A form of historic preservation

One of the more hilarious examples of adaptive reuse in DC is this old, pre-Civil War residence, located in what is now Chinatown (itself a shell of its past authenticity).  In the mid 1800's, Mary Surratt ran a boarding house in this building.  The conspirators in the Lincoln assassination, including Surratt's son and John Wilkes Booth, met frequently at the boarding house to plot the murder.  Since Surratt and the conspirators were promptly hung, I suppose that opened the door for the building's new owners to take over: Wok n Roll, a greasy Chinese restaurant.  Although it is amusing to imagine Wok n Roll been dishing up General Tso's Chicken circa 1870, I imagine there were several owners in the interim.

To commemorate the building's historic nature, there is a fading bronze plaque hanging on the outside wall.  Beneath the garish blue awning.  And next to the front door, adorned with credit card logos and Zagat decals.