Spring in Washington - The Washington Monument Rises Above the Cherry Blossoms

Every spring around the first of April the cherry blossoms come to Washington.

Spring Has Come to Washington - The Washington Monument Framed by Cherry Blossoms

The blossoms are accompanied by the annual Cherry Blossom Festival and busload after busload of visitors.

When the blossoms come, the sidewalks that wind through and under the cherry blossom trees are often crowded with visitors from early in the morning until late into the evening.

Many of the cherry blossom trees line the edge of the tidal basin where the Thomas Jefferson Memorial is located.

This picture of the Washington Monument was taken from the sidewalk around the edge of the Tidal Basin.

Click Cherry Blossom Bloom Schedule to visit the National Park Service Cherry Blossom Bloom Schedule.

Click Here for Google Map showing the location of the Washington Monument.

Closest Metro Station: The Smithsonian Metro Station on the Blue and Orange Lines is the nearest Metro Station to the Washington Monument.

The Grotesque (Carving) of Darth Vader at the National Cathedral in Washington DC

Included among the many, many grotesques (carvings) located on the National Cathedral is one of Darth Vader from Star Wars. The gargoyles on the building act as drains, as each gargoyle has a pipe running through its mouth. The grotesques are similar ornamental carvings but without the pipes.

Location of the Grotesque (Carving) of Darth Vader on the East Side of the Northwest Tower of the National Cathedral in Washington DC

Darth Vader is located on the back of one of the front towers, the tower on the left from the viewpoint of a person looking at the front of the Cathedral.

Pictured below are a number of other grotesques located in Darth Vader’s general neighborhood. The cute little raccoon looking thing must have drawn the short straw in order to end up right next to Darth Vader.

Click National Cathedral to see the StationStart.com entry about the Cathedral and its location.

Closest Metro Station: Cleveland Park on the Red Line is the nearest Metro Station to the Washington National Cathedral, but it is about eight-tenths of a mile away. That’s the approximate straight line distance rather than the actual walking or driving distance.

Lost Symbol by Dan Brown: Darth Vader is mentioned in Chapter 31, and the grotesque at the Washington National Cathedral is mentioned in Chapter 79.

These Grotesques are Some of Darth Vader's Nearest Neighbors at the National Cathedral

Longworth House Office Building, 15 Independence Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20515

The Longworth House Office Building has a floor area of just under 600,000 square feet and is the smallest of the three House Office Buildings. It was built in the Neo-Classical Revival style and was finished in 1933.

The large assembly room in this building was used in 1949 and 1950 as the meeting chamber for the House of Representatives while the chamber in the Capitol was undergoing remodeling.

The Longworth House Office Building is located at 15 Independence Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20515. Click Here for Google Map showing the location of the Longworth House Office Building.

Closest Metro Station: The Capitol South Metro Station on the Blue and Orange Lines is nearest to the Longworth House Office Building.

C-3PO Costume From Star Wars Episode 6, Return of the Jedi - Displayed at Smithsonian Institution Museum of American History

C-3PO’s Costume from Star Wars Episode 6 Return of the Jedi is on display at the Smithsonian Institution Museum of American History. The following information is from the museum’s sign accompanying the display.

Movie Costume
1983
C-3PO, an android played by actor Anthony Daniels, appears in all six of director George Lucas’s Star Wars films. This costume was worn in the sixth episode, Return of the Jedi.
Gift of Lucasfilm Ltd., through Howard Roffman

C-3PO’s costume is on display in the Smithsonian Institution Museum of American History. Click Museum of American History to see the StationStart.com entry about the museum and its location. Exhibits in the various Smithsonian Institution Museums do change from time to time, so that any specific item may not be on display at all times.

Closest Metro Station: The Federal Triangle Metro Station on the Blue and Orange Lines is nearest to the Constitution Avenue NW entrance to the Smithsonian Institution Museum of American History.

Bronze Lion Guarding the Pedestrian Entrance to the National Zoo at Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington DC

The National Zoo in Washington DC is one of the best zoos in the United States. There are about 400 different species and about 2,000 different individual animals.

