When colonists arrived in the area more than 250 years ago, Georgian architecture was the most common house style. Named for Great Britain’s King George, Georgian homes are symmetrical, with flat-fronted, relatively non-ornamental facades and gable roofs.

“That’s what most people think of when they think of a house. They draw a box [with] the triangle on top. That’s a gable roof,” said Joe Himali, a licensed real estate broker and architecture influencer who leads walking tours in the District. “It is very popular in our area, and you’ll see that specifically in Georgetown. You’ll see it also on Capitol Hill.”

After the American Revolution, however, Georgian became an undesirable name. With the Federal Party in control of the U.S. government, the style became known as Federal. Similar to Georgian architecture, Federal homes were lighter and slightly more decorative.

“The most important difference between Federal and Georgian is generally the front door,” Himali said. “You’ll have what’s called a fanlight, or a window above the door that’s sort of a half arch.”

Federal homes also typically featured sidelights, narrow windows on either side of the front door.

Today, both Georgian and Federal homes are often referred to as Colonial.

“If you’re looking in Northwest D.C., and you see these houses in American University Park, they call them Center Hall Colonials,” Himali said. “That’s actually generally a Georgian or Federal style house, but we just don’t call it that anymore.”

After the Federal style came the Greek Revival movement, which tied back to the earliest democracy. The goal was to connect the history of the new nation to ancient cultures as a way to legitimize the U.S. governmental structure. Greek Revival homes are symmetrical and often white, with large front columns.

One hallmark characteristic of Greek Revival architecture can be seen at the Supreme Court and National Archives buildings.

“Above the columns, there will be a big triangle,” Himali said. “That is called a pediment, and that pediment is a major style choice with the Greek Revival.”

Another detail is dentil molding, small blocks resembling teeth beneath the roofline.

The Industrial Revolution helped usher in Victorian architecture, known for elaborate and decorative elements. Unique curves and shapes could now be machine-made rather than crafted by hand.

“It sort of took a mishmash of different things and mixed it all together in a big pot, and came up with these crazy architectural styles,” Himali said. “Turrets sticking out, conical roofs, and asymmetrical shapes. The front doors on the left, a big tower on the right, and these weird windows all over the place.”

Victorian homes were generally larger houses for the upper middle class. Several styles fall under the Victorian umbrella, including Queen Anne, Italianate and Second Empire.

Himali said his favorite is Romanesque Revival, which features a Roman arch surrounded by short columns. One example is the Heurich House Museum in Dupont Circle.

“[It’s] very dark and brooding, but it’s just exuberant on the inside,” Himali said.

The pendulum later swung back toward the Arts and Crafts movement, which emphasized humanity and imperfection in construction. Homes featured exposed natural wood, color, increased light and stronger connections to nature. A popular Craftsman home type was the bungalow, found in Northeast and Southeast Washington.

After World War I, Americans were feeling optimistic, fueling the Art Deco movement. New materials such as stainless steel and chrome symbolized modernity during the machine age. Two well-known Art Deco buildings in Washington are the Kennedy-Warren Apartment Building and the Greyhound bus terminal.

“You’ll see a lot of this machine-look stainless steel,” Himali said. “Sleek lines and then very angular.”

Modernism arrived after World War II and is now commonly referred to as Mid-Century Modern. The movement aimed to strip away decoration in favor of a more egalitarian approach. International Style buildings often featured rows of concrete and glass windows.

“This is also where you get the term ‘form follows function’ or ‘less is more,’” Himali said. “[It’s] almost a socialist point of view, that we don’t need ornamentation.”

But criticism of Mid-Century Modern’s strict, machine-like appearance led to Postmodernism, which reintroduced bold shapes and colors and encouraged homeowners to express personality through design.

“We don’t need to have square walls with 90-degree angles,” Himali said. “Let’s do 30-degree angles, and we’ll drop the ceilings to eight feet, and we’ll popcorn ceilings up.”

Today, architecture in Washington often blends historic character with modern design elements, including high ceilings, open floor plans and large windows. The city stands out for its range of home styles, reflecting centuries of changing tastes and technologies.

To book a walking tour with Himali, visit .

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In May 2025, water from a broken pipe caused significant damage at the Cambridge, Maryland, museum, destroying parts of the exhibits. Linda Harris, director of events and programming at the museum, said they were processing the insurance claim when an anonymous donor stepped in to help.

“Something miraculous happened. I had a foundation that followed me on Facebook and said, ‘We want to help you,’” Harris said. “I thought this is a time to just do this thing completely differently.”

After visiting other museums to get ideas, she realized they needed more movement, lights and sound, especially to engage younger visitors. Eventually, you’ll be greeted by a life-sized hologram of Tubman standing near the entrance to welcome you inside. The museum walls are now covered in eight murals representing Tubman’s life, with plans to add narration and music.

