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Following the move of the US Capital from Philadelphia to Washington D.C. in 1790, plans began immediately to lay out a new capital city worthy of the Union. Before long, what had previously been a patch of swampland on the Potomac River in Virginia was drained to make way for the new capital. A series of city planners including Pierre Charles L'Enfant, Andrew Jackson Downing, and Senator James McMillan worked over the course of the 19th and early 20th century to bring their succeeding visions forward for a gleaming US Capitol. Built upon the latest models of modern urban planning, the heart of Washington D.C., with its broad avenues, cartographic symmetry, and stately collection of imposing neoclassical federal buildings, museums, and monuments, gives the city its unique urban aesthetic and character. Washington D.C. is now one of the most instantly recognizable cities in the United States. This edition of Cityscape will take an in-depth look at the iconic architecture of the National Mall, from the US Capitol Building to the White House, from the Lincoln Memorial to the Jefferson Memorial, and everything in between.
The vision of Senator James McMillan in 1901, today's National Mall harkens back to the original plans drawn up by Pierre Charles L'Enfant in 1791. The sprawling Victorian-Era landscaped gardens and winding paths created by Andrew Jackson Downing were largely erased to make way for what became known as the McMillan Plan. Inspired by the City Beautiful Movement, which at the time was seen as the forefront of modern urban planning, the McMillan Plan sought to correct the haphazard efforts of its predecessor, and to remake Washington D.C. in a rational, yet aesthetically pleasing light. Its centrepiece was to be a grand mall in the tradition of those found in the capitals of Europe, albeit one that would celebrate all that it meant to be modern, forward thinking, and above all else, American.
While much of the area that became the National Mall had previously been home to a mix of beautified parkland and industrial and/or commercial uses during much of the 19th century, nearly all of this was cleared away to make way for what we know today as the National Mall. The stately rows of museums and galleries that came to line the large public green space were added over the course of the 20th century, and the National Mall's development has continued right up to the present.
Beginning at the east end of the National Mall, the US Capitol Building was the vision of architect William Thornton, winner of a design competition begun by Founding Father and future President, Thomas Jefferson, and was constructed between 1793 and 1800. The cornerstone was laid by none other than President George Washington on September 18, 1793, and it was subsequently expanded, most famously during the 1860s with the addition of its central dome. The US Capitol Building, along with the White House and Washington Monument, are among the oldest and most recognizable structures in Washington D.C.. In fact, the US Capitol Building predates the construction of the National Mall by more than a century.
Burned by the British (and Canadians) during the War of 1812, the present-day US Capitol Building is comprised of an amalgamation of structures from different eras. The building we see today is the product of more than 200 years of remodelling and expansion efforts, some grand, and some hidden from view. Built in a distinctive neoclassical style, featuring a brilliant white exterior finish and outfitted with countless columns, porticoes, and rotundas, the US Capitol Building sets the tone for the majority of the National Mall. The bulk of structures completed there between 1900 and 1950 more or less conform to a strict set of architectural principles.
Moving westward along the length of the National Mall, the Smithsonian Institute's National Museum of Natural History, completed in 1910, was the first of its kind constructed on the National Mall under the McMillan Plan. The museum today is one of the most popular sites in Washington D.C., taking in more than seven million visitors per year. Completed in the neoclassical style, the 1.5 million-square-foot museum is home to one of the largest collections in the world, and its more than 1,000 resident scientists, historians, and researchers, comprise the largest congregation of professionals dedicated to the study of natural history anywhere on earth.
Moving further west, past the traditional bounds of the National Mall into what is commonly referred to as the West End of the National Mall, the Washington Monument serves as a bookend (opposite to the US Capitol Building) to the National Mall proper. The 555-foot stone obelisk is a dividing point between the two, as well as the point at which the sprawling White House grounds meet the National Mall along its northern boundary. Begun in 1848, the Washington Monument was not completed until 1888, as the intervening 40 years included the Civil War and subsequent period of economic turmoil that followed.
Built in stages, the Washington Monument features two slightly different shades of marble. They were taken from two different sources, and the abrupt break in tone is noticeable to those with keen eyes. The effect is visible in the image above in which the whole of the Washington Monument is reflected in the adjacent Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. 2,029 feet long, the popular water feature was completed in 1923 following the dedication of the Lincoln Memorial, which sits at the western edge of the Reflecting Pool and additionally serves as the Western End of the National Mall.
Designed by Henry Bacon, the neoclassical Lincoln Memorial borrows heavily from Ancient Greek architectural traditions. The structure itself is modelled after a Greek temple, with 36 Doric marble columns (one for every state in the Union at the time of Lincoln's death in 1865), along with a decorative frieze included above the colonnade, designed in a manner very much in tune with the architecture of Ancient Greece. Seated inside the Memorial, a 19-foot tall statue of President Abraham Lincoln, made of white Georgia marble and designed by Daniel Chester French, was completed in 1920. The entire Lincoln Memorial was dedicated and opened to the public by President Warren G. Harding in 1922.
Contrasted with the nearby Jefferson Memorial, found just south of the West End of the National Mall in East Potomac Park, the Lincoln Memorial is much grander in scope and design. The treatment given to Founding Father and President Thomas Jefferson is notably smaller in scale though no less elegant, and some have suggested that despite its diminutive size, the Jefferson Memorial is superior in its comparative lack of ostentation. Surrounded by a series of Ionic columns and capped with a portico and dome, the neoclassical Jefferson Memorial was designed by John Russell Pope. The memorial was completed between 1939 and 1943, while the accompanying bronze 19-foot statue of President Jefferson was added by Rudolph Evans in 1947. One of the final pieces of the original McMillan Plan, the Jefferson Memorial serves as a nice capstone to the era. The structures and monuments that followed the Second World War feature a major break from neoclassical architecture, moving into various modern styles befitting the changing times.
Last but not least, no trip to the National Mall is complete without a visit to the White House. Though it falls just outside the boundaries of the National Mall, the President's home address is an absolute must-see. The world-famous home has been synonymous with Washington D.C. and the United States generally for more than 200 years. Built between 1792 and 1800, and also burned to the ground by the British during the War of 1812, the White House, or Executive Mansion as it was once known, has been built upon and expanded over the years by nearly every President since John Adams. Set to become the home of President-Elect Donald J. Trump, at least whenever the former real estate mogul and sometimes reality TV star is not in his Manhattan penthouse at Trump Tower, the White House, like the rest of the historic edifices and monuments of the National Mall will endure.
Cityscape will return soon with a new installment, and in the meantime, SkyriseCities welcomes new suggestions for additional cities and styles to cover in the weeks to come. Got an idea for the next issue? Let us know!
