The National Aquarium, Washington, D.C., was an

aquarium An aquarium (: aquariums or aquaria) is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. fishkeeping, Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aquati ...

Washington D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

It was located in the

Herbert C. Hoover Building The Herbert C. Hoover Building is the Washington, D.C. headquarters of the United States Department of Commerce. The building is located at 1401 Constitution Avenue, Northwest, Washington, D.C., on the City block, block bounded by Constitution ...

(owned by the

General Services Administration The General Services Administration (GSA) is an Independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the United States government established in 1949 to help manage and support the basic functioning of federal agencies. G ...

), which is bounded by 14th Street NW on the east, 15th Street NW on the west,

Pennsylvania Avenue NW Pennsylvania Avenue is a primarily diagonal street in Washington, D.C. that connects the United States Capitol with the White House and then crosses northwest Washington, D.C. to Georgetown. Traveling through southeast Washington from the C ...

on the north, and Constitution Avenue NW on the south.Directions
National Aquarium, Washington, D.C. It was the first free and public aquarium in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The National Aquarium in Washington, D.C. was smaller than its counterpart in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

, Maryland — a facility also known as the National Aquarium, although independent until the two aquariums signed an alliance in 2003. The Washington aquarium closed on September 30, 2013, after 140 years, the longest continuously operating aquarium in the United States at the time.

History

The National Aquarium was established in 1873 in

Woods Hole, Massachusetts Woods Hole is a census-designated place in the town of Falmouth in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. It lies at the extreme southwestern corner of Cape Cod, near Martha's Vineyard and the Elizabeth Islands. The population was 78 ...

under the auspices of the United States Commission of Fish and Fisheries by Commissioner of Fish and Fisheries Spencer Baird. It displayed 180 species of fish, reptiles, and other aquatic animals. In 1878, General Orville E. Babcock, the Superintendent of Public Buildings and Grounds in Washington, D.C. suggested a public aquarium in D.C. As a result, Spencer Baird's Fish Commission was given of land. Because of this, the National Aquarium moved to the grounds of the

Washington Monument The Washington Monument is an obelisk on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate George Washington, a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father of the United States, victorious commander-in-chief of the Continen ...

in 1878 and consisted of holding ponds known as "

Babcock Lakes The Babcock Lakes () were a series of water ponds formerly located near the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C., before the area became the National Mall. In 1878, they were designated as fisheries by the United States Fish Commission, in an e ...

."How and when did the Aquarium get its start?
" National Aquarium in Washington, D.C. During the 1880s, the aquarium moved again into a building called Central Station near the site of today's

National Air and Space Museum The National Air and Space Museum (NASM) of the Smithsonian Institution is a museum in Washington, D.C., in the United States, dedicated to history of aviation, human flight and space exploration. Established in 1946 as the National Air Museum, ...

so that it could better serve its main purpose of being a

hatching Hatching () is an artistic technique used to create tonal or shading effects by drawing (or painting or scribing) closely spaced parallel lines. When lines are placed at an angle to one another, it is called cross-hatching. Hatching is als ...

station for the Fish Commission to breed and raise fish for distribution across the United States. The Fish Commission was incorporated into the

Department of Commerce and Labor The United States Department of Commerce and Labor was a short-lived United States Cabinet, Cabinet department of the United States Government of the United States, government, which was concerned with fostering and supervising big business. It ...

in 1903 and renamed the United States Bureau of Fisheries, and Secretary of Commerce and Labor George B. Cortelyou called for "...a national aquarium of such size and architectural excellence that it will be a credit to the nation." The Bureau of Fisheries became a part of the

Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce (DOC) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government. It is responsible for gathering data for business ...

in 1913, and when the Commerce Department building was completed in 1932, the National Aquarium moved to the lower level of the building. The Bureau of Fisheries moved to the

Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal lands and natural resources. It also administers programs relatin ...

in 1939 and merged with the Interior Department's Bureau of Biological Survey (previously the

Department of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

's Division of Economic Ornithology and Mammalogy, among other names) in 1940 to form the

Fish and Wildlife Service A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fins and a hard skull, but lacking limbs with digits. Fish can be grouped into the more basal jawless fish and the more common jawed fis ...