“The music is important because it’s the music that started at the belly of slave ships. It’s the sound that evolved into the modern music we know now,” Harris said.

Tubman was born in Dorchester County in 1822 and was one of nine children who developed a deep knowledge of the outdoors. She made about 13 rescue missions and helped approximately 70 enslaved people escape.

“It’s [a] rich, powerful history,” Harris said. “And it needs to be told the right way.”

Not only did Tubman fight in the Civil War, serving as a scout and spy for the Union Army, she also helped lead a military raid that freed hundreds of enslaved people. She later worked with Susan B. Anthony and other suffragists, speaking publicly about freedom and women’s rights.

“What made this part of the Eastern Shore, even the state of Maryland, insanely wealthy was slavery and that story has to be told,” Harris said. “We have to understand what happened, why it happened and how my ancestors built this country.”

The museum will reopen on June 13, although work will continue throughout the summer.

“Come and visit us here. You will find who you are. And my mantra in life is [to] find the Harriet in you,” Harris said. “Think about her courage, resilience, community, self love. If you espouse those virtues, it makes you a pretty incredible human being.”

Learn more about the Harriet Tubman Museum and Educational Center on .

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Once again, children in Prince George’s County, Maryland, can get free meals all summer. The goal is to bridge the food insecurity gap that occurs when school is out.

Third grader Shan Pomero understands the importance of eating a nutritious meal.

“It helps your bones have more durability [and] muscles getting stronger. It helps you increase your life, you get more energy,” Pomero said. “And your mind opens up into a whole new level.”

On Wednesday, the school district teamed up with the Washington Mystics and the American Dairy Association to host a “Countdown to Summer Meals” celebration at Bladensburg Elementary School. Mary Kirkland, director of food and nutrition services for Prince George’s County Public Schools, said they want to make sure students stay nourished, full and healthy after the school year ends.

“During the school year, the meal that they get is sometimes the meal that they get for the day,” Kirkland said. “We’re trying to make sure that we bridge that gap between the school year and the summer until students come back, ensuring that our students stay healthy and they stay nourished to have all the fun they want to have in the summer.”

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Breakfast and lunch will be served at schools, churches and libraries. They’re also partnering with Parks and Recreation to serve students in those summer programs. According to Feeding America, 1 in 6 children in Maryland faces hunger.

Christy Winters Scott, color analyst for the Washington Mystics, reminded the kids that it’s OK to need help. The mother of three said kids need to be safe, fed and warm.

“You don’t have to be embarrassed or shy about wanting or needing the basics,” Winters Scott said. “It’s hard times out here financially for a lot of families. So I want them to know that they can be themselves. We have open, loving arms over here and we’re ready to embrace you and we’re ready to feed you.”

The meals program is open to anyone 18 years old and younger or anyone 21 and under with a disability. You don’t need to register or fill out paperwork. Text the word “FOOD” to 877877 to find a meal site near you. You can also call 211 or visit the Maryland Department of Education .

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“We bring together people to build homes, communities, and hope,” said Adrienne Goolsby, senior vice president of U.S. and Canada at Habitat for Humanity International.

Decades ago, on a community farm in Georgia, Millard and Linda Fuller developed the concept of “partnership housing,” which eventually grew into Habitat for Humanity. It was founded as a Christian-based organization seeking to put God’s love into action and help those in need of adequate shelter.

“We are building on the legacy of what home ownership really means to our families,” Goolsby said.

Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, the former U.S. president and first lady, worked with Habitat alongside the Fullers and shared similar values. They continued their partnership for more than three decades. Through the Carter Work Project, they helped build or repair more than 4,000 homes in 14 countries and raised awareness about housing affordability.

“They are our most famous volunteers and also very beloved,” Goolsby said. “[They] rallied hundreds of volunteers, supporters, entertainers, celebrities to the mission and actually made Habitat for Humanity known internationally.”

Habitat for Humanity is best known for its work in home construction, where volunteers and homebuyers build homes side-by-side. Homebuyers also receive financial education to learn how to budget and manage their mortgages. A common myth is that Habitat gives away houses. Actually, homebuyers obtain an affordable mortgage, often with no interest and payments based on their income. Goolsby said it’s a magical moment when you hand over the house keys to a homeowner or family.

“They are truly proud, elated, and in love,” she said. “They’re in love with all of the support that they receive when opening up the door to that home.”

Another core mission is revitalizing neighborhoods by working with local organizations and residents to understand what each community wants and needs.

“How they want to see their community grow and how they want their neighborhood to address unique challenges and opportunities,” she said. “It is the community coming together and we are facilitators.”

Through advocacy, Habitat has influenced hundreds of policy changes at the local, state, and federal levels for housing affordability. That includes increasing the supply of homes for people of all backgrounds and making sure they can live there long term.

“What does that mean to preserve, permanently, housing that’s going to be for all people?” Goolsby said. “What does that look like when we truly do have a mixed-income community where families can thrive and live together and work in harmony? We advocate for that.”

