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| National Mall | |
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| U.S. National Register of Historic Places | |
 Facing east across the Mall towards the Capitol
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| Location: | Between Independence and Constitution Avenues from the Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial |
| Architect: | Pierre (Peter) Charles L'Enfant; McMillan Commission |
| Governing body: | National Park Service |
| Added to NRHP: | October 15, 1966 |
| NRHP Reference#: | 66000031[1] |
The National Mall is an open-area national park in downtown Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. The National Mall is a unit of the National Park Service (NPS), and is administered by the National Mall and Memorial Parks unit.[2] The term "National Mall" commonly includes areas that are officially part of West Potomac Park and Constitution Gardens to the west, and often is taken to refer to the entire area between the Lincoln Memorial and the United States Capitol, with the Washington Monument providing a division slightly west of the center. The National Mall receives approximately 24 million visitors each year.[3]
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In his 1791 plan for the future city of Washington, D.C., Pierre (Peter) Charles L'Enfant envisioned a garden-lined "grand avenue" approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) in length and 400 feet (120 m) wide, in an area that would lie between the Capitol building and an equestrian statue of George Washington to be placed directly south of the White House.[4][5][6] The National Mall occupies the site of this planned "grand avenue", which was never constructed. The Washington Monument stands near the planned site of its namesake's equestrian statue.
During the early 1850s, horticulturist Andrew Jackson Downing designed a landscape plan for the Mall. Over the next half century, federal agencies developed several naturalistic parks within the Mall in accordance with Downing's plan. In addition, railroad tracks crossed the Mall west of the Capitol. Near the tracks, a large market (Central Market) and a railroad station rose on the north side of the Mall. Greenhouses belonging to the U.S. Botanic Garden appeared near the east end of the Mall.[7]
In 1901, the McMillan Commission's plan, which was partially inspired by the City Beautiful Movement and which purportedly extended L'Enfant's plan, called for a radical redesign of the Mall that would replace its greenhouses, gardens, trees and commercial/industrial facilities with an open space. The plan differed from L’Enfant’s by replacing the 400 feet (120 m) wide "grand avenue" with a 300 feet (91 m) wide expanse of grass lined on either side by symmetrical rows of American elms bordered by streets and buildings. A path reminiscent of L'Enfant's "grand avenue", but of lesser width, would traverse the length of the mall at its center.[8][9] However, in 2002, the National Mall had instead as its central feature a grassy lawn flanked on each side by unpaved tree-lined paths.[10]
In 1918, contractors for the United States Navy's Bureau of Yards and Docks constructed the "Main Navy" and "Munitions" Buildings along nearly a third of a mile of the south side of Constitution Avenue (then known as B Street), from 17th Street Northwest (NW) to 21st Street NW.[11][12][13] Although the Navy intended the buildings to provide temporary quarters for the United States military during World War I, the reinforced concrete structures remained in place until 1970.[11][12] Much of the buildings' area then became Constitution Gardens, which was dedicated in 1976.[12][14]
On October 15, 1966, the National Mall was listed on National Register of Historic Places.[15] In 1981, the NPS prepared a National Register nomination form that documented the Mall's historical significance.[4] More recently, the 108th United States Congress enacted the Commemorative Works Clarification and Revision Act of 2003, which prohibits the siting of new commemorative works and visitor centers in a designated reserve area within the cross-axis of the Mall.[16]
The official boundaries of the National Mall (National Mall proper) are Constitution and Pennsylvania Avenues on the north, 1st Street, NW on the east, Independence and Maryland Avenues on the south, and 14th Street, NW on the west, with the exception of the section of land bordered by Jefferson Drive on the north, Independence Avenue on the south, and by 12th and 14th Streets respectively on the east and west, which the U.S. Department of Agriculture administers.[4] However, people often consider areas outside of these boundaries to be part of the Mall.