National Zoo Sign at Connecticut Avenue NW and Jewett Street NW, Washington DC

The Panda exhibit is always popular, but there are lots of other animals including Anteater, Bald Eagle, Cheetah, Clouded Leopard, Elephant, Golden Pheasant, Gorilla, King Vulture, Lemur, Lion, Orangutan, Peacock, Seal, Tiger, Wallaby plus many, many other mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish and invertebrates.

Links to other StationStart.com entries about the National Zoo:

• Giant Pandas
• Sumatran Tiger

Click Smithsonian National Zoological Park Website to visit the website of the Smithsonian Institution’s Smithsonian National Zoological Park Website.

The National Zoo in Washington DC is located on Connecticut Avenue NW just north of Hawthorne Street NW, Washington, DC. Click Here for Google Map showing the location of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park.

Closest Metro Station: Two Metro Stations are near the Zoo. The pedestrian entrance to the National Zoo on Connecticut Avenue NW is the same distance from both the Cleveland Park Metro Station and the Woodley Park-Zoo/Adams Morgan Metro Station. The main difference is that the walk from the Cleveland Park Metro Station is fairly level while the walk from the Woodley Park-Zoo/Adams Morgan Metro Station is definitely uphill.

Life Mask of Abraham Lincoln Made February 11, 1865 - Displayed at Smithsonian Institution Museum of American History

Abraham Lincoln’s life mask is on display at the Smithsonian Institution Museum of American History. The following information is from the museum’s signs accompanying the display.

Mill’s Mask of Lincoln
Gift of Theodore Mills, the artist’s son, 1889
On February 11, 1865, about two months before his death, Lincoln permitted sculptor Clark Mills to make this life mask of his face. This was the second and last life mask made of Lincoln.

Written on His Face
The strain of the presidency was written on Abraham Lincoln’s face. His secretary, John Hay, remarked on the dramatic difference in Lincoln’s two life masks. He noted that the first (displayed earlier in the exhibition) “is a man of fifty-one, and young for his years. . . . It is a face full of life, of energy, of vivid aspiration. . . . The other is so sad and peaceful in its infinite repose . . . a look as of one on whom sorrow and care had done their worst without victory is on all the features.”

This life mask of Abraham Lincoln was on display in the Smithsonian Institution Museum of American History. Click Museum of American History to see the StationStart.com entry about the museum and its location. Exhibits in the various Smithsonian Institution Museums do change from time to time, so that any specific item may not be on display at all times.

Closest Metro Station: The Federal Triangle Metro Station on the Blue and Orange Lines is nearest to the Constitution Avenue NW entrance to the Smithsonian Institution Museum of American History.

Statue of Benjamin Franklin in Front of the Old Post Office Pavilion, Washington, DC

This statute of Benjamin Franklin now stands in front of the Old Post Office Pavilion on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC. Words carved into the pedestal of the statue read:

Statue of Benjamin With the Old Post Office Pavilion in the Background

Presented to the National Capital
By
Stilson Hutchins

 

Stilson Hutchins (1838 – 1912) was the founder of the Washington Post. A metal plaque attached to the pedestal of the statue reads:

Erected January 17th 1889
Ernst Plassman, Designer.
Jacques Jouvenal, Sculptor.
J.F. Manning, Designer of Pedestal.
Commissioners of District of Columbia,
W.B. Webb, S.E. Wheatley, C.W. Raymond.

The statue of Benjamin Franklin is located on the southeast corner of the intersection of Pennsylvania Avenue NW and 12th Street NW, Washington, DC. Click Here for Google Map showing the location of the statue.

Closest Metro Station: The Federal Triangle Metro Station on the Blue and Orange Lines is the nearest Metro Station to the Old Post Office Pavilion and the statue of Benjamin Franklin.

