The Widow's Mite Lofts are located in the Sheridan-Kalorama neighborhood in northwest Washington. Now a peaceful enclave in the middle of metropolitan DC, the Kalorama area was primarily rural until the end of the 19th century. In 1795, Gustavus Scott, a city commissioner, purchased a portion of Anthony Holmead's “Widow’s Mite” holdings and began development in the area. In 1807, a poet named Joel Barlow bought a property at 23rd and S Streets and renamed it "Kalorama", after the Greek “fine view”. The Sheridan-Kalorama neighborhood began to take shape around this property in the early 1880s as the area was subdivided for urban development and has become a popular choice among diplomats and senior government officials. In 1893 Congress ordered L'Enfant's famous design for the city of Washington extended out to the rest of the District, but existing developments were exempted, which is why Kalorama is one of the few sections of DC that doesn’t follow the city's grid system.

Three Presidents (Harding, Hoover, and Franklin Roosevelt) have called the neighborhood home at some point during their public service lives. In addition, Woodrow Wilson chose the neighborhood for his home after vacating 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. His house at 2340 S Street (pictured above) is now a national historic landmark and museum. Other notable current or past Kalorama residents include U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy, former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, and historian Elizabeth Eisenstein.

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