The National Mall (proper) contains the following landmarks, museums and other features:[4]
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2. National Museum of American History[19] |
11. National Air and Space Museum |
Capitol Reflecting Pool (see United States Capitol Complex) |
With the exception of the National Gallery of Art, all of the museums on the National Mall (proper) are part of the Smithsonian Institution. The Smithsonian maintains a number of gardens near its museums.[27] These gardens include:
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Mary Livingston Ripley Garden[28][29] |
Victory Garden at the National Museum of American History[34] |
As popularly understood, the Mall also contains landmarks and features that are east of 1st Street, such as the United States Capitol and its grounds (#7 on image) and some that are south of Maryland Avenue, such as the United States Botanic Garden (#9 on image). Many people also believe that the Mall contains landmarks and features that are west of 14th Street, NW, including the Washington Monument (#1 on image), the Monument's grounds and the following:
The Smithsonian Institution is planning to construct the National Museum of African American History and Culture on a 5 acres (2.0 ha) site between the grounds of the Washington Monument and the National Museum of American History. The boundaries of the museum site are Constitution Avenue on the north, Madison Drive on the south, 14th Street, NW on the east, and 15th Street, NW on the west. Construction is expected to begin in 2012.[38]
Other attractions within walking distance of the National Mall include the Library of Congress and the United States Supreme Court Building east of the Capitol; the White House (on a line directly north of the Washington Monument), the National Archives, the Old Post Office Pavilion, the National Theatre, Ford's Theatre, and the Albert Einstein Memorial to the north; the National Postal Museum and Union Station to the northeast; and the Jefferson Memorial, the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, the George Mason Memorial, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and the Bureau of Engraving and Printing to the south.
The Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial, scheduled for completion in 2011, will be located on a 4 acres (1.6 ha) site south of the Mall on the northeast corner of the Tidal Basin. The site is within the sightline between the Jefferson and Lincoln Memorials.[39][40]
The National Mall, in combination with the other attractions in the Washington Metropolitan Area, makes the nation's capital city one of the most popular tourist destinations in the country. However, it has uses other than as a tourist focal point.
The National Mall's status as a wide, open expanse at the heart of the capital makes it an attractive site for protests and rallies of all types. One notable example is the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, a political rally for African American civil rights, at which Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech.
The largest officially recorded rally was the Vietnam War Moratorium Rally on October 15, 1969. Although larger rallies may have occurred since that time, the United States Park Police no longer releases official estimates of crowd sizes on the Mall. One later rally that is claimed to have been the largest rally on the Mall was the 2004 March for Women's Lives. On January 27, 2007, tens of thousands of protesters opposed to the Iraq War, converged on the Mall, drawing comparisons by participants to the Vietnam War protest.[41][42][43][44]
During presidential inaugurations, people without official tickets gather at the National Mall. Normally, the Mall between 7th and 14th Streets, NW is used as a staging ground for the parade.[45]
On December 4, 2008, the Presidential Inaugural Committee (see United States presidential inauguration#Organizers) announced that "for the first time, the entire length of the National Mall will be opened to the public so that more people than ever before will be able to witness the swearing-in of the President from a vantage point in sight of the Capitol."[46] This arrangement was made because of the massive turnout – projected to be as many 2 million people – expected for the inauguration of Barack Obama on January 20, 2009. Despite the arrangement, thousands of people with tickets were denied entrance to the event, including over 1000 who missed the event while being stranded in the I-395 Third Street Tunnel beneath the Mall after police directed them there (see Purple Tunnel of Doom).[47][48][49] The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies subsequently announced that ticket holders that were not admitted would receive copies of the swearing-in invitation and program, photos of Obama and Vice President Joe Biden, and a color print of the ceremony.[50]
The National Mall has long served as a spot for jogging, picnics, and light recreation for the Washington population. The Smithsonian Carousel, located on the Mall in front of the Arts and Industry Building, is a popular attraction that operates seasonally.[51] The carousel was constructed in Gwynn Oak Park near Baltimore, Maryland, in 1947 and was moved to the Mall in 1975.[26]
The Mall is host to several large annual events. On the last Saturday of March each year, the Smithsonian Kite Festival takes place on the Washington Monument grounds during the first day of the National Cherry Blossom Festival.[52][53]
An Earth Day celebration takes place on the Mall each year around April 22.[54][55] A week-long series of rallies, exhibits, observances and performances will occur on the Mall from April 17 to April 25, 2010 to commemorate Earth Day's 40th anniversary.[56]
A four-day exhibition takes place each year on the Mall during Public Service Recognition Week in early May. During that event, government agencies sponsor exhibits that display the works of public employees and that enable visitors to learn about government programs and initiatives, discuss employee benefits, and interact with agency representatives.[57][58]
Components of the United States Navy Band, the United States Air Force Band and the United States Army Band perform on the west steps of the United States Capitol on Monday, Wednesday and Friday evenings, respectively, during June, July and August.[59][60][61] On Monday nights during July and August, the Mall hosts the annual Screen on the Green movie festival.[62] The free classic movies are projected on large portable screens and typically draw crowds of thousands of people.
