I'll meet you on the corner of 14th and J...

So what's missing here?

Lot's of explanations exist for why Washington, DC's street grid is missing a J Street, but my personal favorite is that the designer of Washington, DC, Peter L'Enfant, was frustrated with our first Chief Justice, John Jay, over the 1794 Treaty of Amity, Commerce, and Navigation with Great Britain and left "J" off the map out of retaliation.

I think this is the story I most wish could be true, but sadly, it's not. The dates just don't match up. L'Enfant, who by all accounts was prickly to work with, had already been canned in 1792, two years before Jay's treaty. Our favorite kill-joy Snopes does a fairly good job of deconstructing the story, so I won't recap all the details.

Then where did J go? It's clearly missing, after all. The truth is somewhat more mundane, but still interesting. It just so happens that while Washington, DC was being laid out, our alphabet was still settling out. "J", which is relatively rare in English (think Scrabble points), was the last letter to join us. In the 1790's, it was not uncommon for "J" to be considered simply a different pronunciation of "I". For example, Thomas Jefferson often used T.I. as his initials when writing, but would have pronounced "Jefferson" roughly as we do. Interestingly enough, W (or "double U") did make the cut in DC, when it was similarly left off of Colonial era alphabets. Lucky for W, we didn't lay out the city right after Independence. Or maybe William Williams just didn't piss L'Enfant off.

If you don't believe me, take a stroll down to the excellent Daughter's of the American Revolution Museum, on 17th ST (technically 1776 D ST NW). Go up to the New Hampshire room, which is a early American "children's attic". Take a look at the blocks and you will notice two letters missing. Any guesses?

But for those of you whose sense of order rebels against this, the good folks at George Washington University took some of my tuition money and renamed the dining hall for you: