WAR SECRETARY OPPOSES CHANGING NAME TO FRANCIS SCOTT KEY BRIDGE
Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) On August 5, 1922, the Evening Star reports that Secretary of War John W. Weeks opposes changing the name of the new bridge crossing the Potomac River from Georgetown Bridge to Francis Scott Key Bridge*.
The Secretary, who has jurisdiction in the matter, had been asked by Representative Julius Kahn** (R-California) of the House Committee on Military Affairs to report on a joint resolution calling for the name change.
Secretary Weeks says that the Congress in making appropriation for construction of the bridge in June 1920 stipulated the name of the bridge should be 'the Georgetown bridge.'
*Francis Scott Key Bridge, a.k.a. Key Bridge crosses the Potomac River between Georgetown & Arlington County, Virginia. It is Washington's oldest surviving road bridge spanning the Potomac.
The Army Corps of Engineers named the bridge on June 1 1916 in honor of Francis Scott Key whose home is nearby. FSKB opened on Jan 17 1923. Construction costs totaled $2.35 million.
**Julius Kahn (1861-1924) was born in Kuppenheim, Germany & served in the U.S. House of Representatives 1899-1903 & 1905-1924. JK was an advocate of military preparedness.
SOURCE
"Weeks Disapproves Of Changing Name of Georgetown Bridge," The Evening Star, Washington, D.C., August 5, 1922, Chronicling America, Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/
