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ALEXANDRIA, Va. — On this day in 1929, the U.S. government announced plans to construct the George Washington Memorial Parkway from the nation's capital southward to Mount Vernon.
The roadway was first proposed by Alexandrian M. B. Harlow around 1907 and described at the time as "the Appian Way and Westminster Abbey combined" — an apparent reference to the Long Island Motor Parkway, often called a modern Appian Way as America's first roadway built specifically for motorized vehicles.
Twenty years after Harlow's proposal, the new Virginia parkway would draw on the design aesthetic pioneered by master builder Robert Moses, the New York State Parks Commissioner, who had linked Long Island's state parks to New York City through a series of scenic, park-like highway corridors.
The parkway opened in time for George Washington's 200th birthday celebration in 1932. Today the corridor remains the principal scenic route along Alexandria's waterfront.
Four years after the parkway's announcement, on June 29, 1933, Alexandria City Council repealed the city's Prohibition laws.
As the country moved to end Prohibition and the city saw fine revenue decrease, the council repealed its local laws against alcohol, though offenders could still be prosecuted under state law.
The federal repeal of Prohibition would follow that December with the ratification of the 21st Amendment.
