William M. Galt House at 1328 Connecticut Avenue
In 1876, William M. Galt, a wealthy local flour merchant, built what was only the second house located directly on Dupont Circle— the first house being that of Senator William Stewart in 1873.
William Galt was born on his father’s farm in Carroll County, Maryland in 1834. He moved to Washington at the age of 17 and started working in a dry goods house before going into the coal trade with a cousin. In 1861, he married Harriet Turner "Hattie" and the following year stablished his own flour business in an old government warehouse on the corner of 1st and Indiana Avenues, NW.
By 1876, William was wealthy enough to build his own mansion on a triangular lot on the south side of the circle between Connecticut Avenue and 19th Street. When Galt’s Gothic Revival-style house at 1328 Connecticut Avenue was complete, the Washington Star described it as “not only one of the finest residences in the city, but one of the pleasantest homes.” In many ways, it riv…
