Construction on the Foundation of the Washington Monument

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Description

This 1876 photograph illustrates the lack of progress toward completion of the Washington Monument. Begun on July 4, 1848, the monument was only 176 feet high in 1861, when the Civil War began, and remained that way until Congress appropriated $200,000 in 1876 to resume construction. Within eight years, the 555-foot obelisk was completed.

Citation

This primary source comes from the Records of the Public Buildings Service.

National Archives Identifier: 596327

Full Citation: 121-BD-54J; Washington Monument Foundation Construction in Washington, DC; 1876; Photographs of Federal and Other Buildings in the United States, 1857 – 1942; Records of the Public Buildings Service, Record Group 121; National Archives at College Park, College Park, MD. [Online Version, https://docsteach.org/document/washington-monument-construction/, June 8, 2026]

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