Equestrian Statute of Brigadier General Casimir Pulaski in Freedom Plaza, Washington, DC

Casimir Pulaski was born in Poland. Benjamin Franklin met him in Paris and recruited him to fight in support of the colonies in the American Revolution. In 1777 he met General George Washington in Philadelphia. He went on to prove himself to be a valuable resource in the war against England. The plaque on the statue reads:

Brigadier General Casimir Pulaski

Brigadier General Casimir Pulaski

 

 1748 – 1779

The bronze equestrian statue of Brigadier General Casimir Pulaski, portrays the Revolutionary War hero in the uniform of a Polish Cavalry Commander. Born in Winiary, Poland on March 4, 1748 to a noble family, Pulaski gained prominence in Europe for his role in defending liberty in Poland. Excited by the struggle of the emerging American Republic, Pulaski joined in its fight for independence, arriving in Boston in July, 1777.

Pulaski was given a commission as Brigadier General and Chief of Cavalry in Command of All Cavalry of the American Forces. He was present at Germantown, Pennsylvania and led his legion at Haddonfield, New Jersey; Egg Harbor, New Jersey; Charleston, South Carolina; and Savanna, Georgia.
At Svanna, Pulaski was mortally wounded and was taken aboard the American brig, Wasp, where he died and was buried at sea on October 11, 1779. He was 31 years old.

The statue was designed by the sculptor Kazimierz Chodzinski and architect Albert P. Ross. It was erected in 1910.

The statue of Brigadier General Casimir Pulaski is located at the east end of Freedom Plaza near the intersection of 13th and E Streets NW, Washington, DC. Click Here for Google Map showing the location of the statue.

Closest Metro Station: Federal Triangle is the nearest Metro Station to Freedom Plaza and the statue of Brigadier General Casimir Pulaski.

Abraham Lincoln's Top Hat Worn to Ford's Theatre on April 14, 1865

Abraham Lincoln’s top hat is on display at the Smithsonian Institution Museum of American History. The following information is from the museum’s signs accompanying the display.

Lincoln’s Top Hat

Transfer from the War Department with permission from Mary Lincoln, 1867

At six feet four inches tall, Lincoln towered over most of his contemporaries. He chose to stand out even more by wearing high top hats. He acquired this hat from J. Y. Davis, a Washington hat maker. Lincoln had the black silk mourning band added in remembrance of his son Willie. The last time he wore this top hat was to go to Ford’s Theatre on April 14, 1865.

The Hat at the Smithsonian

After Lincoln’s assassination, the War Department preserved his hat and other material left at Ford’s Theatre. With permission from Mary Lincoln, the department gave the hat to the Patent Office, which, in 1867, transferred it to the Smithsonian Institution. Joseph Henry, the Secretary of the Smithsonian, ordered his staff not to exhibit the hat “under any circumstance, and not to mention the matter to any one, on account of there being so much excitement at the time.” It was immediately placed in a basement storage room.

The American public did not see the hat again until 1893, when the Smithsonian lent it to an exhibition hosted by the Lincoln Memorial Association. Today it is one of the Institution’s most treasured objects.

This top hat belonging to Abraham Lincoln is located in the Smithsonian Institution Museum of American History. Click Museum of American History to see the StationStart.com entry about the museum and its location. Exhibits in the various Smithsonian Institution Museums do change from time to time, so that any specific item may not be on display at all times.

Closest Metro Station: The Federal Triangle Metro Station on the Blue and Orange Lines is nearest to the Constitution Avenue NW entrance to the Smithsonian Institution Museum of American History.

Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead! - David G. Farragut Statue in the Center of Farragut Square, Washington, DC

President James A. Garfield dedicated this statue of Admiral David G. Farragut from the Civil War in 1881.

David G. Farragut Statue in the Center of Farragut Square, Washington, DC

The statue is in the center of Farragut Square which is located about two blocks north of the White House and the Eisenhower Executive Office Building.

David G. Farragut shouted “Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!” while taking the harbor in Mobile, Alabama during the Civil War.

The statue of David G. Farragut is located just to the south of the three street intersection of Connecticut Avenue NW and K and 17th Streets NW. Click Here for Google Map showing the location of the David G. Farragut Statue.

Closest Metro Station: Farragut Square is very close to two Metro Stations. An entrance to the Farragut West Metro Station is just across I Street NW from Farragut Square, and an entrance to the Farragut North Metro Station is across K Street NW.