Ivy City | |
|---|---|
Neighborhood | |
 Ivy City Roundhouse, Washington, D.C., 1977 | |
 Ivy City within the District of Columbia | |
| Coordinates: 38°54′36″N 76°59′30″W / 38.9099°N 76.9917°W | |
| Country | United States |
| Territory | Washington, D.C. |
| Constructed | 1873 |
Ivy City is a small neighborhood in Northeast Washington, D.C., in the United States. About half the neighborhood is industrial or formerly industrial, dominated by warehouses. The Ivy City Yard, a railroad coach yard and maintenance facility for the passenger railroad Amtrak, is situated northwest across New York Avenue NE.
Ivy City was laid out as a suburban development for African Americans in 1873. Development was slow. From 1879 to 1901, the neighborhood hosted the Ivy City Racetrack, a horse racing facility. Construction on the rail yard began in 1907 and was complete within a year; many of its facilities were demolished in 1953 and 1954 as railroads switched from coal-fired locomotives to diesel-fueled or electric engines. The Alexander Crummell School, a community focal point, opened in 1911. After some years of enrollment decline, it closed in 1972 but has not been demolished.
In the 21st century, the area has undergone some gentrification, although people living in the residential core of Ivy City remain very poor and unemployment is high.