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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. Why did Ellicott want an astronomer on his team?
  2. 2. How many boundary stones did the team place?
  3. 3. What did Banneker do after returning home?
  4. 4. What shape was the new federal district?
2.What does D.C. stand for in Washington, D.C.?
  • A.Division of Capitals
  • B.Department of Congress
  • C.District of Columbia
3.Why did the United States build a new capital city in the 1790s?
  • A.To make a new state
  • B.To have one permanent home for the national government
  • C.To build a whaling port
4.Who is the city of Washington, D.C. named after?
  • A.A river in Maryland
  • B.George Washington, the first President
  • C.Washington State
5.In what year did Congress first meet in the new city of Washington?
  • A.1865
  • B.1800
  • C.1776
6.Why is Washington, D.C. not part of any state?
  • A.No one lives there
  • B.It belongs to Canada
  • C.It was set up as a federal district for the national government

LessonPrint · D2.Geo.5.3-5 · Set 3 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Building the Nation's Capital

Set 3. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.1. Banneker could watch the stars to fix exact points. 2. 40 boundary stones, about one every mile. 3. He wrote and published almanacs. 4. A square ten miles on each side.
  2. 2.District of Columbia
  3. 3.To have one permanent home for the national government
  4. 4.George Washington, the first President
  5. 5.1800
  6. 6.It was set up as a federal district for the national government

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