Evening Star Newspaper, October 4, 1931, Page 86

6 THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, OCTOBER 4, 1931. Old Canal in History of Geéorgetown BY JOHN CLAGETT PROCTOR. HE old canal leading out of George- town looks very sleepy these days; sort of friendless, so to spcak. Rather reminds the wiiter of a certain Sun- day during th> Werld War when the people of Washington we:e requested to leave their automobiles in the garage for one day, in order to cut down on the use of gaso- line that was needed for war purposes, and the request was complied with almost to the maxi- mum, although it left our strects on that par- ticular Sabbath descrted and desolate—just as though everybody had moved out of town. And so the canal seemed to the writer as he recently motored beside its course on the old Canal road as far as the Chain Bridge. It seemed entirely deserted; not a boat to be seen anywhere; everything .quiet and subdued, with not a ripple on the water. Even the birds, once so abundant here, seemed to have aban- doned the place and gone hither to enjoy a more cheerful surrounding. Maybe in a few years—who knows—the old Chesapeake & Ohio Canal will be a thing of the past, perhaps filled in and entirely obliterated, leaving only the memories of bygone days and of its once pic- turesque charm. But then, maybe, as we grow older we become more observant and critical—it would seem that way, at least, for upon this occasion even the majestic Potomac above the Chain Bridge did pot look the same, but rather resembled more Rock Creek in the days we used to go swimming at Big Rock and other places now within the area of the Zoological Park. Of course, there was nothing sirange aho@t its contracted con- dition last year during the drought, but it did seem unusual this Summer, since we have had at least a fair amount of rain to swell its volume. But, after all, this part of Georgetown has undergone unmistakable changes. Even “Holy Hill,” well known to many of our West End residents, has changed considerably, and many of those who lived there half a century ago have gone to the Great Beyond or, if living, have moved elsewhere. OME time ago a friend of the writer's gave him a list containing a few of the names of the early residents of this part of George- town west of Thirty-fifth street to the college wall, which includes Ahern, Addison, Beckett, Birch; Collins, Crawford, Corbett, Cook, Cohan, Callan, Ceaser, Coleman, Cole, Connor, Dono- van, Dailey, Downey, Donahoe, Driscoll, Dyer, Flannagan, Fife, Foley, Findley, Philpott, Gross, QGates, Hogan, Harper, Hurley, Horrigan, Har- rington, Hughes, - Hines, Keady, Jones, Kelley, Keane, Knott, Krouse, Hagerty, Moore, Moul- den, Maher, Murray, Maney, McCauley, Mc- Intyre, McCarthy, McKinley, O'Donoghue, O’Brien, Ofiutt, Polk, Sowthey, Sweeney, Splain, Sullivan and Tracy. . One of the biggest propesty holders west and to the north of the Canal road at the time of the cession of the land for the City of Washington was Gen. James M. Lingan, who by bond of conveyance dated July 15, 1809, transferred to Truman ‘Crown, an irregular size piece of ground bounded on the north by the Reservoir road, on the south by the Canal road, on the east partly by the Ridge road and on the west where the Old road, or Reservoir road, almost come together. Crown, whose full name was Samuel Truman Crown, lost his life in the reconstruction of the Falls Bridge, com- monly called the Chain Bridge, in December, 1812, and three years later we find his widow, Mary Ann Crown—who subsequently married Noah Stinchcomb—itransferring her interest to Walter Smith, who, it appears, was a trustee for the estate of Gen. Lingan, who was killed by a mob in Baltimore in 1812. On July 28, 1858, this tract of land was deeded to Samuel Crown, son of Truman Crown, by William Hunter and his wife, Sally, and here Samuel Crown lived for many years and died in 1879. Is was he who gave the alarm of fire when the Post Office building in E street was burned, December 15, 1836. Thomas Crown, a brother to Truman Crown, built sections 39 and 40 and 47 and 48 of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, which included in all 84 sections. and still later he added an adjoining farm which he secured from Thomas Tillotson and wife, April 1, 1815, the year he sold out the foundry to Gen. John Mason of Analostan Island, who continued to operate the business until the time of his death in 1849. What remains of this old foundry is Jocated between the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal the Potomac River and about half a mile the Aqueduct Bridge. Tradition cannon were made in this™foun Revolutionary War, but history tells us other- wise, and since Mr. Foxall manufacturing war material subsequent to his starting in town in 1801, we are forced to facts, even if it does spoil & beau But Foxall did make cannon and other material here during the war of 1812- he was 50 thankful to the Lord down His fury—including lightning, thunder, rain and wind—upon the British when thew captured Washington in August, 1814, burned the public buildings—thus keeping them from reaching his foundry in Georige= town, which -they would have destroyed—that he erected a church here at the northeast ner of G and Fourteenth streets, which said to have named Foundry OChurch, shough occupying now a different site In elty, is still known by that name. Scenes Along Its Route Suggest Incidents Which Gave Interest to Waterway — The-Foxall Foundry and Sycamore Island Club. Stories of Former Property Owners. Henry Foxall, early Georgetown foundryman, who built Foundry M. E. Church in 1815, The church, for many years, occupied the northeast corner of Fouss teenth and 0 streets novthwest. However the story of the naming of the R. POXALL came to this country abowt 1797 and settled in Philadelphia, where he conducted jointly with Robert Morris, jr., the Eagle Iron Works. When he came to the District of Columbia and opened his foundry 1801 he conducted it alone and its capacity time of 300 heavy guns and 30,000 shot will show that, for its time, it was & of considerable importance. During it existed it is estimated that 10 or 15 thousand guns were turned out and & vast amount of other war material. By some it is said that he never owned siaves; by others, that he did. But he was & devout sort of a man, and the chances are that he did not. However, the especially had a high him_and made him the mayor of 1819 and he served in that office for two or until 1821. There are few men in this world today @8 frank and honest as was Mr. Foxall i 1§} M1 .i il i - | the Government should buy the al: equipped Columbian Foundry, and thus & measure save him from loss, as many man would have done, but that econstruct an entirely new concern, detalls of which he candidly explained, on s own land at Greenleafs Point in the city of Washington, where, indeed, the War Departe ment did eventually erect an ordnance mante 121 ideas together on paper, and give my opinions ot large on the necessity and utility of & national foundry, I think you will agree with me that I have done it like one that had no establishment of the kind of his own, and nof like one who has an establishment of the and who has nearly his all invested in it, this done at the particular request of the Gows ernment, and also that at the time they shal} withdraw their aid and patronage therefrom, it will as a manufactory, with all its expensive machinery, become useless and of little value to me, its proprietor.” the proposition again came up Ml . 1886, when Gen. Mason owned the foune dsy, the Government found it was dealing with @& different man, one who saw things in a dife ferent light. Again Mr. Davis tells uss “He did not propose, if he could help R, to bave his property ruined by the creation of & bew and up-to-date establishment btbem.:Mno‘doubthemm the best policy for the Government g9 would be to create a larger plant upom of the private one already in existe other words, he thought that hif y should be purchased and alered or enlarged to meet the public wants. H$ therefore bestirred himself at once, particue friends in Congress, and sucs his plant for $75,000, and the 10 acres of adjoining land bes to the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal Oq, for the erection of an addition to the manup factory, and this notwithstanding the facl Members and guests at Sycamore Island. Photogroph selen about 1890.