Washington DC Monuments, Memorials and Museums
In addition to the information below, there are several free Apps available for your smart phone that will help you plan your trip to DC. In the ITunes or Google Play store search for:
City Mapper
City Walks
ANC Explorer
NPS National Mall
The Smithsonian Museum
Washington DC Metro Map
Most monuments and museums are accessible from the Smithsonian Metro stop (Orange/Blue Line). Other Metro stops nearby include Farragut West and Foggy Bottom. There is a stop for Arlington National Cemetery on the Blue Line. For the most part, plan to walk between memorials and museums. Use the Metro for transportation to/from Catholic University.
Most museums and memorials are free and do not require reservations; however, a few sites require advance reservations. If you want to visit the Holocaust Museum, I recommend you go to the Museum's website ASAP at (http://www.ushmm.org/information/plan-a-visit) and get your tickets. The other sites that we know of that require tickets are the Bureau of Printing and Engraving (printing of currency) (http://www.moneyfactory.gov/washingtondctours.html) and the Washington Monument (to go to the top)(http://www.nps.gov/wamo/planyourvisit/index.htm).
Map of Monuments Map of Smithsonian Museums
FDR Memorial (www.nps.gov/fdrm/)
This meandering 7.5-acre memorial -- near the Jefferson Memorial, just off the Tidal Basin -- pays tribute to both a president and an era. Franklin Delano Roosevelt's accomplishments during his four terms in office are honored through sculptures and words etched in four outdoor granite galleries representing time spans from 1933 to 1945.The 32nd president is shown in a bas-relief that depicts him riding in a car during his first inaugural, alongside his beloved dog, Fala.
Opened in 1997, the memorial spurred controversy when advocates for the disabled argued that Roosevelt should be depicted in a wheelchair, which he used after contracting polio in 1921. Because Roosevelt was careful never to be seen in his wheelchair in public, designers instead decided to include a statue of Roosevelt seated, covered in a cloak. The design also incorporates Braille in some of its relief sculptures, as an aid to visually impaired visitors.
The park-like memorial is well-suited to photo ops; tourists especially enjoy posing among the figures depicted in the sculpture "Bread Line," which conveys the mood of the country during the Great Depression. You'll also find a number of pools and waterfalls, and a statue of Eleanor Roosevelt. This is the only presidential memorial to include a tribute to a First Lady.
Jefferson Memorial (www.nps.gov/thje)
You may know the Thomas Jefferson Memorial from the many iconic photos of Washington, D.C. during cherry blossom season; it's the monument that sits right on the Tidal Basin, surrounded by thousands of Yoshino cherry trees. Sure, the views from the memorial are stunning, but take a moment to ponder the man it commemorates: third U.S. president, drafter of the Declaration of Independence, founder of the University of Virginia.
Modeled on Rome's Pantheon, designed by John Russell Pope and dedicated in 1943, the memorial sparked controversy when it opened because it resulted in the removal of a swath of Washington's beloved cherry trees. The 19-foot tall, five ton bronze statue of Jefferson in the center of the building looks toward the White House. Due to metal shortages during World War II, the statue was added four years after the memorial's dedication.
Five quotations from Jefferson's writings line the inside of the memorial, including excerpts from the Declaration of Independence. Underneath the memorial, you'll find a small museum and bookstore.
Korean War Veterans Memorial (www.nps.gov/kowa/)
Dedicated in 1995 by President Bill Clinton and South Korean President Kim Young Sam, the Korean War Veterans Memorial is a moving tribute to the 1.8 million Americans who served during the 1950-1953 conflict, sometimes called the "forgotten war."
The memorial centers on 19 lifelike steel statues of U.S. soldiers on patrol, dressed in full combat gear. The soldiers represent the four branches of the U.S. military and a cross-section of races and ethnicities. Sculpted by World War II veteran Frank Gaylord, they are placed among juniper bushes and granite strips meant to simulate the rough terrain of Korea.
A pool of remembrance and Honor Roll commemorate the dead, missing in action, and prisoners of war among the U.S. and United Nations forces who participated in the conflict. Along the memorial's north entrance lies a curb listing the 22 nations that provided troops or medical support as part of the UN response. On the south side of the memorial, there are three Rose of Sharon hibiscus plants, South Korea's national flower.