, an agency of the Department of the Interior. Despite falling under the Department of the Interior, the National Aquarium remained in the Department of Commerce building. In 2003, the National Aquarium Society Board of Directors signed an alliance agreement with the Board of Directors of the National Aquarium in Baltimore, enabling the two aquariums to work together to strengthen the animal collection and educational impact of the aquarium.

Relationship with the National Aquarium in Baltimore

The National Aquarium is a separate aquarium in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. Founded in 1981, it was originally distinct from the Washington aquarium. Both used the title "National Aquarium;" the National Aquarium in Washington, D.C., was older, while the National Aquarium in Baltimore is larger. Like its Washington counterpart, the National Aquarium in Baltimore is not managed or funded by the federal government, despite the official-sounding names. Neither aquarium is or was part of the Smithsonian Institution. On September 4, 2003, the National Aquarium Society and the Board of Governors for the National Aquarium in Baltimore announced an alliance, in which the National Aquarium in Baltimore would operate the D.C. aquarium. A signing ceremony hosted by United States Secretary of Commerce, Secretary of Commerce Donald Evans was held at the Commerce Department building.

Collection

The National Aquarium, Washington, D.C., had a collection of over 1,500 Biological specimen, specimens and 250 species.How many animals make up the Aquarium's collection?
" National Aquarium in Washington, D.C. Animals in exhibits included longsnout seahorse, leopard sharks, longnose gar, bonytail chub, Enteroctopus dofleini, giant Pacific octopus, chambered nautilus, tiger salamander, Hellbender, eastern hellbender, American alligator, loggerhead sea turtle, red lionfish, and Channidae, snakehead,Animals
" National Aquarium in Washington, D.C. as well as piranha, eel, and koi, Japanese carp.Hours
" National Aquarium in Washington, D.C.

National Marine Sanctuaries and National Parks Gallery

The United States National Marine Sanctuary, National Marine Sanctuaries and List of areas in the United States National Park System, National Parks Gallery featured the animals and habitats preserved and protected by America's National Marine Sanctuaries Program. This gallery included exhibits for the Florida Everglades, Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary, Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary, Fagatele Bay National Marine Sanctuary, Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary, and Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary. Featured animals included: * American alligator * Sea anemones * Chain catshark * Chambered nautilus * Giant Pacific octopus * Guineafowl puffer * Horn shark * Leopard shark * Swell shark * Longsnout seahorse * Red lionfish * Scarlet kingsnake

America's Freshwater Ecosystems Gallery

The gallery highlighted American rivers including the Rio Grande, the Potomac River, the Colorado River, and the Mississippi River. Featured animals included: * Common snapping turtle * Longnose gar * Northern snakehead * American eel * Razorback sucker

Amphibians Gallery

This gallery showcased salamanders, newts, frogs, and toads to display their adaptations and biology. Featured animals included: * Eastern newt * Barking tree frog (''Hyla gratiosa'') * Yellow-banded poison dart frog * Blue-bellied poison frog * Spotted salamander * American toad

Amazon River Basin Gallery

The Amazon River and Amazon basin support some of the most diverse life on the planet. Featured animals included: * Red-bellied piranha * Silver arowana * Blue poison dart frog * Electric eel * Emerald tree boa

Closure

The aquarium closed on September 30, 2013, having permanently lost its location due to a renovation of the

. When it closed, it was the longest continuously operating aquarium in the United States. Approximately 1,700 fish and other specimens from its collection were moved to the National Aquarium in Baltimore. Officials of the aquarium considered ways of re-opening it at another location in Washington, D.C., but they eventually abandoned such plans.

References

External links

* {{authority control Aquaria in Washington, D.C. Museums established in 1873 1873 establishments in Massachusetts United States Department of Commerce Defunct aquaria Museums disestablished in 2013 2013 disestablishments in Washington, D.C.