 The Washington
Monumentis an obelisk built in honor of George
Washington, the first President of the United States,
that stands in Washington, D.C. near the Potomac River.
The Washington National Monument Society began
raising fund for erection of a monument honoring
George Washington in 1833. A design by Robert Mills
was accepted, and the federal government approved the
project. The cornerstone was laid on July 4, 1848,
with the same trowel Washington has used to lay the
cornerstone of the Capitol, but engineers found the
ground at the original site too soft and moved the
site to the north. Although donations came in from
people, companies and nations around the world, the
Society was unable to maintain financing, and
construction of the monument would start and stop
over and over again until Congress voted in 1876 to
finish the project at government expense. Actual
construction finally began in earnest on August 17,
1880, and was completed on December 6, 1884; it was
dedicated on February 21, 1885, and opened to the
public on October 9, 1888.
Facts and Figures
Height 555 feet 5-1/8 inches
Length of Each Side at Base 55 feet 1-1/8 inches
Length of Each Side at Base of Pyramidion 34
feet 5-1/2 inches
Height of Pyramidion 55 feet
Thickness of Walls at Base 15 feet
Thickness of Walls at Top 18 inches
Thickness of Pyramidion Walls 7 inches
The outside of the walls are covered with white
marble from Maryland.
The inner walls are set with 189 carved memorial stones
donated by individuals, societies, cities, states, and
other countries.
Number of Steps to Observation Deck 898
Total Cost $1,187,710.31
Official Website
www.nps.gov/wamo
George
Washington
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