The memorial is centrally located, adjacent to the Lincoln Memorial and directly across the Reflecting Pool from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
Lincoln Memorial (www.nps.gov/linc)
No trip to Washington, D.C., is complete without a stop on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to appreciate the breathtaking view east across the Reflecting Pool, toward the Washington Monument and beyond to the U.S. Capitol. This is the nation's capital at its most majestic.
Opened in 1922 and modeled after a Grecian Doric temple, the Lincoln Memorial is a fitting tribute to the U.S. president who steered the country through a bitter Civil War. Architect Henry Bacon designed the building, and Daniel Chester French sculpted the seated statue of Abraham Lincoln, 19 feet tall and carved from 28 blocks of white Georgia marble. On the memorial walls, you'll find inscribed the Gettysburg Address and Lincoln’s second inaugural address.
The memorial's 36 massive columns represent the 25 U.S. states at the time of Lincoln’s death as well as the 11 seceded Southern states; state names are inscribed above each column in the order in which they joined the Union.
While you're pondering the genius of Lincoln, take a moment to remember the many historic moments that took place at the memorial, including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s 1963 "I Have A Dream" speech; opera star Marian Anderson’s moving rendition of "My Country, 'Tis of Thee;" and, most recently, inaugural festivities for President Barack Obama.
Vietnam Veterans Memorial (www.nps.gov/vive/)
Maya Lin designed the Vietnam Veterans Memorial for a course in funerary architecture at Yale University. She got a B-plus, but she submitted the idea to the national competition then under way to pick a design for a Vietnam memorial, and beat out more than1,400 other entrants.
When the plan was unveiled, it caused a minor scandal. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is like no other war memorial built before it: there is no triumphalism or celebration of bravery in it, just a long black granite wall engraved with the seemingly endless names of the Vietnam War's dead. It was called a scar on the earth, a ditch, a slap in the face to veterans. Jim Webb, now a U.S. Senator from Virginia, called it a "nihilistic slab of stone." There were accusations that a Communist had infiltrated the competition jury, and slurs against Lin’s ethnicity. It came very close to not being built at all.
But it was built, and has become perhaps Washington's best-loved monument. "I remember one of the veterans asking me before the wall was built what I thought people's reaction would be to it," Maya Lin has said. "I was too afraid to tell him what I was thinking, that I knew a returning veteran would cry."
She was right. Veterans and family members of those who served do cry in front of the wall, and it's not hard to understand why. The polished surface of the stone gives the visitor a clear reflection of him- or herself, superimposed on the 58,260 names of those who never came home (including 1,200 listed as missing, denoted by a cross rather than the usual diamond). It's a simple, powerful juxtaposition -- we the living, they the dead -- that will move you even if you have no direct connection to the Vietnam War. Every day people leave offerings at the foot of the wall; all of these except for perishables like food and flowers are collected by National Park Service rangers, tagged, and archived. A rotating selection is displayed at the National Museum of American History.
Washington Monument (www.nps.gov/wamo)
At 555 feet, 5.5 inches, the Washington Monument is the tallest stone structure in the world. It is also the tallest structure of any kind in Washington, D.C., meaning that at some point during your visit -- after the fifteenth or twentieth glimpse of it from a lot farther away than you'd have guessed you could see it -- you're bound to start wondering what the city looks like from the windows at its top.
The answer is: it looks stunning. On a clear day you can see 20 miles, but even on a muggy day you'll see far enough to appreciate Pierre L'Enfant's boulevard-and-circle vision of city design, and to take in the way the Potomac sweeps to the south of Capitol Hill. To the north you can look into the White House’s backyard. To the west lie the Reflecting Pool and the Lincoln Memorial; to the south, the Tidal Basin and the Jefferson Memorial; to the east, the whole length of the National Mall, all the buildings of the Smithsonian, and the U.S. Capitol. Around its base flutter fifty American flags, one for each state.
Although it is now the most iconic landmark in Washington, D.C., the Washington Monument sat unfinished for an astonishingly long time. Congress first formed a Washington National Monument Society to raise funds for it in 1833, but bad fundraising, interference by the American Party (also called the Know-Nothings), and the Civil War conspired to leave it stalled as a hundred-foot stump for 50 years. Interest in completing the monument revived with the first Centennial in 1876. Congress appropriated the money necessary to finish it, and the capstone was finally put in place in 1884.