After natural disasters, civil unrest, or war, Habitat helps communities recover through shelter assistance, training, and education.

“After the disaster is long gone, we’re there for the next five to 10 years, helping to rebuild that community,” Goolsby said.

Habitat has launched a major campaign for its 50th anniversary called “Let’s Open the Door.” Across 60 countries, it is installing symbolic doors that are also original works of art by local artists. These pop-up events are meant to spark conversations about why homes matter and how opening doors creates possibilities. One event was held on the National Mall in Washington D.C.

“Let’s open the door to hope,” Goolsby said. “We believe that Habitat for Humanity has opened the doors to all types of opportunities around the world.”

You can also make a donation to design your own digital door. To learn more about Habitat for Humanity, .

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The podcast’s focus, Alvaro Bedoya said, is “not left versus right or Democrat versus Republican. It’s about the money at the top versus all of us underneath. And we want that to be a fair fight.”

Bedoya and traveled the country meeting business owners, union leaders and working people.

“This is what really brought to life the actual ‘why’ of the job, the actual conflicts in the job and the morality of the job,” he said.

When Trump returned to office, Bedoya was one of two remaining Democratic commissioners at the Federal Trade Commission, which is an independent agency. And his term was not over.

“He ignored the rules and he went ahead and ,” Bedoya said. “I formally resigned in June of last year, although our Supreme Court case is still pending.”

With a desire to share his knowledge and expertise, the Montgomery County lawyer has started a podcast called “.” His co-host, Max M. Miller, was Bedoya’s right-hand man as attorney adviser for competition at the FTC.

Guests on the show come from completely different backgrounds and quickly learn how much they have in common. In one episode, an American corn and soybean farmer met an immigrant New York City ride-share driver.

“They were both basically on the brink of bankruptcy because of higher gas or fertilizer prices caused by the Iran war,” Bedoya said.

Another episode brought together a long-haul trucker and a Subway franchise owner.

“The companies above them, whether it’s a franchise or the trucking company, tell them what to do,” Bedoya said. “They were also talking about how they were fighting back, how they were organizing, how they were working with other truckers or other franchisees to push back. So above all else, I think it’s important that people hear that, and people see the heart of this work.”

Listeners also get practical advice. For example, one episode featured a pediatrician giving recommendations about social media and children.

Bedoya said he’s enjoying connecting with people in a different way, while still fighting against corporate power and what he sees as an unfair economy.

“Getting illegally removed from my office was not something I would wish on anyone,” he said. “But there is a silver lining.”

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For decades, Americans could browse a catalog, choose a home and order it by mail.

Sears, Roebuck and Company was a prominent manufacturer of mail-order homes. The company sold about 70,000 to 75,000 homes from 1908 to 1940, according to the Sears Archives. Its catalogs offered more than 400 different house styles and the listed prices could range from around $200 to $6,000. Customers even had the option of designing their own home and submitting the blueprint to Sears.

“There are quite a few [Sears houses] in the D.C. area,” said Judith Chabot, who runs the blog

Judith Chabot is part of a team of researchers documenting Sears houses, mostly on the East Coast and in the Midwest. Her interest was sparked after learning her mother grew up in one in Massachusetts, and she’s spent roughly the past decade finding others.

“We don’t know why exactly we love this search so much, but one of our researchers called it a big map treasure hunt,” Chabot said. “It’s kind of like birding also, like, ‘Oh my gosh, I found an Avalon!’ or ‘Oh, I found a Wesley!’ and then you check that one off your list.”

The Aladdin Company and Montgomery Ward were other major kit home producers. Pre-cut materials, supplies and instructions would arrive via train, then friends or contractors could help assemble the house. The process was supposed to save time and money, plus cut down on waste.

Sears houses came in an array of styles, from simple cottages to big Antebellums. They also featured modern conveniences, including indoor plumbing, central heating, and electricity.

A 1928 Sears catalog included “The Fullerton,” a two-story home with six rooms and a big porch for about $2,000, “The Selby,” a one-story home with two bedrooms and one bathroom for about $600 and dozens of options in between. Chabot said the catalogs also published testimonials from homeowners.

“They’d send in a photo of their house and then they’d write a letter about [how] this was a fine home and it was a joy to build and it’s the best house in the neighborhood,” she said.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation published a book called “Houses by Mail: A Guide to Houses from Sears, Roebuck and Company,” sharing the history of these ready-to-assemble homes and providing a guide to identifying them, with hundreds of illustrations of house models and floor plans.

The book described “exceptionally sturdy and well-designed” houses that were “built to last,” and included a quote from the Smithsonian that “it was the American Dream by Mail Order.”

“They were made, as all the homes were back then, with really solid, big strength wood and old growth wood,” Chabot said, “They weren’t cutting corners at all. These are not flimsy homes.”

