The 1902, a report of the Senate Committee on the District of Columbia called, The Improvement of the Park System of the District of Columbia, (known today as the McMillan Commission Report), proposed creation of a "Fort Drive" connecting the Civil War circle of forts and earthen fortifications surrounding the city of Washington. This was to be a modern roadway through a landscaped corridor providing leisurely access to each fort site.

Although begun, the drive was never completed, and the forts and parcels of land were eventually included in the National Park System and are now managed by National Capital Parks-East, Rock Creek Park, and George Washington Memorial Parkway. The importance of the McMillian Commission Report for park planning was that it placed emphasis on the historic earthworks and the greenbelt of parks along the ridge surrounding the city, making it a significant open-space element in the nation's capital.