After its survey, the new federal city was constructed on the north bank of the Potomac River, east of Georgetown and centered on Capitol Hill. On September 9, 1791, three commissioners overseeing the capital's construction named the city in honor of President Washington. At the same time, the federal district was named Columbia, a feminine form of Columbus, which was a poetic name for the United States commonly used at the time. Congress held its first session there on November 17, 1800.