Washington Monument

Fast Facts about the Washington Monument
Fast, fun facts for kids about the Washington Monument:

● Location: 2 15th St NW, Washington, DC 20007, United States
● How tall? Height is 555 feet 5 1/8 inches (169.29 meters)
● How old? It was built 1848 - 1884
● When dedicated? It was dedicated on February 21, 1885
● What does it weigh? It weighs 90,854 tons
● Admission? Free. Open every day but July 4 and December 25
● What was the Cost? The cost was $1,187,710
● Date it was opened to the public: October 9, 1888
● Name of the Designer: Robert Mills

Washington Monument Fact Sheet
Interesting, fun Washington Monument Facts for kids are detailed below. The history of the building of the Washington Monument is told in a factual sequence consisting of a series of unusual short facts providing a simple method of relating the famous people and events and the construction of this famous American landmark

Washington Monument Fun Facts for kids

Washington Monument Fact 1: The 555 foot tall obelisk is the tallest building in the District of Columbia and by law, no other building in Washington D.C. is allowed to be taller.

Washington Monument Fact 2: It is open from 9:00 am to 10:00 pm during the summer months and from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm for the rest of the year

Washington Monument Fact 3: Construction work stopped half way due to lack of funds

Washington Monument Fact 4: Inside the Washington Monument are an elevator and a 897-step stairway.

Washington Monument Fact 5: The outer walls are made of white marble blocks from Maryland and Massachusetts. The obelisk is also made of granite, and sandstone

Washington Monument Fact 6: The interior walls contain 193 memorial stones installed on its east and west interior walls. The memorial stones start at the 30-foot level and continue to the 450-foot level

Washington Monument Fact 7: In 1853, Congress appropriated $50,000 for the erection of an equestrian statue of George Washington by Clark Mills. The statue was made and was placed in the rotunda in 1841, but subsequently removed into the east park of the Capitol

Washington Monument Fact 8: The words "Laus Deo" are inscribed on the aluminum capstone. The words "Laus Deo" comes from the old Latin Mass meaning "Praise be to God!"

Washington Monument Fact 9: Two other inscriptions are "4th July, 1776. Declaration of Independence of the United States of America" and "4th July, 1848. This Corner-Stone Laid of a Monument, by the People of the United States, to the Memory of George Washington."

Washington Monument Fact 10: The walls at the base are 15 feet thick. The Width at base is 55 feet 1 1/2 inches

Washington Monument Fact 11: Views from the top of the structure are in excess of 30 miles

Washington Monument Fact 12: Lightning rods at the top protect the structure from lightning strikes

Washington Monument Fact 13: The total area covered by the monument is 106.01 acres

Washington Monument Fact 14: The obelisk is constructed of white marble ashlar blocks

Washington Monument Fact 15: The Sylvan Theatre was built in 1917 as a natural outdoor theater

Washington Monument Fact 16: The Lodge structure was originally built in 1888 to serve as a waiting room, comfort station, and visitor services station

Washington Monument Fact 17: The Granite Plaza at the base  is a large circular Plaza with two concentric rings; the first ring has a diameter of 147 feet and the second ring is 240 feet in diameter.

Washington Monument Fact 18: The obelisk rests on an artificially constructed knoll that was designed to hide the original foundation and to provide additional stability to the soil underpinning it

Washington Monument Fact 19: The ride on the steam elevator took 20 minutes, the modern elevator takes under 1 minute

Washington Monument Fact 20: Significance: It is the world's tallest stone structure and the world's tallest obelisk

Washington Monument Fun Facts for kids

Washington Monument
The info about the opening of the Washington Monument provides interesting facts and important information about this important event that occured during the presidency of the 21st President of the United States of America.

Washington Monument Timeline for kids: Timeline and Fact Sheet
The history timeline of the Washington Monument is told in a factual timeline sequence consisting of a series of short facts and dates providing a simple method of relating the history and construction of the Washington Monument.

Washington Monument Timeline Facts for kids

Washington Monument Timeline: 1732 - George Washington was born in Virginia on February 22, 1732

Washington Monument Timeline: 1791 - Major Pierre Charles L‘Enfant submitted the plan for the City of Washington within the District of Columbia

Washington Monument Timeline: 1799 - George Washington died on December 14, 1799. During his life he was the military leader during the War of Independence, saw the establishment of the Constitution and became the first President of the United States of America

Washington Monument Timeline: 1833 - The Washington Monument National Monument Society, led by Chief Justice John Marshall, was formed to raise funds for a memorial dedicated to the first president

Washington Monument Timeline: 1845 - The Society initiated a competition for the design of the memorial and formed a design selection committee that in chose a design by Robert Mills.

Washington Monument Timeline: 1845 - The Robert Mills Design: His design consisted of a of a 600-foot-tall, flat-topped obelisk surrounded by a colonnaded rotunda with statues of 30 signers of the Declaration of Independence and featured a sculpture  portraying George Washington driving a chariot

Washington Monument Timeline: 1848 - Construction began on a simplified version of the design after President James Polk had made available 37 acres of land along the Potomac in the District of Columbia. The cornerstone was laid on July 4, 1848.

