Trinidad, Washington, D.C.

Map of Washington, D.C., with Trinidad highlighted in red

Trinidad is a neighborhood located in Ward 5, in the northeast quadrant of Washington, D.C. and is a largely residential area.

Geography

Trinidad is bounded to the north by Mt. Olivet Road, to the west by West Virginia Avenue, to the south by Florida Avenue, and to the east by Bladensburg Road. To the north of Trinidad is the more industrial (and impoverished) neighborhood Ivy City. To the west is Gallaudet University and the Florida Market (D.C.'s wholesale food district, also called the Capital City Market). To the east lies Carver Langston. To the south of Trinidad is Old City, so named because it was part of Pierre L'Enfant's original plan for the city, and generally referred to as either Near Northeast or Capitol Hill North. Located immediately south of Trinidad, is the H Street Corridor. The eastern portion of the H Street Corridor is sometimes referred to as the Atlas District, part of a neighborhood branding campaign centered around the revitalized Atlas Theater, now called the Atlas Performing Arts Center.

History

The name Trinidad is believed to come from a former owner of the land who lived on the island nation of Trinidad and planned to relocate here but who died before he could fulfill his plan.

The land passed to and from the Corcoran family who used it as a country estate, to Columbian College, which later became George Washington University, and then to the Washington Brick Machine Company. The brickworks intended to excavate clay from the land, but not needing all of the land, began selling off parcels, and, in the late 19th century, the first houses in southern Trinidad were built.

Crime

Significant amounts of crime have been in Trinidad since the 1970s. In 2007 and 2008 gun violence plagued the neighborhood, resulting in police checkpoints to get in and out of the area. Like many other eastern portions of the city, Trinidad has not experienced gentrification yet.

Architecture

Many of the row houses are built in a flat porch-fronted style (similar to craftsman style) that gained popularity during the 1920s. Northern portions of Trinidad were developed later, some parts as late as the 1940s.

Education

Wheatley Education Campus

Wheatley Education Campus is a school that serves grades PK-8 in the District of Columbia Public Schools. It is located at 1375 Mount Olivet Road NE.

Browne Education Campus

Browne Education Campus is a school that serves grades PK-8 in the District of Columbia Public Schools. It is located at 850 26th Street NE. President and Mrs Obama marked Martin Luther King Day by joining community service at the Campus in January 2012.

Joel Elias Spingarn Senior High School

Joel Elias Spingarn Senior High School is designed to provide a 9-12 grade standards-based instructional continuum which serves as a basic foundation for the future acquisition of skills and knowledge at the post secondary level, enabling each student to function as a responsible, global citizen. It is located at 2500 Benning Road NE.

Gallaudet University

Gallaudet University is a federally chartered university for the education of the deaf and hard of hearing, located in Washington, D.C. It is located at 800 Florida Avenue NE.

Landmarks

United States National Arboretum

The United States National Arboretum is located on the east side of the Trinidad neighborhood, with entrances on New York Avenue and R Street.

The United States National Arboretum is an arboretum in Washington, D.C., operated by the United States Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service as a division of the Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center. It was established in 1927 by an act of Congress after a campaign by USDA Chief Botanist Frederick Vernon Coville.

Transportation

Washington Metro

Trinidad is served by the NoMa – Gallaudet University station on the Red Line of the Washington Metro.

MetroBus

Trinidad is served by the D1, D3, D4, D8, X3, and B2 bus services of the MetroBus.

Annual Neighborhood Events

Annual Trinidad Day

The Trinidad Neighborhood Committee holds the Annual Trinidad Day every August at the Trinidad Recreation Center to celebrate the community and embrace the youth.

External links

• Trinidad Neighborhood Association Official website of Trinidad Neighborhood Association
• Frozen Tropics A local blog with neighborhood info