Mortgages were rare during that time period. So Sears would help finance these mail-order homes. Chabot and her colleagues research mortgages and deeds to identify Sears houses or when a wall is torn down, specific ink stamps and shipping labels might provide clues.

“If you’re lucky, you will find markings on the framing lumber. So it’d be a letter in a number combo like B326 or A121,” she said. “That is how Sears labeled the dimension of the lumber.”

Many mail-order homes still exist today, sometimes without the current homeowner’s knowledge.

According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Policy Development and Research, “the largest concentrations of documented Sears kit homes may be in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and its suburbs with approximately 1,000 homes.”

The Holbrook House in College Park, Maryland, was built in 1927 and is an example of the Sears Alhambra model. In 2016, a Sears Colonial house sold in D.C. for $1.06 million.

“People think that all the houses with that kind of look from the 1920s must be Sears houses, but really only about 1% of houses built during that era are Sears houses,” Chabot said. “They’re pretty rare.”

Chabot and her colleagues maintain a national database of Sears Houses, regularly adding new discoveries. You can see the ones they’ve researched, including numerous in the D.C. area, on .

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The dishwasher

Josephine Garis Cochran often said her servants chipped her heirloom dishes while washing them, but she also did not want to wash the fine china herself.

“If nobody else is going to invent the dishwashing machine, I’ll do it myself,” she said, according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Born in Ohio, Cochran came from a family of inventors and was drawn to engineering. When her husband died in 1883, she felt an urgency to turn her idea into reality.

Her design was the first to use water pressure instead of scrubbers, with custom-built racks to hold dishes securely in place.

With the help of a mechanic, she built a prototype and received a patent for her “Dish Washing Machine” in 1886. She later founded the Garis-Cochran Dish-Washing Co., which eventually became part of what is now KitchenAid.

Her practical, convenient design became the foundation for the dishwashers we rely on today.

The air conditioner

One of the world’s first modern electrical air conditioning systems was installed at the Sackett & Wilhelms printing plant in Brooklyn in 1902.

New York engineer Willis Carrier was tasked with solving a summer humidity problem affecting the printing press and causing quality issues.

Carrier’s invention used coils that could humidify or dehumidify the air, allowing the plant to maintain consistent conditions and operate reliably year‑round. This is the fundamental science behind the more advanced air conditioning systems we use today.

Carrier received a patent for his “Apparatus for Treating Air” in 1906, and his spray-type air-conditioning technology quickly spread to factories, offices and laboratories, eventually moving into homes by 1914.

Carrier’s work reshaped the world, and he was named one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of the 20th Century in 1998.

The home security system

The next time you check your doorbell camera or set the alarm for your house, think about Marie Van Brittan Brown. She invented one of the first home security systems with her husband, Albert Brown, an electronics technician.

They lived in Queens, New York, with their two children. Brown worked long shifts and odd hours as a nurse, and the family was concerned about the high crime rate in their neighborhood. So she designed a security system that included several elements.

Peepholes were put in the front door at different heights, and a camera could slide up and down on the opposite side. Monitors placed anywhere in the house showed the camera images.

There was two‑way communication to speak to the person outside, and pushing an alarm button would alert the police immediately. Many of these features can be found in security systems used today.

A patent for their “Home Security System Utilizing Television Surveillance” was obtained in 1969.

Brown is also credited as a pioneer of closed‑circuit television technology for home security. Her idea kept her own family safe, and transformed how millions of people protect their homes.

The vacuum cleaner

An Ohio janitor named James Murray Spangler invented the first portable electric vacuum cleaner. He worked as a sweeper at a department store but also suffered from asthma, and the dust would irritate his lungs.

Spangler added an electric motor and fan blades to a wooden soap box attached to a broom handle, and came up with the idea to use a pillowcase to collect dust, the first cloth filter bag.

He received a patent for his “Carpet Sweeper and Cleaner” in 1908, and his creative solution revolutionized how people clean their homes.

Spangler founded the Electric Suction Sweeping Company and got the attention of his cousin’s husband, William Hoover, who was a leather merchant at the time. Hoover bought Spangler’s patent and took over the company, renaming it the Hoover Company.

He utilized door‑to‑door salespersons to increase the vacuum cleaner’s popularity and turned Hoover into a common household name. Spangler stayed with the company, working as superintendent.

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Christine Hong, chair of the council’s Homeless Services Committee and chief of services to End and Prevent Homelessness with the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services, presented the findings at the council’s Wednesday meeting.

The report centers on the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s mandated point-in-time count of sheltered and unsheltered people experiencing homelessness on a single night in January.

“This year, the count was conducted on Feb. 4. We had to postpone it one week due to the extreme cold and winter weather event that we experienced the week prior,” Hong said. “Although it’s an imperfect measure, it provides an important regional snapshot of homelessness on a single night.”

