| Eastern Avenue NW, Eastern Avenue NE | |
 Interactive map of Eastern Avenue | |
| Owner | District of Columbia,Montgomery County, andPrince George's County |
|---|---|
| Maintained by | DDOT,MCDOT,PGC DPW&T |
| Location | Northwest andNortheast,Washington, DC andMontgomery andPrince George's counties |
| Nearest metro station | Takoma andDeanwood |
| Coordinates | 38°58′29.2″N77°0′50.2″W / 38.974778°N 77.013944°W /38.974778; -77.013944 |
| West end |   MD 384 /MD 390 /Blair Circle |
| Major junctions |  US 29 (Georgia Avenue) MD 650 (New Hampshire Avenue) MD 500 / Michigan Avenue NE US 1 (Rhode Island Avenue) US 1 Alt. (Bladensburg Road) MD 295 (Anacostia Freeway) MD 704 / 63rd Street SE |
| East end | Southern Avenue SE |
Eastern Avenue is one of three boundary streets betweenWashington, D.C., and the state ofMaryland. It follows a northwest-to-southeast line, beginning at the intersection of16th Street NW (a north-south street in theDistrict of Columbia) and Colesville Road (a street inMontgomery County in the state ofMaryland). It intersects with Blair Road NW, and ceases to exist for about 1,000 feet (300 m). Another interruption occurs at Cedar Street NW. A 3,000-foot (910 m) interruption occurs again at Galloway Street NE, where the park land of the North Michigan Park Recreation Center exists. It continues without interruption until it reaches Bladensburg Road NE. There is a 1.8-mile (2.9 km) interruption in the avenue alongFort Lincoln Cemetery. The avenue has no crossing overNew York Avenue NE or theAnacostia River, or throughAnacostia Park. It resumes at Kenilworth Avenue NE, with its terminus at its junction withSouthern Avenue.
Several historic or important buildings are located on Eastern Avenue, and a number of important people once lived on the street. Eastern Avenue forms one of the borders of theDeanwood neighborhood in the District of Columbia,[1] a historicAfrican American community. Several historically important Deanwood-area churches and schools are located on Eastern Avenue.[2]William Pittman, one of the United States' first African Americanarchitects and a son-in-law ofBooker T. Washington, lived on Eastern Avenue.[3] TheLucinda Cady House (also known as the Cady-Lee House), located at 7064 Eastern Avenue NW, is a restoredQueen Anne-Victorian style home built in 1887 which is listed on theNational Register of Historic Places.[4] The headquarters of themissionary arm and the relief agency of the worldwideSeventh-day Adventist Church were once located at 6840 Eastern Avenue NW.[5]
Eastern Avenue bridges theAnacostia Freeway after its junction with Kenilworth Avenue. The Eastern Avenue Bridge has a clearance of 14 feet (4.3 m), andsemi-trailer trucks have struck the bridge numerous times.[6] In November 2009, the District of Columbia announced that it would spend $10.4 million instimulus funds to replace the bridge with a newprecast, 16-foot (4.9 m) high bridge to address these safety concerns.[6]
Eastern Avenue appears in several works ofcrime fiction, because of the higher rate of crime in some of the neighborhoods through which it passes. It is significantly featured in Jim Beame's2006 short crime story, "Jeannette."[7] Noted Washington, D.C., crime authorGeorge Pelecanos used it as a location in his 1996 novelThe Big Blowdown,[8] and so didMontana-born authorJames Grady in his2007 novel,Mad Dogs.[9]