World War II Memorial (www.nps.gov/nwwm)
The National World War II Memorial opened to the public in 2004, after three years of construction and 17 years of planning. The memorial occupies the former site of the Rainbow Pool on the National Mall and consists of several elaborately encoded components.
Surrounding a fountain retained from the Rainbow Pool are: a wall of 4,048 stars, each representing 100 American soldiers who died in the war; two massive arches, one dedicated to the Pacific theatre and one the Atlantic; and 56 pillars engraved with the 48 states and various territories that contributed soldiers to the U.S. war effort. The site spans almost seven and a half acres, and more than 4 million people visit it each year.
Although the Memorial serves principally to honor those who gave their lives, their health, or their loved ones during World War II -- in particular the 16 million who served and the countless civilians who supported the troops from home -- the site is not a somber one, and it functions also as a celebratory reminder of the American people's capacity for great, communal sacrifice.
Martin Luther King Memorial (http://www.mlkmemorial.org/)
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial is conceived of as an engaging landscape experience tied to other landscapes and monuments, not as a single object or memorial dominating the site. The composition of the memorial utilizes landscape elements to powerfully convey four fundamental and recurring themes throughout Dr. King's message: justice, democracy, hope and love. The semicircular geometry of the memorial, juxtaposed within the triangular configuration of the site, engages the Tidal Basin and frames views to the water.
The main entrance through the crescent-shaped inscription wall is aligned along the axis of the Jefferson and Lincoln Memorials, placing this memorial directly in line with the larger democratic ideals that form the context for King's words and deeds. The memorial is envisioned as a quiet and receptive space, yet at the same time, powerful and emotionally evocative, reflecting the spirit of the message Dr. King delivered and the role he played in society.
The King Memorial is intended to be personally transformative for visitors, building a sense of commitment to the promise of positive change and active citizenship. Drawing from Dr. King's own rich metaphorical language, the themes of "the Man, the Movement and the Message" are intertwined into a larger experience of place.
Arlington National Cemetery (http://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/)
The Army National Cemeteries Program, consisting of Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia and Soldiers’ and Airmen’s Home National Cemetery in Washington, DC, are under the jurisdiction of the Department of the Army. The Secretary of the Army consolidated authorities and created the Executive Director of the Army National Cemeteries Program to effectively and efficiently develop, operate manage and administer the program.
Arlington National Cemetery performs 27 to 30 funeral services each day. The grounds of Arlington National Cemetery honor those who have served our nation by providing a sense of beauty and peace for our guests. The rolling green hills are dotted with trees that are hundreds of years in age and complement the gardens found throughout the 624 acres of the cemetery. This impressive landscape serves as a tribute to the service and sacrifice of every individual laid to rest within the hallowed grounds of Arlington National Cemetery.
Smithsonian Museums (www.nasm.si.edu)
The Smithsonian Institution bills itself as "the world's largest museum complex," and it's hard to imagine any other contenders. You could spend a good part of a month visiting all of its 18 Washington, D.C.-area attractions, and since they're all free, you wouldn't spend a cent (except for transportation, lunch, and of course, printing photos of your trip).
The Smithsonian Museum of Natural Historyalone can keep the kids busy for at least a full day; if you want to cross the street and explore the National Gallery of Art, better tack on two days more. Or hike all the way across the National Mall (a whopping eighth of a mile) to see modern and contemporary art at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Asian art at the Freer and Sackler Galleries, or African art at the Museum of African Art. Down the Mall, in the direction of the Capitol, you can check in on the eye-popping collection of planes, jets, and space capsules at the National Air and Space Museum, or learn about the languages, history, and arts of America’s native peoples from the ever-rotating exhibits of the National Museum of the American Indian.
A little farther afield, but still within walking distance, are the Postal Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, the American Art Museum, and the Renwick Gallery (devoted to contemporary craft and decorative arts). Much farther afield—out by Dulles Airport, to be exact—you can see the aircraft and space artifacts that can’t fit on the Mall at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.