The D.C. region reported 9,790 total people experiencing homelessness, an increase of 131 people or about 1% from 2025. The year-over-year regional change was modest. This count is closer in line to the 2019 number, before the pandemic.

“The regional story is that homelessness fell during the pandemic era, a period when expanded federal resources and emergency protections were in place, and then increased after those temporary supports ended,” Hong said. “The main takeaway is that regional homelessness is no longer increasing at the pace seen in 2023 and 2024, and is in line with the years immediately preceding the pandemic.”

Results varied by jurisdiction.

D.C. had the largest numerical increase, with 225 additional people counted. Prince George’s County, Maryland, had 175 additional people counted, a 29% increase. Montgomery County saw the largest decrease, down by 390 people or 26%. Hong pointed to the county’s investment in short-term housing.

“Montgomery County also spent a great deal to expand emergency shelter for families, because we are committed to ensuring no family with children would sleep outside even one night,” she said.

The count also included detailed information on race, veterans and household types.

“The broader evidence is clear, and is referenced in the report, that housing costs and the cost of living are major drivers of homelessness risk, especially for families with low income,” Hong said. “In practical terms, this means family homelessness is closely tied to whether low-income families can find and maintain housing.”

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It’s mosquito season in the D.C. area. But this year, some residents are biting back.

“Mosquitoes are terrible here,” Capitol Hill resident Michelle Mingrone said. “For the past few years, in particular, I haven’t been able to be outside for more than three minutes without being bit by probably five to 10 mosquitoes.”

Mingrone is the founder of the Itty Bitty Mosquito Population Committee. It’s inspired by a community-based mosquito control she found in University Park, Maryland, that was effective in areas with a high participation rate.

“Mosquitoes don’t respect property lines,” she said. “A well-placed trap between two houses is actually going to impact the mosquito population from both houses, versus trying to do it individually.”

The idea is to raise awareness and encourage people to be vigilant. They educate neighbors on how to toss standing water, treat water they can’t toss and trap mosquitoes. The company Biogents is offering them a community discount on traps. The BG-Mosquitaire is the most expensive model and targets host-seeking females, which are the ones actively trying to bite you.

“This trap attracts mosquitoes who are seeking a blood meal,” Mingrone said. “It has a little scent pack in there that smells kind of like BO. It’s pretty gross, but the mosquitoes love it. They fly towards it, and there’s a fan that sucks them into this net.”

She said the traps have made a big difference in her yard, showing ĂÛÌÒÊÓÆ”app about 100 mosquitoes caught in the net.

“Mosquitoes picked the wrong hill to die on,” she said.

So far, she said the response in her neighborhood has been incredible. More than 1,000 households have joined the mission, and she has more than 100 block captains helping to coordinate.

“It’s growing really fast. People are really excited,” she said. “If we get enough coverage and enough participation, we should see a real, meaningful impact on our mosquito situation.”

Mingrone said she hopes to expand the Itty Bitty Mosquito Population Committee beyond Capitol Hill. For more information, .

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A unique financial instrument remains the cornerstone of the U.S. housing market, chosen by about 90% of homebuyers — the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage.

“It’s really born out of [a] crisis,” said Justin Kraeger, a D.C.-based mortgage adviser with Neo Home Loans. “We’re a very unique country in the sense that we have this great financial tool for consumers.”

Before the Great Depression, less than half of American households owned their homes. Mortgages were expensive and difficult to obtain. Down payments were high, sometimes up to 50% of the cost of the home. Balloon mortgages were common, meaning borrowers had to repay the full balance within a decade through a large lump‑sum payment. These challenging terms, including short maturities of just 5 to 10 years, kept homeownership out of reach for many Americans.

Everything changed in the 1930s, when the federal government stepped into mortgage lending in response to the economic crisis. New legislation aimed to stabilize collapsing housing finance institutions, create jobs through homebuilding and help homeowners avoid foreclosure.

The National Housing Act of 1934 dramatically expanded homeownership by creating the Federal Housing Administration. The FHA, now the largest mortgage insurer in the world, encouraged lending and popularized the fixed-rate long-term mortgages. The U.S. also launched Fannie Mae to foster a secondary market for FHA-insured loans. Down payments as low as 10%, as well as longer mortgage terms, made it possible for first-time buyers and families with limited incomes to own a home. During this time, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage emerged, gained popularity, and became the national standard.

“It landed on the 30-year as the standard because it is this lovely balance between a repayment period where you can pay back that mortgage in your lifetime,” Kraeger said. “The shorter the duration, the higher risk you’re taking. The longer the duration, the lower risk you’re taking.”

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is widely supported by the U.S. government and provides liquidity to the financial markets. It is considered one of the safest, most predictable mortgage products because its lower monthly payments offer protection against rising interest rates and support long‑term budgeting stability.

“It is probably the best hedge against inflation,” Kraeger said.

