This historical survey stone was established in 1793 to mark the prime meridian of the United States. It was also intended to mark the intersection of direct lines from the middle of the Capitol and the White House, but it is in fact a little off…

The Eisenhower Memorial is a proposed monument to the 34th President of the United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower. The proposed monument site is located on the south side of Independence Avenue, directly across from the National Air and Space Museum.…

The Ellipse, officially known as President's Park South, is a 52 acre park located directly south of the White House. It was part of L'Enfant's original plan of the city. The Ellipse was originally called "The White Lot" due to the whitewashed fence…

Originally, Braddock's Rock was a sizable outcropping of Piedmont stone jutting into the Potomac. Called the "Key of all Keys," this rock became a starting point for surveyors drawing property lines for early settlers. In 1755, General Edward…

In 1791, President Washington appointed Thomas Johnson, Daniel Carroll, and David Stuart commissioners to supervise the planning, design, and construction of the new capital city and surrounding federal district. They oversaw the survey and land…

The street now known as Independence Avenue was originally called South B Street, following the district's street-naming conventions. In 1934, Congress voted to rename the street Independence Avenue, three years after it had renamed North B Street as…

The street which is now known as Constitution Avenue was originally called North B Street, following the District's street naming system. For much of the 1800s, there was no road, but instead was the site of the City Canal. When the canal was covered…

Thomas Jefferson worked with President George Washington to advocate that the nation's capitol be situated on the banks of the Potomac. His sketch of a layout for the federal city is the oldest known plan of Washington, DC, and he shared his ideas…

In February 1792 President George Washington dismissed city planner Major Pierre Charles L'Enfant, who had been hired to design the new capital but continually argued with the Federal City commissioners. One of L'Enfant's most offensive acts was…

Sketched in 1904 and later published in Women's Home Companion, this drawing demonstrates grand neoclassical plans to expand the Department of Agriculture. The Department had long since outgrown the original 1868 construction, one of the oldest on…