i questioned whether or not the bones there are peter l'enfant. [laughter] i have attempted and now that i'm going to retire, people say, what are you going to do? well, i'm going to find out whether l'enfant's grave holds the bones of an enslaved african american. thank you very much. [applause] >> we do have time for a couple of questions. we are going to do the still donahue style. raise your hand and i will come around to you with the microphone. >> if l'enfant quit in the commissioners are still there, whose plan is washington built around? >> l'enfant's plan was laid out in the 1790's, the big streets. not to be able to march armies to control the people. people say did's l'enfant design washington after paris? the question is whether paris was designed after l'enfant's plan. the paris we know was not designed until the 1850's. the streets and circles, that was all on the ground, put no money was appropriated to do anything with the public squares for public things other than minimal. when the a.i.a. this going, i'm sorry, when the republica

was chosen, and the figures that shaped the city's creation, and the plan that architect peter charles l'enfant presented to president george washington in 1791. this is about one hour. >> i don't have any visuals and i could claim that is because i do not know how to do it, but the truth is i never know what i am going to say and how i am going to say it until i get here. at so, i hope you will forgive me for the lack of visuals.

location was chosen and the figures that shaped the city's creation, and the plan that architect peter charles l'enfant presented to president george washington in 1791. this is about one hour. >> i don't have any visuals

was chosen, and the figures that shaped the city's creation, and the plan that architect peter charles l'enfant presented to president george washington in 1791. this is about one hour. >> i don't have any visuals and i could claim that is because i do not know how to do it, but the truth is i never know what i am going to say and how i am going to say it until i get here. at so, i hope you will forgive me for the lack of visuals. my title is dreams, nightmares, and reflections. i will start with earlier than 1783. i will start with the beginning of european explorations, the early part of the 17th century so it is going to be almost a 200-year dream, but it will go fast, as i want to concentrate on what happened once the dream was realized. in 1607, john smith entered the seven-mile wide mouth of the potomac river and headed north. whether he got this far north, we are actually not certain, but people living here, algonquin peoples called the place pe tomek. it translates to something like the place where something is brought, a training place, a place to which tribute is brought. it was a bea