Throughout history, mortgage rates have shifted dramatically during major financial crises. In the early 1980s, mortgage rates rose to historic highs, peaking at 18% as inflation surged into double digits and an oil crisis created turmoil. Rates fell sharply in response to the 2008 financial crisis, dropping into the 4-5% range as the housing bubble burst. And during the COVID‑19 pandemic, they plunged to historic lows, below 3%, as the Federal Reserve slashed rates and intervened heavily in financial markets.

For potential homebuyers, Kraeger recommends not waiting around for lower mortgage rates, noting that rates move every day and are just one piece of the puzzle.

“Just get into the house,” he said. “Don’t try to time the market. Spend time in the market.”

Kraeger advises homebuyers to speak with a professional who can help build a plan aligned with their financial goals. Renting might be a better option for someone who doesn’t want the responsibilities of home maintenance or anticipates moving every few years. For those with a higher risk tolerance, an adjustable-rate mortgage could be a better fit.

“Find the financial instrument that’s going to work for you,” he said. “It just happens that most people buy a home and they stay in it long term [so] the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage becomes a really valuable tool to use.”

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“It wasn’t just a damaged sign,” Holmes said. “It was a level of violence and vandalism that I hadn’t seen in the county.”

Holmes is running for Prince George’s County Executive. He was notified by Bowie City Police that the large sign located at Maryland Route 450 near Superior Lane was vandalized the morning of May 1.

“I don’t want anybody to have to feel the way my family and I have felt over the last couple days, because you feel like something’s being taken away from you, and that’s your freedom,” he said.

Investigators said the vandal used blue painter’s tape to place a swastika over Holmes’ face and wrote the words “FREEMAN” and “TND,” which are coded white supremacist terms.

Holmes said he believes the vandalism took time, suggesting whoever did it was deliberate.

“No other signs were damaged with that on it,” he said. “Did I just get singled out? Am I being targeted?”

In a , Bowie Mayor Michael EstĂšve said the city will not tolerate prejudice directed toward anyone.

“Someone tried to deface this sign. They put some painters tape on it with a message that was racist and antisemitic,” he said. “You commit vandalism, we’re going to make sure we do everything we can to find you and prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law.”

Holmes said one positive outcome has been how many people have reached out, offering to replace the sign or asking to put a sign up in their yard.

“People have been incredible,” Holmes said. “It’s not so much support for me; it’s really talking about (how) we don’t want this in our county, and we don’t want people to feel like it’s OK to do this in our county.”

“The message is not to be desensitized by what goes on. Be really outraged. Be pissed off,” he added. “It’s unacceptable. Somebody saw something, someone should say something.”

No arrests have been made.

The Prince George’s County Homeland Security Department is leading the investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS.

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According to the , there was a 71% year‑over‑year drop in truancy among participating students.

“We are encouraged about the results because it tells us that we are onto something that works. And that’s going to impact the young people and the families that we do serve,” said Rachel Pierre, director of the D.C. Department of Human Services.

A key part of the program’s success is case management. They work with families to understand specific needs and coordinate services. Forty-seven percent of parents accepted case management services, which is up from 42% in the first year of the program in 2024. Nearly half of students in case management improved their attendance and behavior within 90 days.

“We are able to really meet the family exactly at the point that this could escalate to something bigger,” Pierre said. “If there are barriers to school attendance on a regular basis, we are here to help.”

Pierre said some examples of those barriers are a lack of childcare, not having the right uniform, bullying or simply parent awareness. She emphasized it’s critical to intervene early.

“D.C. parents, it’s important that your kids are in school,” Pierre said. “The more school days young people miss, the more they fall behind, the harder it is for them to catch up.”

There are plans to expand the Truancy Reduction Program for a third year. Ten schools currently participate, and they want to add eight more. Focusing on ninth and 10th graders would help kids stay on the right track throughout high school, Pierre said.

“The transition from middle school to high school is often when kids have a hard time adjusting. And for whatever reasons, they may be more truant,” she said. “We are excited about the possibility of scaling into additional schools next fiscal year.”

For more information about the program or to seek assistance from DHS, .

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It’s easy to take electricity for granted, but imagine your home without it. Instead of flipping on a switch, you’d rely on candles or gas lamps to light the way.

There’d be no air conditioner to provide relief on a hot summer day. Food would spoil quickly without a refrigerator, and we’d quite literally become disconnected without Wi-Fi.

“[We] just wouldn’t have the quality of life that we have today,” said William Rampe, a policy analyst at the Institute for Energy Research in D.C.

In 1880, Thomas Edison — one of the best-known American inventors — patented the incandescent light bulb. But at that time, homes were not wired for electricity. Two years later, the famous banker J.P. Morgan, who was one of Edison’s early financial backers, became one of the first people to have electric lighting installed in their house.

“[Electricity] really wasn’t something that was very common,” Rampe said, noting that it was only accessible to the wealthy. “At that time, it was just for lighting. We didn’t have all the appliances we have today.”

