Washington                                                          

                        Washington D.C., city and district, the capital of the U.S.A. it is located at the confluence of the Potomac and Anacortes rivers and flanked by Maryland on the north, east, and southwest and by Virginia on the southwest. The city of Washington is coextensive with the District of Colombia ( D. C.), the federal district of the United States. Established in 1800 as the seat of national government, a role that still dominates its existence.  I chose to focus on two important landmarks in Washington D.C. : The Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial. 

                        The Washington Monument shows how grateful we are to one of the greatest Presidents, George Washington.  In 1833 the Washington Monument society was formed. It was there ambition to create a monument that would show the importance of George Washington.  It took them over 15 years to raise enough money to begin designing the monument.  After many years and many different problems the monument was dedicated on February 21, 1885 and open to the public on October 9, 1888. This monument is a representation of one of the nations greatest leaders. 

Here are some interesting facts about the Washington Monument:

                        Total Cost: $1,187,710

                        Height of monument above floor: 555 feet 5 1/8 inches

                        Width at base of shaft: 55 feet 1 2 inches

                        Thickness of walls at base of shaft: 15 feet

                        Thickness of walls at top of the shaft: 18 inches

                        Depth of the foundation: 36 feet 10 inches

                        Weight of the monument: 90, 854 tons

                           Sway of the monument in a 30 mile per hour wind: 

                            0.125  of   an inch.

         In 1867 the Lincoln Monument Association began. In 1901 they chose the site for the memorial Congress agreed on a design for the memorial and construction began on February 12, 1914.  Daniel French designed the memorial and the Piccinilli brother carved it. It is 19 feet tall and 19 feet wide and is made of 28 separate  blocks.  President Warren G. Harding dedicated the memorial on May 30th 1922.  Inside the memorial sits a statue depicting Abe Lincoln and the inscription of Gettysburg Address. 

        The Lincoln Memorial is staffed from 8 am  to midnight every day. The memorial is a unit of the National Park System, which contains over 360 parks depicting our country's natural and cultural heritage!