This postcard from 1913 shows the Mall and Pennsylvania Avenue. The building in the left foreground is the old Botanic Garden conservatory, with the Bartholdi Fountain between it and Pennsylvania Avenue. Business and residential buildings are still…

The Columbian Institute was a Washington organization dedicated to the promotion of the arts and sciences for the benefit of the nation. In 1820, two years after their official charter was approved by Congress, the Institute was granted five acres of…

The original botanic gardens in Washington were built in line with the Capitol building, where the Capitol Reflecting Pool is today. The new design proposed for the Mall in the early 1900s called for an open green space from the Capitol to the…

In the late 1920s, Congress and Washington city planners debated moving the Botanic Garden from the Mall to a larger location elsewhere in the District. This map shows a proposed plan for the Botanic Garden on a much larger site than is possible on…

This article from the Baltimore Sun discusses the establishment of the National Botanic Garden in Washington. The main source of the collection for the garden were botanic specimens gathered during the United States Exploring Expedition, which…

Since 1979, the National Symphony Orchestra has played a concert, called "A Capitol Fourth," on the west front of the Capitol, facing the National Mall. Fireworks are also launched from near the Washington Monument. This article describes the 1993…

John Philip Sousa wrote this march in 1883 for the unveiling of the statue of Joseph Henry, first Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, on April 19, 1883. At that event, the piece was played by the Marine Band, directed by Sousa. The sheet music…

Since 1979, the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) has performed on the west front of the Capitol on the fourth of July. The concert is aired by PBS stations as "A Capitol Fourth" and features musicians and vocalists as well as the NSO and the Marine…

This article from the Washington Post describes the first season of concerts at the Watergate steps near the Lincoln Memorial. Performances were generally classical music, both orchestral and featuring singers. Performers were on a specially…

This detail of the bird's eye view of the city, "The national capital, Washington, D.C. Sketched from nature by Adolph Sachse, 1883-1884" shows the National Mall before the Army Corps of Engineers began to dredge the Potomac River to fill in the…