With funding from Morgan, Edison opened the Pearl Street Station in lower Manhattan in 1882. This was the country’s first central power plant and later became part of General Electric. It grew from 59 customers in the first year to 513 customers by 1883.

“[The station] distributed electricity from a centralized station to a lot of different people,” Rampe said.

But the person who brought reliable, affordable electricity to millions of Americans was actually Edison’s private secretary-turned-business manager Samuel Insull. He helped build the modern power grid and created an electricity empire.

“The Henry Ford of [the] modern electricity industry was Samuel Insull,” Rampe said. “And that’s because he was able to achieve economies of scale.”

Insull realized that by building large power plants and getting lots of people to use electricity, the cost would drop for everyone. He consolidated small mom-and-pop electric companies into one huge, organized system.

As a result, electricity became more reliable, reaching more homes and businesses, and families could finally afford it. Insull understood electricity “could be marketable, not just something that’s a toy for the wealthiest people in the country,” Rampe said.

Insull left General Electric to run the Chicago Edison Company and transformed Chicago into one of the most electrified cities in the world. He also pioneered the two-part pricing system for usage and demand that is still the foundation of how electricity is billed today.

By the 1920s, Insull controlled a massive network of utilities across many states. His electricity empire collapsed during the Great Depression and Insull lost his wealth, but the utility model he created continues shaping the industry today.

“He was really important for getting the industry off the ground,” Rampe said. “We have a system where we don’t really have outages, except for certain times and extreme weather.”

States regulated utilities until the Federal Power Act of 1935 gave the federal government authority over electricity that crosses state lines. The law also aimed to stabilize the electric industry, regulate utility companies, and protect consumers from abusive pricing.

But rural America had been left behind, as private utility companies focused more on cities and urban homes. The Rural Electrification Act of 1936 brought electricity to farms and transformed agriculture in the U.S.

“As we got into the 20th century, [electricity use] really skyrocketed,” Rampe said. Before 1910, under 10 percent of homes had electricity. By 1955, nearly 100% of homes did. “That leads to the state we are in now, especially [in the] United States, where nearly everyone has electricity.” The ways we use electricity at home continue to evolve with new technologies, from rooftop solar panels to electric cars to smart devices, reshaping daily life.

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After World War II, millions of soldiers returning to the United States needed housing for their families. Levitt took the mass-production techniques Henry Ford pioneered for cars and applied those cost-cutting tactics to homebuilding. His company, Levitt & Sons, was able to build tens of thousands of homes quickly and at affordable prices.

“No one was able to build at the scale that Levitt did,” said Edward Berenson, a professor of history at New York University and the author of “Perfect Communities: Levitt, Levittown, and the Dream of White Suburbia.”

Before World War II, about 40% of American families owned homes. By the 1960s, that number was about 65%. “That’s a huge increase, and it was all in the suburbs,” Berenson said. “[Levitt] really played a major role in a gigantic social, cultural and economic change in the 20th century, and that is suburbanization.”

Levitt built several Levittowns in the United States, Puerto Rico and Europe. In the original Levittown, New York, he built 17,447 houses in four years.

“That’s a lot of houses. They were small and rudimentary,” Berenson said. “But they’ve lasted.”

One Levitt community was built in Prince George’s County called Belair at Bowie.

In 1947, a family could buy one of Levitt’s homes for around $7,000, which works out to just over $100,000 today. If you go onto Zillow and look up the prices of homes in Levittown, New York, the median price is about $700,000.

Levitt sold the idea of the American dream a house with a yard in a safe neighborhood with community resources. He set aside land for schools, churches, synagogues and ball fields to “create a community spirit and allow people to get together.” Berenson said he can speak from personal experience because he grew up in Levittown, Pennsylvania. He has positive memories of playing, swimming and biking with other children.

“It was a safe community, and people felt confident giving their kids a lot of freedom,” Berenson said. “I interviewed lots of people who grew up in the different Levittowns, and they all say the same thing. They have an experience that is a lot like the one I had.”

However, Levitt faced criticism for conformity and exclusion. Levittowns had a negative reputation because “the houses were all the same, and they supposedly made everyone the same.”

Levitt also refused to sell his homes to African Americans. When an African American family moved into Levittown, Pennsylvania, in 1957, there were race riots that lasted for more than a week.

“The really worst thing about Levitt was his policies on race,” Berenson said.

His personal story follows a rags-to-riches-to-rags narrative. He was one of the richest people in the world when he sold his company in the late 1960s for almost $100 million, but he made bad investments and spent lavishly.

“When he finally got back into homebuilding in the 1980s, he committed a lot of fraud,” Berenson said. “He took deposits from people and used those deposits to support his really extravagant lifestyle.”

That included a yacht, a penthouse on Fifth Avenue and a mini castle on Long Island.