Washington Monument Timeline: 1848 - The simplified design reduced the size to 500 feet with a series of massive steps leading to the pantheon. The bluestone gneiss foundation was completed in the first year of construction

Washington Monument Timeline: 1854 - The walls of the shaft had reached 152 feet above the foundation under the direction of Superintendent William Daugherty. The construction had cost $230,000 and funds ran out so the building work had to be halted

Washington Monument Timeline: 1861 - The Civil War broke out and the nation turned its attention to the bloody, bitter conflict. The grounds surrounding the construction were used as a cattle yard for Union troops.

Washington Monument Timeline: 1865 - The end of the Civil War and the nation entered the period of reconstruction. Fundraising attempts failed during this turbulent time and the grounds were left as a wasteland

Washington Monument Timeline: 1872 - The District Board of Public Works together with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers took control of the construction project building gravel roads on the grounds and reclaiming the waste land.

Washington Monument Timeline: 1876 - This was the year of the American Centennial to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.  It was the first official World's Fair in the United States and public interest stirred patriots in the country and Congress authorized public funds of $200,000 to continue the project, headed by Lt. Col. Thomas Casey.

Washington Monument Timeline: 1877 - Members of the society agreed to abandon the colonnade idea and alter the obelisk so it conformed to classic Egyptian proportions.

Washington Monument Timeline: 1877 - Lt. Col. Thomas Casey, working to the new classic obelisk design, had to design and build massive concrete footings under the original foundations with concrete buttresses to tie them together. It was a remarkable feat of engineering.

Washington Monument Timeline: 1878 - Thomas Casey then worked with George Marsh the U.S. Ambassador to Italy, to develop a design to create a simple, undecorated obelisk of 500 feet topped by a steeply pitched pyramidion (the uppermost piece, or capstone, of an Egyptian pyramid)

Washington Monument Timeline: 1880 - An interior iron structure was installed consisting of eight iron columns to support a steam powered elevator and 898 stairs

Washington Monument Timeline: 1884 - The construction of the obelisk was completed. The lightening rod and aluminum pyramidion (capstone) was put in place on December 6, 1884

Washington Monument Timeline: 1885 - The Washington Monument was dedicated on February 21, 1885

Washington Monument Timeline: 1886 - Presentation blocks were set in the interior walls, the elevator was installed and the wooden steps were replaced with iron steps

Washington Monument Timeline: 1888 - It was opened to the public on October 9, 1888

Washington Monument Timeline: 1901 - The National Mall was the centerpiece of the McMillan Plan. In the McMillan plan granite and marble terraces and arcades around the base of the Washington Monument.

Washington Monument Timeline: 1901 - The steam-powered elevator was replaced with an electric-powered one

Washington Monument Timeline: 1933 - The National Park Service was given jurisdiction over the national landmark

Washington Monument Timeline: 1934 - Restoration work began on the structure in a public works project

Washington Monument Timeline: 1958 - The base was ringed by an array of permanent flagpoles flying the American flag

Washington Monument Timeline: 1964 - Additional restoration work was undertaken on the structure

Washington Monument Timeline: 1998 - More restoration work saw the addition of a completely new and modern elevator

Washington Monument Timeline: 2001 - A visitor screening facility was added following the terrorist attacks on Washington and New York of September 11, 2001

Washington Monument Timeline: 2011 - An earthquake hit Washington D.C. but the obelisk stood the shock

Washington Monument Timeline Facts for kids

Washington Monument Facts for Kids
Newspapers containing articles about General Washington, or the erection of the National Monument to his memory, were included in the cornerstone of the obelisk. Many articles and copies of important documents are deposited in the recess of the cornerstone that include:

The Holy Bible ● Constitution of the United States ● Declaration of Independence ● Portrait of Washington ● The Statesman's Manual ● Map of the City of Washington ● 1840 United States Census ● All coins of the United States ● American Silk Flag ● G. Washington's Coat of Arms ● Morse's North American Atlas ● An American Dollar ● 1832 American State Papers ● American Navigators Log ● Letters of John Quincy Adams ● 1845 Astronomical Observations

Washington Monument for kids - President Chester Arthur Video
The article on the Washington Monument provides detailed facts and a summary of one of the important events during his presidential term in office. The following Chester Arthur video will give you additional important facts and dates about the political events experienced by the 21st American President whose presidency spanned from September 19, 1881 to March 4, 1885.

Washington Monument

● Interesting Facts about Washington Monument for kids and schools
● Construction of the National Monument
● The Washington Monument, a major event in US history
● Chester Arthur Presidency September 19, 1881 to March 4, 1885
● Fast, fun, interesting facts about the Obelisk and National Monument
● Foreign & Domestic policies of President Chester Arthur
● Chester Arthur Presidency and facts about the Washington Monument for schools, homework, kids and children