecoach from Washington City (south of Florida Avenue) for a day at the races. Later known as the Brightwood Trotting Park, the course attracted laborers, con- gressmen, and everyone in between. Over time horses, bicycles, autos, and even mules competed along the track. A reservoir was built near the track in 1899, and tennis courts were added later. Racing continued until 1909. In 1937 the reservoir was filled in for the courts and playing fields of today’s Rock Creek Tennis Center on 16th Street. In 1894 hundreds of unemployed men camped at the racetrack during the nation’s first mass march on Washington. An economic crash had forced thousands out of work, leading Ohio businessman Jacob Coxey to mount a campaign to persuade the U.S. government to create jobs by building public facilities. To cheering crowds, his followers, dubbed “Coxey’s Army” by report- ers, paraded from Brightwood to the Capitol to present this new idea to Congress. But Congress found the new political tactic threatening. Coxey was arrested on the Capitol steps, and his peti- tion was never presented. The bus turnaround here was built in 1936 for the number 52 streetcar. The first streetcar arrived in 1907 as an extension of the 14th Street line from Park Road.
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