Marian Anderson was an African American singer, who became famous for fighting racial inequality when she gave a concert on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. In April 1939, the Daughters of the American Revolution refused to allow Anderson to sing…

In 1971, Secretary of the State, Senator, and US Navy veteran John Kerry protested against the Vietnam War in front of the US Capitol when he returned from his tour of duty. As a member of the group Vietnam Veterans Against the War, he accused the US…

James Renwick Jr. won the 1846 competition to design the first Smithsonian Institution building. His design drew heavily from architectural styles of 12th-century Europe that gave the building a castle-like appearance. Although Renwick took pains to…

In May 1968, Jesse Jackson and other members of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) gathered in Washington, DC, to draw attention to poverty through the Poor Peoples' Campaign. Carrying on the work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. after…

Maya Lin won the design competition for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in 1981. She was an undergraduate student majoring in architecture at Yale University when her design was chosen from nearly 1,500 entries. She proposed an abstract design in the…

In the late 1800s, Adolf Cluss designed four buildings on the National Mall, only one of which still stands today. In 1870, he designed the Center Market. He also designed conservatories for the Department of Agriculture and the Army Medical Museum…

Decorated Vietnam veteran Jan Scruggs is the founder of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC. He conceived the memorial as a tribute to all who served during one of the longest wars in American history. He started the project with $2,800…

British scientist James Smithson provided the funding necessary to create the Smithsonian Institution. Born in France and educated at Oxford University in England, Smithson was a wealthy chemist and mineralogist. He never married or had any children.…

Located next to the White House, the Eisenhower Executive Office Building currently houses offices for executive staffs of the President, Vice President, First Lady, and Second Lady. Designed in the French Second Empire architectural style, this…

The White House is the official residence and office of the President of the United States. In 1792, the cornerstone was laid, and construction began with free and enslaved laborers doing much of the work. The building was designed in a Neo-Classical…