Research Topics

When it comes to the development of Washington D.C. there are many interesting topics to choose from, I have chosen three to focus on for my research paper. I believe that they will help understand the rich history of Washington D.C.

The first I would like to examine the rise and fall of the Red Light District within Washington D.C.  I believe that this is an important in understanding the history of D.C. because red light districts existed within virtually all major cities until being deemed illegal and they lead to an interesting insight into the thought process of an era, as well as providing an insight into the lives of a people who are generally ignored in the history texts.  One of the first steps to researching this topic would be to go and look up a general history of Red Light Districts across the country since they all served the same purpose and see what has become of them now.  Another initial research step I could take would be to look up the location of the former red light district within D.C. and then go to the national archives to look for photographs, or newspapers detailing their closing. A search through the GMU Library databases could also yield important results.

The next topic I would like to look into would be the architectural style of the buildings within D.C. and why their certain styles were chosen. This is an important topic because the buildings within a city, especially their architecture, are what give a city it’s feel and define it’s character. It would also be interesting to see a change in the design style in buildings that were built at different times in the history of the city.  A good place to start with this research would be by looking at photographs, or illustrations of the buildings when they are recently completed to see how they fit into the city at the time. Another research topic that would be good to look for would be to look at architectural styles that were popular at the time the building was constructed, and to find cities with similar architecture and see what they are trying to represent.

Finally, I would like to research why architects and city planners chose the locations for the monuments of D.C. This will show insight into D.C. because the monuments, especially the Lincoln, Washington are land marks of the city that people from around the globe recognize. I also think that this would be a worthwhile topic because the national mall was not always the monumental center of the city, and it will be interesting to learn the motivation behind it.  To start researching this topic I should look up articles in newspapers, and reports on the development and building of the monument. One more useful way to begin research would be to look up who created the monuments and then look to see if they made any statements on their placement.

All of these topics could lead to an interesting and insightful history of the Washington D.C. area and will lead to a side of the city not often explored.