Communities are Built for Government

Why would location be important in choosing where to build a capital city?

Unit 2 Lesson 6

Potomac River The early leaders of

the U.S. wanted to create a city where laws would be made.

The people of Virginia and Maryland gave the U.S. some land along the Potomac River so that this new city could be built.

Capital City The capital city was

the place where the leaders of the country wanted to meet and work.

George Washington rode along the riverbank of the Potomac River to try and find a good place to build the capital city.

Washington, D.C. George Washington chose

an area with low wetlands and woods for the new capital.

It was halfway between Vermont and Georgia, which was right in the middle of the United States in 1791.

Pros: Lawmakers from all over the country could easily get to the capital.

Cons: The place was a swamp. It was hot and there were mosquitoes.

Andrew Ellicott and Benjamin Banneker Andrew Ellicott and

Benjamin Banneker were clock makers who measured the land.

Thomas Jefferson told George Washington that Banneker would be a good person to help mark where the streets of Washington, D.C. would go.

Pierre L’Enfant Pierre L’Enfant used

the measurements of Andrew Ellicott and Benjamin Banneker to plan the city’s streets and buildings.

Capitol The capitol was the

building where the lawmakers met.

It was the first thing built in Washington, D.C.

Today, the capital city of every state has a capitol building.

State Capital A state capital is a city

where lawmakers meet to make laws for a state.

The U.S. has one capital city for the whole country. There are 50 state capitals, one for each of the 50 states in the U.S.

The symbol of a star represents a state capital.

The symbol of a star in a circle represents the nation’s capital (Washington, D.C>)

Sacramento, California A city does not have

to be the biggest in the state to be the state capital.

Sacramento is the capital of California.

County A part of a state is

called a county.

County Seat A county seat is a

city or town where county leaders meet.

Juneau, Alaska Juneau, Alaska is one

of the hardest state capitals to reach because no roads lead to it.

Lawmakers get there by airplane or boat.

It was chosen because it is near a resource – gold.

Borders and Boundaries Borders are the lines

on a map that show where one country or state ends and another begins.

Borders are also called boundaries.