Because the nation’s capital was in Philadelphia at the time of George Washington’s administration, he was the only president who did not live in Washington, D.C. during his presidency.
from Washington, D.C.
written by Elina Furman
with consultants Melissa N. Matusevich and Margaret E. Flynn
Children’s Press/Scholastic, Inc., 2002
Even though I don’t much like an airplane ride and I’ve never climbed a mountain, I do enjoy the view from up high. I’ve been to the top of the Terminal Tower in Cleveland (when it was one of the world’s tallest buildings) and the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. I looked out the windows in the Statue of Liberty’s crown, and gazed over the rim of the Grand Canyon. I’ve climbed spiral staircases to tops of many lighthouses and viewed oceans, lakes, and the Gulf of Mexico.
But until two weekends ago, I had not reached the top of the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C. It was not for lack of trying. Everything from an earthquake to high winds, huge crowds, and poor timing thwarted my efforts.
Then, after waiting in a long line that ran about an hour behind schedule, my daughter and I showed our IDs, passed through the X-ray monitor, and rode the elevator to the 500th level.
Because of a variety of safety concerns, the 897 steps that make up the interior stairway are no longer open to the public. Too bad, too. The stairway is lined with 193 commemorative stones designed by “[individual] U.S. states, foreign countries, fraternal organizations, Sunday school classes, American Indian tribes, cities, counties and individuals,” as noted in an article aired by the WAMU radio station on September 23, 2019.
I saw photos of them in the monument’s exhibit space on the 490th level. I also snapped pics with my camera when the elevator paused on it’s way back down. You can also see them on line.
At its interior, the monument’s base is an 80-foot square step-pyramid substructure. Beginning at level 452, the substructure ends and the hollow walls are solid marble. Approximately 36,000 blocks of marble and granite were used to overlay the substructure and complete the obelisk.
The Egyptian obelisk was chosen for the monument's design. The shape's simplicity symbolizes stability, national unity, and timelessness. The first rows of marble were donated by a quarry in Baltimore, but financial and political differences combined with the Civil War put construction on hold. After 40 years, when Congress allocated enough funds to complete it, the Baltimore quarry was unable to supply the rest of the stone. It was imported from several other states.
The standard dimension of an obelisk is 1:10, where the height is ten times the base’s width.
The Washington Monument is 555 feet and 5-1/8 inches high. A 55 foot pyramidion, a large marble capstone, sits at the 500 foot level, itself topped with a small(ish) aluminum pyramid, with inscriptions on each side.
According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, (ASCE), [t]he weight of the completed obelisk was so well distributed that it can withstand winds up to 145 miles per hour. A 30-mph wind causes a sway of just 0.125 inch at its peak.
Even so, out of an abundance of caution, no visitors are allowed inside during high winds and other severe weather conditions.
Washington, the man, was a leader as unique as his monument. Just as he said he would not be a king, he rejected the idea of a monument to himself.
At the time of his death in 1799, political squabbling, lack of appropriations, and his family’s reluctance to move his body from its resting place in Mount Vernon to a tomb in the new capital, postponed breaking ground.
Finally begun in 1848, construction came to a halt just six years later. Money and politics, again, but also notably the Civil War left Washington’s monument unfinished until the end of 1884. It opened to the public in 1888.
At the time of its completion, the Washington Monument was the tallest structure in the world, only surpassed in 1889 by the Eiffel Tower at 984 feet.
To ensure that the monument will remain the tallest structure in Washington, D.C. a city law was passed in 1910. It is still the world’s tallest free-standing stone structure.
In each direction, the views from the top offer a contemplative view. To the south, the Jefferson Memorial and the Tidal Basin (I had to imagine the cherry trees in bloom), and to the east, the US Capitol. Except for its demolished East wing, the White House is out the north window. The Lincoln Memorial sits out the west.
Monumental, each view and each structure.
Just as our national physical structures need maintenance, repair, and at times, re-dedication to the symbols they stand for, we all need to take care of ourselves and each other and re-dedicate ourselves to our own principles, priorities, and plans for the future.
More than 800,000 people visit Washington’s Monument each year. I’m proud to have been one of them.
