Stephen Powers has helped record and preserve the boundary stones that defined the District of Columbia’s original 10-mile square boundaries.
WASHINGTON, DC — A Virginia man is being praised for helping preserve a piece of American history after a car crash in Southeast Washington, DC, damaged a historic building.
Steven Powers said he got a call from a friend on Saturday morning, April 20, saying a boundary stone was missing near the intersection of Southern Avenue SE and South Capitol Street SE.
Powers said when he arrived on the scene, remnants of the accident were still visible, including the car’s bumper and license plate. The concrete wall protecting the memorial was completely destroyed, and the iron fence surrounding the memorial was also damaged. “The stone itself had been dug up and turned on its side, so we were able to excavate it completely,” Powers told WUSA9.
The amateur historian was able to salvage one of the 36 remaining boundary stones that mark the original 10-mile-by-10-mile boundary of what would eventually become the District of Columbia.
Powers’ work was recognized by the Ward 8 Woods organization, which tweeted photos of the incident.
We were saddened to learn of the loss of SE Boundary Stone #7, which was placed in 1792. This boundary stone is one of 40 (now 37) federal monuments marking the boundaries of the “Territory of Columbia.” Fortunately, engineer and historian Stephen Powers managed to salvage it from the rubble of a car crash. pic.twitter.com/POfms8oDyG
— Ward 8 Woods (@ward8woods) May 28, 2024
The original 40 stones were laid by the Ellicott Brothers in 1791-1792.
The park, on the Arlington-Falls Church city border, is named after one of the brothers, Andrew, and is where WUSA9 met Powers.
“I caught stone fever,” Powers said of her passion project to preserve the nation’s oldest federal monument. Powers said it all started with a project she worked on for her daughter in elementary school nearly 20 years ago.
“We did this presentation,” Powers said, showing a large binder documenting the boundary stones and a poster board that has been turned into a webpage dedicated to the monument.
Powers said through volunteer work they were able to save the 25 iron fences protecting the boundary stones.
Fortunately, he said, the southeast stone was undamaged after being dug out of the ground, and it’s now in the hands of the D.C. Department of Transportation’s (DDOT) division responsible for preserving the neighborhood’s history.
Powers says the most rewarding part of his work on the DC stone monuments is the way it inspires others. “Everybody wants to know where they are and where they come from, so I think that’s where the power of the stone comes from – feeling a true connection to the father of our country, like, ‘Wow, I’m standing in his footsteps.’ It gives you a sense of gratitude for the whole region,” Powers added.
DDOT has not given a timeline for when the boundary stones will be reinstalled.
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