ieanferdinand's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Washington, D.C.

C&O Boat Elevator Ruins

This forgotten boat elevator was an engineering marvel in its heyday.
Washington, D.C.

Inaugural Parade Center Line

A line of blue paint marks the route of the inaugural parade.
Washington, D.C.

Gun Barrel Fence

This robust fence in front of a historic Georgetown home is likely made from hundreds of recycled Revolutionary War firearms.
Washington, D.C.

Flag Office Elevator

The elevator that makes it possible to fly American flags in bulk over the U.S. Capitol
Washington, D.C.

Watergate Gas Station

This seemingly out-of-place gas station by the Watergate hotel was once described as the most expensive gas station in the world.
Washington, D.C.

District of Columbia Center Point

A little marble compass above George Washington's (empty) tomb in the Capitol marks where D.C.'s four quadrants intersect.
Washington, D.C.

The Tabulating Machine Co.

The early data processor factory founded in Washington for the 1890 U.S. Census went on to become IBM.
Washington, D.C.

American University Experiment Station

The school tested mustard gas for the U.S. Army during World War I.
Washington, D.C.

Bare-Chested George Washington

Perhaps the most scandalous statue of America's first president.
Washington, D.C.

Knife Edge

Architecture lovers won’t stop touching the National Gallery's 19.5 degree marble prow.
Washington, D.C.

Churchill and Mandela Call and Response

When it comes to handsignals (and colonialism) rock always beats scissors.
Washington, D.C.

The National Gallery's Art Materials Collection

The institution is sitting on a goldmine of 21,000 paints, varnishes, pigments, and primers preserved for posterity.
Washington, D.C.

Holodomor Memorial

An easily overlooked memorial to a Ukrainian famine-genocide that killed over 4 million people.
Washington, D.C.

Ruins of the Columbian Cannon Foundry

These recently uncovered walls are all that's left of Washington, D.C's first defense contractor.
Washington, D.C.

Mary's Garden

An overlooked oasis of quiet on the grounds of Washington's monumental basilica.
Washington, D.C.

Library of Congress Book Conveyor Tunnel

A fantastic array of trays and cables once whisked books over to the Capitol at 600 feet per minute.
Washington, D.C.

U.S. Naval Observatory Library

A hoard of sky catalogs, astrophysical journals, even the works of Galileo and Copernicus.
Washington, D.C.

State Department Protocol Gift Office

They sort through millions of dollars worth of diplomatic gifts on behalf of the government.
Washington, D.C.

Abandoned Drawbridge Control Room

The hidden offices underneath Memorial Bridge have been locked up since 1976.
Washington, D.C.

Capital Transit Co. Streetcar Barn

Before Metro, Washington had a robust streetcar network—and you see the remains of this infrastructure if you know where to look.
Washington, D.C.

Willard Hotel

Legend has it that President Grant’s frequent drinking in the lobby gave rise to the term “lobbyist.”
Washington, D.C.

Kilroy Was Here

There’s a hidden military meme engraved on the World War II Memorial.
Washington, D.C.

Washington Monument Lightning Rod

The monument's pointy aluminum tip has been melted down by repeated lightning strikes.
Washington, D.C.

Capitol Tile Room

In the basement of the U.S. Capitol Building is a hidden storage room full of ornate floor tiles leftover from the 1850s.