History of Washington, D.C.
Georgetown was established in 1751 when the Maryland legislature purchased sixty acres of land for the town from George Gordon and George Beall at the price of £280, while Alexandria, Virginia was founded in 1749. Situated on the fall line, Georgetown was the farthest point upstream to which oceangoing boats could navigate the Potomac River. The strong flow of the Potomac kept a navigable channel clear year-round; and, the daily tidal lift of the Chesapeake Bay, raised the Potomac's elevation in its lower reach; such that fully laden ocean-going ships could navigate easily, all the way to the Bay. Gordon had constructed a tobacco inspection house along the Potomac in approximately 1745. Warehouses, wharves, and other buildings were added, and the settlement rapidly grew. The Old Stone House, located in Georgetown, was built in 1765 and is the oldest standing building in the District. It did not take long before Georgetown grew into a thriving port, facilitating trade and shipments of tobacco and other goods from colonial Maryland. With the economic and population growth of Georgetown came also the founding of Georgetown University in 1789, at its founding drawing students from as far away as the West Indies.
Georgetown, Seattle
The unincorporated community was named Georgetown by Julius Horton, after his son, in 1890. In 1890 a County Poor Farm was established along the Duwamish in the southern part of Georgetown. In 1893 Seattle streetcar service came to Georgetown and the King County Hospital was built near the corner of Orcas Street and Corson Avenue, east of the Poor Farm. In 1898 Georgetown's first local school was established. In 1902 the Seattle-Tacoma interurban line came through Georgetown, which became the site of its car barns. In 1906 the Georgetown Steam Plant brought electric power to Georgetown as well as providing power for Seattle streetcars and the Seattle-Tacoma interurban line.