“He died in the ’90s as a charity patient in one of the hospitals he helped to build,” Berenson said. “I think that’s why people have forgotten about him.” Levitt’s star rose quickly but then burned out.

In his book, Berenson said he tried to present a full, nuanced and complex picture of a man who changed the way Americans live and whose influence is still prominent today.

“History is complicated, and so you have to take the good with the bad,” he said. “[People] should know about one of the most important figures in the 20th century, William J. Levitt.”

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Interior design is about more than just style. The way a home looks often reflects cultural shifts, technological advances and evolving ideas about beauty.

Throughout U.S. history, design trends have offered clues about how Americans lived and what they valued.

Early Colonial homes in America were practical and orderly. Furniture was handcrafted, built to last and often simple or sparse. Wood was abundant, and pigments for muted earth tones such as soft browns were readily available. Wealthier families could purchase imported woven materials for curtains, bed hangings and tablecloths.

Early settlers were also influenced by European traditions. The Queen Anne style, popular in early 18th-century Britain, crossed the Atlantic and shaped the look of American homes.

As industrialization accelerated in the late 19th century, the shift from handcrafted to manufactured goods transformed interior design. Furniture and decorative items became more affordable through mass production, and a growing middle class embraced home design as a sign of prosperity.

The luxurious Art Deco movement captured the spirit of the “Roaring 20s” with geometric patterns, jewel tones and metallic accents.

Amanda Ivy Pearson, founder of Washington-based Ink and Ivy Design, said the 1920s remain one of her favorite eras for inspiration.

“The richness of the colors and all of the different textures and the opulence of it,” Pearson said. “It’s just so over the top, but in such a beautiful way.”

During the Great Depression, design trends shifted again as families focused on necessity rather than luxury. Homes became simpler and more practical, with people repairing or repurposing furniture and household items. Leftover fabric was often patched together to create curtains or quilts, and many decorative items were homemade.

After World War II, the mid-century modern movement gained momentum and lasted well into the 1960s. The style was defined by clean lines, minimal ornamentation and innovative materials.

Postwar optimism and advances in manufacturing allowed designers to experiment with materials such as fiberglass and molded plywood. Furniture featured sleek shapes and new wood finishes, while large windows, open layouts and natural materials helped connect indoor spaces with nature.

Pearson said incorporating nature into home design is now known as biophilic design and remains popular today.

“There’s some research that really shows it improves people’s lives,” she said. “It makes people feel happier and calmer in their spaces.”

Design took a bold turn in the 1970s as cultural experimentation and environmental awareness reshaped American homes. Avocado green, mustard yellow and burnt orange became common color choices. Wood paneling, modular sofas, shag carpeting and velvet upholstery created relaxed, textured spaces.

The 1980s continued the spirit of experimentation but introduced brighter, saturated colors such as hot pink and electric blue. The Memphis design movement known for clashing colors, geometric shapes and playful lines influenced pop culture and furniture design. Mirrored walls and lacquered surfaces also contributed to the decade’s glamorous aesthetic.

By the 1990s, design trends shifted again toward neutral palettes and traditional furniture shapes, reflecting a cultural emphasis on family-centered living. Living rooms often revolved around entertainment centers, with sofas and recliners positioned around the television.

Homeowners also experimented with DIY-friendly techniques such as sponge painting to add personality to walls. The “shabby chic” style gained popularity, though Pearson cautions against buying pre-distressed furniture.

“You lose the personality that can make a space unique,” she said.

In the 2000s, open-concept layouts became common as walls were removed to create large, shared living spaces. Minimalism emphasized uncluttered rooms and soft color palettes of beige, white, gray and light blue.

Technology also began influencing home design, increasing the demand for organization and multifunctional spaces. At the same time, the modern farmhouse style emerged, blending rustic elements such as reclaimed wood with contemporary finishes.

Pearson said today’s homeowners can benefit from looking to the past for inspiration. She recommends browsing antique or vintage stores to find quality pieces that can serve as a foundation for a room.

“You can find quality that you really can’t get anymore, or you can’t get without spending an exorbitant amount of money,” she said.

Repurposing or refinishing those pieces can give them new life and create a strong base for future design changes.

“When you’ve got these pieces that really can stand the test of time, then you can build around that,” Pearson said.

She also encourages mixing materials and styles that might not traditionally go together, such as tile and wood, to create a distinctive look.

“Design is supposed to be fun,” Pearson said. “It’s supposed to be an opportunity for you to be creative and tell your story and surround yourself with things that make you feel happy [and] healthy.”

Her advice is to be intentional. Before redecorating, she suggests taking inventory of what you already own and considering how you actually live day to day.

Chasing trends can quickly lead to clutter, Pearson said, but embracing personal style can create a home that lasts beyond changing fads.

“Trends fade,” she said. “You are unique and you will always be unique, and that is a trend that doesn’t ever go out of style.”

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