Union Square is an 11-acre public plaza at the foot of Capitol Hill in

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 encompasses the '' Ulysses S. Grant Memorial'' (1924) and the 6-acre Capitol Reflecting Pool (1971) and is just west of the

United States Capitol The United States Capitol, often called The Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the seat of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, which is formally known as the United States Congress. It is located on Capitol Hill ...

building. Views differ as to whether the Square is just east of the National Mall or is itself the eastern end. Interstate 395 transits the Third Street Tunnel just beneath Union Square. The '' George Gordon Meade Memorial'' (1927) formerly stood in the northwest section of Union Square; that memorial now stands near the intersection of

Constitution Avenue Constitution Avenue is a major east–west street in the northwest and northeast quadrants of the city of Washington, D.C., in the United States. It was originally known as B Street, and its western section was greatly lengthened and widened bet ...

and

Pennsylvania Avenue Pennsylvania Avenue is a diagonal street in Washington, D.C., and Prince George's County, Maryland, that connects the White House and the United States Capitol and then crosses the city to Maryland. In Maryland it is also Maryland Route 4 (MD 4 ...

, NW.

History

The area constituting Union Square was originally part of the U.S. Capitol complex, but beginning in the 1930s the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...

assumed jurisdiction over the site. In 2011, the

112th United States Congress The 112th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, from January 3, 2011, until January 3, 2013. It convened in Washington, D.C. on January 3, 2011, and ended on January 3, 2013, 17 ...

enacted the Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2012, which transferred to the

Architect of the Capitol The Architect of the Capitol (AOC) is the federal agency responsible for the maintenance, operation, development, and preservation of the United States Capitol Complex. It is an agency of the legislative branch of the federal government and is ...

the NPS "property which is bounded on the north by Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest, on the east by First Street Northwest and First Street Southwest, on the south by Maryland Avenue Southwest, and on the west by Third Street Southwest and Third Street Northwest". The Act removed Union Square from NPS jurisdiction. The transfer of ownership occasioned some controversy as the NPS had planned to enhance the area to accommodate political demonstrations, gatherings and entertainment events. The NPS expressed surprise at the move and some advocates for protest groups complained, asserting that the Architect of the Capitol and the

United States Capitol Police The United States Capitol Police (USCP) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States with nationwide jurisdiction charged with protecting the United States Congress within the District of Columbia and throughout the United States an ...

(who were now responsible for security) were likely to be less tactful and accommodating to demonstrators than the Park Police. A ''Washington Post'' writer stated: "Although definitions of what constitutes the ationalMall vary, the

011 The following is a list of different international call prefixes that need to be dialled when placing an international telephone call from different countries. Countries by international prefix Countries using optional carrier selection code ...

provision, in a sense, moves its easternmost boundary west — from First Street to Third Street."

References

{{authority control Landmarks in Washington, D.C. National Mall Squares, plazas, and circles in Washington, D.C. United States Capitol grounds