This is part of the text that resulted in Lowell uploading a file of
history on DC to the Boundary Point file library:

"In 1846, a citizen's referendum returned Alexandria County to
Virginia for reasons which I've never been clear about (maybe because,
rather bizarrely, DC citizens didn't get a presidential vote until
1961, and don't have full Congressional representation to this day).
At a later date, the City of Alexandria established its own
jurisdiction, and the surrounding county became known as 'Arlington
County' to avoid confusion.

As an aside, I believe Washington DC does not exist as an official
entity. You either reside in the City of Washington or Washington
County, both of which are located in the District of Columbia!

Regards,

Kevin Meynell"

About the above:

The "City of Washington" does/did exist as a real entity. It was
incorporated in 1802 by Congress. Later, the City of Georgetown was
incorporated, too, with the rest being "county" area within which
townships were established. In 1871 Congress incorporated the
"District of Columbia" and provided it with a government, but left the
corporations of the cities of Washington and Georgetown in place. In
1878 Congress incorporated the "District of Columbia" as a municipal
corporation and repealed all earlier conflicting laws. There are no
longer any counties or incorporated cities named Georgetown or
Washington. Georgetown actually disappeared before Washington did,
when it was merged into Washington. The city mayor here is the "Mayor
of the District of Columbia". The local city council is the "Council
of the District of Columbia".

With respect to the retrocession of Alexandria (later Arlington)
county to Virginia, the vote was taken on September 3, 1846, and after
receiving a vote of 763 for v 222 against, President Polk declared the
retrocession fully in effect on September 7, 1946. Nevertheless, two
little parts of DC on the Virginia side of the Potomac were returned
to Virginia sometime later. However, it wasn't the vote that returned
the bulk of the territory to Virginia, but an Act of Congress from
July 9, 1846 that did that, subject to two things:

- Virginia's acceptance (which Congress already knew was OK
because it had actually occurred earlier, on Feb 3, 1846), and

- a good outcome to the vote which took place in September.

As to why the land was returned: The Act of Congress enlightens us on
that: "Whereas no more territory ought to be held under the exclusive
legislation given to Congress over the District which is the seat of
the General Government than may be necessary and proper for the
purposes of such a seat; and whereas experience hath shown that the
portion of the District of Columbia ceded to the United States by the
State of Virginia has not been, nor is every likely to be, necessary
for that purpose... "

If one looks at even earlier laws, it seems that the Virigina side was
always kept undeveloped with a premonition - because some laws say
that public buildings can be built only on the side ceded by Maryland
and a couple of laws actually left Virginia law in place on the west
side of the river, and Maryland laws in place on the east side. At
one point, no federal building could even be erected on the side ceded
by Maryland that was south of the Anacostia river. They were
superceded piecemeal over the years.

There appears to have been two attempts to draw the boundaries of the
district. Once, an experimental line was drawn from the Alexandria
city hall SW for half a mile and then it turned SE for half a mile,
and that point where it ended became the southern tip of the diamond
from which all measurements were to be made. Apparantly, that didn't
work too well, and Jones Point was selected as an alternative southern
point. A line was drawn from there NE for ten miles, then NW for ten
mile, eventually then all the way around until the diamond was
completed. It looks like that last portion of the line at the SW of
the diamond cut right through the developing area northward of the
Alexandria town center. There was also some provision I read where it
was at least contemplated to make the SW line not a totally straight
one and bend it so all of Alexandria was in DC.

Happy New Year.

Len Nadybal