Kenilworth Real Estate | DC
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Kenilworth Features & Housing
Kenilworth may be best known for Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens. They grew from the fascination of W.B. Shaw, a Civil War veteran, turned one-armed Treasury copy writer, with water lilies. Having purchased a large plot in what would become Kenilworth, he was known to have dug numerous ponds out of the marshland to accommodate his hobby, which shortly turned into a full-scale business. The gardens are known especially for their lotus flowers, able to survive because the ponds do not freeze to the floor in winter.
In Kenilworth's early days, single-family housing options consisted primarily of modest Colonials, Cape Cods, and bungalows, but most notable in the neighborhood are multi-family dwellings. Kenilworth Courts and its sister development, Parkside, were opened in the late 1950's and early 1960's to accommodate the continuing population increase. They were sturdily built garden style apartments, containing up to four bedrooms for larger families, and became known as the first public housing project sold to its residents.
Kenilworth Origins
Kenilworth was originally a tract of farmland in what was once the town of Benning, named for prominent planter and alleged former sea pirate, William Benning. The land was purchased by Allen Mallery in 1895 and named Kenilworth for the eponymous novel his wife had just read, chronicling the events at Kenilworth Castle in Elizabethan England. Kenilworth was platted and sold, eventually becoming popular among families with ties to the district who sought inexpensive land on which to build modest homes.
Kenilworth Transit & Location
Kenilworth has no Metro Station, however, Deanwood Metro Station on the Orange and Silver Lines is located just outside the Kenilworth border. The Anacostia Fwy (I-295) runs along the south eastern border of Kenilworth, enabling residents easy access into Washington city center, and quick access outside the District of Columbia to Maryland.
Kenilworth is bounded by Anacostia Ave NE to the north and west, Anacostia Fwy to the east, and Nash St NE to the south.