The Smithsonian Folklife Festival takes place on the Mall each year for two weeks around Independence Day (July 4).[63] On that holiday, the A Capitol Fourth concert takes place in the late afternoon and early evening on the west lawn of the Capitol.[64] This and other Independence Day celebrations on and near the Mall end after sunset with a fireworks display between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial.[65]
The National Book Festival takes place on the Mall each year in late September or early October.[66]
From 1980 through 1982, The Beach Boys and The Grass Roots performed Independence Day concerts on the Mall, attracting large crowds.[67][68] However, in April 1983, James G. Watt, President Ronald Reagan's Secretary of the Interior, banned Independence Day concerts on the Mall by such groups. Watt said that "rock bands" that had performed on the Mall on Independence Day in 1981 and 1982 had encouraged drug use and alcoholism and had attracted the "the wrong element", who would mug individuals and families attending any similar events in the future.[68] Watt then announced that Las Vegas crooner Wayne Newton, a friend and supporter of President Reagan and a contributor to Republican Party political campaigns, would perform at the Mall's 1983 Independence Day celebration.[68][69] During the ensuing uproar, Rob Grill, lead singer of The Grass Roots, stated that he felt "highly insulted" by Watt's remarks, which he called "nothing but un-American".[68] The Beach Boys stated that the Soviet Union, which had invited them to perform in Leningrad in 1978, "obviously .... did not feel that the group attracted the wrong element".[68] Vice President George H. W. Bush said of The Beach Boys, "They're my friends and I like their music".[68] When Newton entered an Independence Day stage on the Mall on July 4, 1983, members of his audience booed.[70][71][72] Watt apologized to The Beach Boys, First Lady Nancy Reagan apologized for Watt, and in 1984 The Beach Boys gave an Independence Day concert on the Mall to an audience of 750,000 people.[70][73][74][75]
On September 4, 2003, Britney Spears, Mary J. Blige, Aretha Franklin, Aerosmith and others performed in a nationally-televised "NFL Kickoff Live from the National Mall Presented by Pepsi Vanilla".[76] Preceded by a three-day National Football League "interactive Super Bowl theme park", the event had primarily commercial purposes, unlike earlier major activities on the Mall.
On July 7, 2007, one leg of Live Earth was held outdoors at the National Museum of the American Indian on the Mall. Former Vice President Al Gore presented, and artists such as Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood performed.[77]
The inaugural USA Science & Engineering Festival Expo will take place on the National Mall on October 23 and 24, 2010. The event organizers expect that over 300 organizations will host exhibits.[78]
The National Mall is accessible via Washington Metro, with the Smithsonian station located on the south side of the Mall, near the Smithsonian Institution Building between the Washington Monument and the United States Capitol.[79][80] The Federal Triangle, Archives–Navy Memorial–Penn Quarter, and Union Station Metro stations are also located near the Mall, to the north.[81][82][83] The L'Enfant Plaza, Federal Center Southwest and Capitol South Metro stations are located several blocks south of the Mall.[84][85][86] Metrobus and the DC Circulator make scheduled stops around the Mall.[87][88]
The NPS provides parking facilities for bicycles near each of the major memorials as well as along the National Mall.[89] From March to October, an NPS concessionaire rents out bicycles at the Thompson Boat Center, located near the intersection of Virginia Avenue, Northwest and Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway, 1 mile (1.6 km) north of the Lincoln Memorial along the Potomac River-Rock Creek Trail.[89][90][91]
General visitor parking is available along Ohio Drive, Southwest (SW), between the Lincoln and Thomas Jefferson Memorials. Bus parking is available primarily along Ohio Drive, SW, near the Lincoln and Thomas Jefferson Memorials and along Ohio Drive, SW, in East Potomac Park. There is limited handicapped parking at the Franklin Delano Roosevelt and World War II Memorials and near the Washington Monument and the Thomas Jefferson, Lincoln, Korean War Veterans, and Vietnam Veterans Memorials; otherwise, parking is extremely scarce in and near the Mall.[92]
The NPS is currently sponsoring a public process that will create a plan for the future of the National Mall. In 2009, the NPS issued a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) for the plan. The public comment period for the draft EIS will end on March 18, 2010.[93]
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Coordinates: 38°53′24″N 77°01′25″W / 38.89°N 77.02361°W
, facing west across the Mall. In front of the statue of the horse is the Ulysses S. Grant Memorial. The Washington Monument in the background.]]
