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Building the Nation's Capital is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on how Washington, D.C. was planned and grew from fields into a capital, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.Geo.5.3-5. It prints 6 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

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Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

Building the Nation's Capital

D2.Geo.5.3-5

NameDate

Read the information text and answer its questions, then circle the best answers.

1.Look at the source, then answer the questions.

Measuring the Edges of the Capital

An information text written for this worksheet. Before a city can be built, its edges must be measured and marked. In 1791 Andrew Ellicott, a surveyor, was hired to measure the boundary of the new federal district, a square ten miles on each side. He hired Benjamin Banneker, a free African American astronomer and mathematician from Maryland, to help. Banneker watched the stars at night with a telescope to fix exact points, and he looked after the clock used for the measurements. The team placed 40 boundary stones, about one every mile along the edges of the square. Banneker worked on the survey for about three months before returning home, where he wrote and published almanacs. Many of the boundary stones still stand today.

  1. 1. How did Banneker fix exact points?
  2. 2. Why did the team place boundary stones?
  3. 3. What did Banneker do after returning home?
  4. 4. Who hired Benjamin Banneker?
2.What did L'Enfant's wide avenues and circles give the city?
  • A.Only narrow, crowded alleys
  • B.A tall wall around the city
  • C.Open spaces and long views between important buildings
3.Who is the city of Washington, D.C. named after?
  • A.George Washington, the first President
  • B.A river in Maryland
  • C.Washington State
4.Why did the United States build a new capital city in the 1790s?
  • A.To have one permanent home for the national government
  • B.To build a whaling port
  • C.To make a new state
5.What does D.C. stand for in Washington, D.C.?
  • A.Division of Capitals
  • B.District of Columbia
  • C.Department of Congress
6.How has Washington, D.C. changed since 1791?
  • A.It shrank into a small village
  • B.It moved to another river
  • C.It grew from fields and woods into a large city

LessonPrint · D2.Geo.5.3-5 · Set 25 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Building the Nation's Capital

Set 25. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.1. He watched the stars at night with a telescope. 2. To mark the edges of the new federal district. 3. He wrote and published almanacs. 4. Andrew Ellicott, a surveyor.
  2. 2.Open spaces and long views between important buildings
  3. 3.George Washington, the first President
  4. 4.To have one permanent home for the national government
  5. 5.District of Columbia
  6. 6.It grew from fields and woods into a large city

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.Geo.5.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.