Historically an industrial area, today Navy Yard is a popular entertainment district, home to Nationals Park, a notable nightlife scene, and numerous waterfront esplanades.

In 1791 Pierre Charles L’Enfant designed the plan for Washington, D.C., and, recognizing the assets of the Anacostia River, located the city's new commercial center and wharfs there.

Surrounding the wharves was an extensive commercial district, light industrial businesses, and one of the city's most significant neighborhood communities.

By the mid‑1940s, the Navy Yard and the expanded Annex area reached peak production with 26,000 employees in 132 buildings on 127 acres (0.51 km2) of land.

After World War II, the Navy Yard consolidated its operations to a smaller campus, which slowed the economic and neighborhood activity of the area.

[2] Redevelopment of Near Southeast has been a goal of the government of the District of Columbia and business groups since the downsizing of the Navy's facilities in the early 1960s.

The National Capital Planning Commission initiated several studies throughout the 1960s and 1970s that imagined considerably increased density along South Capitol Street and public parkland along the riverbank.

The Dravo Corporation won the community development contract and hired Charles I. Bryant to master plan a project, which they named "Capitol Gateway."

Approximately half of its area (south of M Street, SE) is occupied by the Washington Navy Yard (including the Naval Historical Center), which gives the neighborhood its name.