Touring the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C.

Eric and I returned to Washington, D.C. with the goal of walking until our "our dogs are barking."







The construction of the
Washington Monument
started in 1848.

It hit a snag, as you can
see from the different
colored stonework.






The monument was started with private funding in 1848.  The funds ran out in the 1856.  Congress allotted funds to complete the Washington Monument in 1885.   The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the War Department were tasked with completing the Washington Monument.  It was dedicated on February 21, 1885 and officially opened to the public on October 9, 1888.

The construction on the left

is the National Museum of

African American History

& Culture.

I paid $3.00 in  processing
fees to purchase tickets for
a specific date & time to tour
the Washington Monument.






Our purchase was worth every penny.  When Eric and I got off the Metro this morning, we heard that the day's tickets had already been distributed.  After we arrived at the Washington Monument, I saw people leave, dejected,  because they weren't able to enter and tour the monument today.

The elevator takes us up

500 feet in this 555 foot

monument.

We look out windows to see the view to the east...

The National Mall between

here and the U.S. Capitol.

A section of the mall is

being reconstructed.

The view to the south is

of the Tidal Basin & the

Jefferson Memorial.

The westerly view is of

the World War II Memorial,

 the drained Reflecting Pool

& the Lincoln Memorial.

To the north, I see the 

Ellipse & in the distance,

the White House.

The Washington Monument was closed after it was damaged by a 5.8 magnitude earthquake on August 23, 2011. The Monument was obscured by scaffolding for  nearly three years and reopened to the public on May 12, 2014.

The interior of the point

of the Washington

Monument.

The interior of the monument

has decorated stones from 

states & donors.

 As we descend, the elevator operator turns off this lights and we see a few of the 193 memorial stones...

From Otter Summit

Virginia's Loftiest Peak

To Crown a Monument

To Virginia's Noblest Son 

CALIFORNIA

Youngest Sister of the Union

Brings Her Golden Tribute To The

Memory of Its Father

Philomatean Lodge, No. 10

Mount Airy Lodge, No. 235

Walker Lodge, No. 306

Mount Horeb Encampment, No. 18

Germantown, Penna MDCCCL

The Washington Monument

from across the Tidal Basin.

I love taking pictures

of it.