"a magnificent waterfront entranceway…"

"a magnificent waterfront entranceway…". .

"a magnificent waterfront entranceway…" , Pierre Charles L'Enfant , architect of the Nation's Capital City, describing the Southwest Waterfront to President George Washington

, Situated at the confluence of the Potomac and Anacostia rivers, the area known as Southwest was populated by Native Americans long before its written history was first recorded when Captain John Smith mapped the area in 1608. When the District was established in 1791, the area was still rural and largely occupied by the extensive plantations of landholders Daniel Carroll and Duddington and Notley Young. , , Under the direction of President George Washington, who envisioned the federal city as both a political capital and a maritime center, Pierre Chalres L'Enfant drafted plans for the Federal City of Washington and recognized the area's potential to be developed into a major inland seaport by incorporating a maritime community along the shoreline, calling it "a magnificent waterfront entranceway." , , The Southwest Waterfront has been continuously used as a commercial wharf since the early 1800s, and was a prominent point of arrival for goods and materials used by the growing federal city, home to municipal piers, ice and coal docks, and fish and coastal steamship wharves. More recently, this Potomac Riverfront, the SW ArtsFest, and the holiday boat Parade of Lights, and has served as an ideal location for celebratory fireworks on many occasions. , , The views from the Southwest Waterfront during the blooming beloved cherry blossoms are unrivaled, having attracted the likes of President Wilson and Eleanor Roosevelt, and continue to draw large crowds today.