The Capitol Reflecting Pool is a

reflecting pool A reflecting pool, also called a reflection pool, is a water feature found in gardens, parks, and memorial sites. It usually consists of a shallow pool of water, undisturbed by fountain jets, for a reflective surface. Design Reflecting pools are ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, United States. It lies to the west of the United States Capitol and is the westernmost element of the Capitol grounds (or the easternmost element of the

National Mall The National Mall is a Landscape architecture, landscaped park near the Downtown, Washington, D.C., downtown area of Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States. It contains and borders a number of museums of the Smithsonian Institut ...

, according to some reckonings). The

Capitol Dome The United States Capitol features a dome situated above its rotunda. The dome is in height and in diameter. Designed by Thomas U. Walter, the fourth Architect of the Capitol, it was constructed between 1855 and 1866 at a cost of $1,047,291 ( ...

and the

Ulysses S. Grant Memorial The Ulysses S. Grant Memorial is a Presidential memorials in the United States, presidential memorial in Washington, D.C., honoring American Civil War General (United States), general and 18th President of the United States, United States Presid ...

are reflected in its waters.

Description

The Capitol Reflecting Pool is located at the eastern end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Six acres in size, it occupies over half of the area known as

Union Square Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

. It is set into a plaza that includes, on the east, the ''Ulysses S. Grant Memorial''; to its west is a tree-dotted grassy area that extends to Third Streets, NW and SW. Nearby tourist destinations include the Capitol, the U.S. Botanic Garden, and the museums and galleries along the Mall.

History

The Capitol Reflecting Pool was included in master plans for the Washington Mall area prepared by the architectural firm of

Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) is an American architectural, urban planning and engineering firm. It was founded in 1936 by Louis Skidmore and Nathaniel Owings in Chicago, Illinois. In 1939, they were joined by engineer John Merrill. The fir ...

in the 1960s and '70s to reduce vehicular traffic on the Mall and facilitate pedestrian and recreational use. (Other elements of the plan were the creation of the Third Street Tunnel under the Mall and the relocation of a memorial to Civil War General George G. Meade from the northwest section of Union Square; that memorial now stands near the intersection of Constitution Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue, NW.) The new pool was designed to serve as a counterpart to the one at the western end of the Mall, between the

Lincoln Memorial The Lincoln Memorial is a U.S. national memorial built to honor the 16th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. It is on the western end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C., across from the Washington Monument, and is in the ...

and the

Washington Monument The Washington Monument is an obelisk shaped building within the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate George Washington, once commander-in-chief of the Continental Army (1775–1784) in the American Revolutionary War and the ...

. Since its completion in 1971, it has been a popular attraction. The broad, gently sloped limestone coping and the steps that lead down from ground level afford seating for visitors as they enjoy the reflections of the Capitol, the surrounding sights, and the sky as well as the ducks and seagulls that often swim in the pool.

References

Architect of the Capitol webpage on the CRP
{{coord, 38.8898, -77.0137, display=title Landmarks in Washington, D.C. Buildings of the United States government in Washington, D.C.

Description

History

See also

References