Introduction
With its main street, town square and distinct boundaries, Mount Pleasant still feels like the village it once was. Although over time Mount Pleasant has experienced the same changes that have remade dozens of DC neighborhoods, dedicated residents have been more successful than most in preserving its village character. Just after the Civil War (1861–1865), a group of New Englanders attracted to the hilly, sylvan area—then well outside the city—built wooden houses on large lots. The original settlement stretched between today’s 17th and 14th streets, and eventually extended as far east as Seventh Street. Villagers kept cows and chickens and raised some of their own food. They purchased other supplies from a handful of stores at the commercial center, where Park Road met 14th Street. Beyond the village limits lay several large estates, farms and woodlands, and a string of mills on Rock Creek.
Crossing Rock Creek at the Klingle Rd. ford, around 1915.
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