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Thomas Circle
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Thomas Circle is a traffic circle in the northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C., at the junction of Massachusetts Avenue, Vermont Avenue, 14th Street, and M Street, N.W.
The through lanes of Massachusetts Avenue pass under Thomas Circle. The service lanes of Massachusetts Avenue intersected the circle until the redevelopment from 2005–2006. The circle itself had inner and outer roadways, both going counterclockwise; the inner roadway was reserved for 14th Street traffic.
A statue of General George Henry Thomas by John Quincy Adams Ward was erected in Thomas Circle in 1879. The circle is considered to mark the boundary between the downtown section of 14th Street and the emerging 14th Street gay neighborhood.
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Thomas Circle was originally implemented as a true traffic circle. Later, 14th Street was extended through the circle to increase traffic flow. In December 1938, construction began on the Massachusetts Avenue underpass; it opened for traffic on March 14, 1940.
In 2006, the D.C. Department of Transportation completed a $6 million restoration of the circle. The restoration includes the addition of bike lanes, pedestrian crosswalks mid-circle (which didn't exist before), new in-circle traffic lights, better street lighting, and new sidewalks and landscaping. [1]
In 2007, artists Mark Jenkins and Sandra Fernandez turned the circle temporarily into a Merry-Go-Round. [2]
 Thomas Circle, 1906 |
 Thomas Circle, 1943 |
 Thomas Circle as it appeared in the 1908 DC Telephone Directory. |
 Statue of General Thomas in Thomas Circle |
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