I just started A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles (Penguin Books, 2016). More on this next time.
-—Be curious! (and patriotic)
from Washington, D.C.
written by Elina Furman
with consultants Melissa N. Matusevich and Margaret E. Flynn
Children’s Press/Scholastic, Inc., 2002
Even though I don’t much like an airplane ride and I’ve never climbed a mountain, I do enjoy the view from up high. I’ve been to the top of the Terminal Tower in Cleveland (when it was one of the world’s tallest buildings) and the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. I looked out the windows in the Statue of Liberty’s crown, and gazed over the rim of the Grand Canyon. I’ve climbed spiral staircases to tops of many lighthouses and viewed oceans, lakes, and the Gulf of Mexico.
But until two weekends ago, I had not reached the top of the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C. It was not for lack of trying. Everything from an earthquake to high winds, huge crowds, and poor timing thwarted my efforts.
Then, after waiting in a long line that ran about an hour behind schedule, my daughter and I showed our IDs, passed through the X-ray monitor, and rode the elevator to the 500th level.
Because of a variety of safety concerns, the 897 steps that make up the interior stairway are no longer open to the public. Too bad, too. The stairway is lined with 193 commemorative stones designed by “[individual] U.S. states, foreign countries, fraternal organizations, Sunday school classes, American Indian tribes, cities, counties and individuals,” as noted in an article aired by the WAMU radio station on September 23, 2019.
I saw photos of them in the monument’s exhibit space on the 490th level. I also snapped pics with my camera when the elevator paused on it’s way back down. You can also see them on line.
At its interior, the monument’s base is an 80-foot square step-pyramid substructure. Beginning at level 452, the substructure ends and the hollow walls are solid marble. Approximately 36,000 blocks of marble and granite were used to overlay the substructure and complete the obelisk.
The Egyptian obelisk was chosen for the monument's design. The shape's simplicity symbolizes stability, national unity, and timelessness. The first rows of marble were donated by a quarry in Baltimore, but financial and political differences combined with the Civil War put construction on hold. After 40 years, when Congress allocated enough funds to complete it, the Baltimore quarry was unable to supply the rest of the stone. It was imported from several other states.
The standard dimension of an obelisk is 1:10, where the height is ten times the base’s width.
The Washington Monument is 555 feet and 5-1/8 inches high. A 55 foot pyramidion, a large marble capstone, sits at the 500 foot level, itself topped with a small(ish) aluminum pyramid, with inscriptions on each side.
According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, (ASCE), [t]he weight of the completed obelisk was so well distributed that it can withstand winds up to 145 miles per hour. A 30-mph wind causes a sway of just 0.125 inch at its peak.
Even so, out of an abundance of caution, no visitors are allowed inside during high winds and other severe weather conditions.
Washington, the man, was a leader as unique as his monument. Just as he said he would not be a king, he rejected the idea of a monument to himself.
At the time of his death in 1799, political squabbling, lack of appropriations, and his family’s reluctance to move his body from its resting place in Mount Vernon to a tomb in the new capital, postponed breaking ground.
Finally begun in 1848, construction came to a halt just six years later. Money and politics, again, but also notably the Civil War left Washington’s monument unfinished until the end of 1884. It opened to the public in 1888.
At the time of its completion, the Washington Monument was the tallest structure in the world, only surpassed in 1889 by the Eiffel Tower at 984 feet.
To ensure that the monument will remain the tallest structure in Washington, D.C. a city law was passed in 1910. It is still the world’s tallest free-standing stone structure.
In each direction, the views from the top offer a contemplative view. To the south, the Jefferson Memorial and the Tidal Basin (I had to imagine the cherry trees in bloom), and to the east, the US Capitol. Except for its demolished East wing, the White House is out the north window. The Lincoln Memorial sits out the west.
Monumental, each view and each structure.
Just as our national physical structures need maintenance, repair, and at times, re-dedication to the symbols they stand for, we all need to take care of ourselves and each other and re-dedicate ourselves to our own principles, priorities, and plans for the future.
More than 800,000 people visit Washington’s Monument each year. I’m proud to have been one of them.
I just started A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles (Penguin Books, 2016). More on this next time.
-—Be curious! (and patriotic)
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