The National Mall is an open park in downtown Washington, D.C.. It has many museums, like the Smithsonian and the National Gallery of Art. It is found between the United States Capitol and the Washington Monument, which are about one mile apart. It is a popular place, and is used for exercise, recreation, music concerts, festivals, and protests. It is also visited by many tourists - over 25 million people come to the Mall each year.[1]
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Officially, the Mall is the area between the U.S. Capitol and the Washington Monument. However, there is another park that is right next to the Mall, which is from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial. The Reflecting Pool is in this park, as well as many monuments and museums. Many people say that this park is also part of the National Mall.
The National Mall has many trees. Most of these trees are elm and cherry blossoms. The cherry blossom trees were given to the United States by Japan in 1912.[2]
Pierre L'Enfant, the man who planned Washington D.C., wanted to have a park in the middle of the city. However, the National Mall was not always a park. In the 19th century, there was a railroad that ran through the Mall. Cows also grazed (ate grass) on the Mall.[3] There was a large market on one side of the Mall. During the American Civil War, there were many buildings on the Mall. There were even slaughterhouses on the Mall - places where animals are killed and turned into meat.[4] In 1901, the Senate passed the McMillan Plan. This cleaned up the National Mall and moved the railroad to Union Station.
and the reflecting pool from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.]]
Many events happen at the National Mall. The National Park Service says that over 3,000 events happen each year, but most of these are tours.[5] Some of the biggest events that happen each year are the Cherry Blossom Festival, the National Book Festival, an Earth Day festival, and parades on Veteran's Day and Independence Day.
Protests and rallies also happen at the National Mall. One of the most famous was the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963, where Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his I Have a Dream speech. A rally in 1969 to end the Vietnam War was the biggest protest on the Mall. Over 2 million people came and marched to the White House.[6] In 1995, the Million Man March was held on the Mall.
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1. Washington Monument |
10. National Museum of the American Indian |
picture of the National Mall was taken by a satellite on April 26, 2002. The Capitol on the right was pixelated before release for security reasons.]]
There are many places very close to the Mall. The Library of Congress and the United States Supreme Court building are just east of the Capitol. The White House, the National Archives, the Old Post Office, and, Ford's Theater (where Abraham Lincoln was killed) are just north. The National Postal Museum, and Union Station are northeast. The Jefferson Memorial, the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and the Bureau of Engraving and Printing to the south.
   | NPS Official Site of the National Mall - National Mall & Memorial Parks - National Mall & Memorial Parks (U.S. National Park Service) |
| | Official Site of the United States Botanic Garden - The United States Botanic Garden |
| | National mall - washington,DC - Google Maps |
| | Photo Collection of tourist attractions during four seaons around national mall - Washington DC Pictures, Washington DC photos, Washington DC Attractions and Tours |
| | NPS Site for the National Mall Plan - National Mall Plan Homepage |
| | Protest Focuses on Iraq Troop Increase - The New York Times > Log In |
| | Wide opposition to war energizes protests / WASHINGTON: Jane Fonda among celebrity protesters joining veterans, politicians in calling for end to war - Wide opposition to war energizes protests / WASHINGTON: Jane Fonda among celebrity protesters joining veterans, politicians in calling for end to war |
| | National Register Information System - NRIS Search by location |
| | Official Site of the Trust for the National Mall - Trust for the National Mall - The Official Partner of the National Park Service for the National Mall in Washington DC |
| | National Mall & Memorial Parks - National Mall & Memorial Parks (U.S. National Park Service) - National Mall & Memorial Parks - National Mall & Memorial Parks (U.S. National Park Service) |
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