Dana Ellyn                                        www.danaellyn.com

Watts Branch park is a 1.6 mile long park in Northeast Washington, DC. A massive clean-up began in in 1965 under Lady Bird Johnson’s Committee for a More Beautiful Capital, but another 30 years of neglect followed, when polluters, drug dealers, and addicts overwhelmed the park.

Legendary R&B artist Marvin Gaye spent part of his youth in this area, often singing a cappella with friends in this park. On April 2, 2006, the city officially rededicated Watts Branch Park as Marvin Gaye Park.