Category Archives: District of Columbia

District of Columbia

World War I Memorial

April 29, 2026 Raven About The Parks 2 Comments

World War I Memorial

District of Columbia

Managed by National Park Service

Established 2021

1.76 acres

Website: https://www.nps.gov/nama/planyourvisit/national-world-war-i-memorial.htm

Overview

In 1931, the District of Columbia War Memorial was erected on the National Mall where the white rotunda still stands near the Washington Monument (see photos below). The World War I Memorial near the White House was first approved by Congress in 1957 to honor John J. Pershing, General of the Armies during World War I (a rank only George Washington shares). A scant 24 years later, Pershing Park on Pennsylvania Avenue NW was finally dedicated and a statue was added after another two years. On April 16, 2021, the World War I Memorial officially opened and three years later, the58-foot-long A Soldier’s Journey sculpture by Sabin Howard was installed. In Kansas City, Missouri, the National World War I Museum and Memorial opened in 1926 as the Liberty Memorial, and Congress designated it as the country’s official war memorial in 2014.

Highlights

Reflecting pool, Pershing sculpture, A Soldier’s Journey sculpture, 5 p.m. “Taps”

Must-Do Activity

World War I Memorial is considered part of both Pennsylvania Avenue National Historic Site and the National Mall and Memorial Parks, as well as being listed as one of the 433 official National Park Service (NPS) sites. It does not take long to read the plaques and see the sculptures, so try to aim to be there for the 5 p.m. daily playing of “Taps” by a soldier in a World War I-era uniform. Nearby, the Old Post Office Tower on Pennsylvania Avenue NW was completed in 1899 and reaching the top requires two free elevator rides from NPS rangers. It provides a great view from the third highest point in the city (and hopefully it reopens soon after the new hotel owners closed it to the public on October 1, 2025). Further east down the road, the free U.S. Navy Memorial Visitor Center is also worth a visit.

Best Trail

There is no trail here, but there is always plenty of walking done when visiting the many memorials in Washington, D.C.

Photographic Opportunity

A Soldier’s Journey is the 25-ton bronze bas-relief that was officially unveiled during the “First Illumination” ceremony on September 13, 2024.

Peak Season

Spring and fall

Hours

Open 24 hours

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Traffic can be slow and parking expensive in Washington, D.C., so consider taking the Metro to Smithsonian Station on the National Mall or the Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter stop on Pennsylvania Avenue.

Camping

There are National Park Service campgrounds in Maryland’s Greenbelt Park and Virginia’s Prince William Forest Park.

World War II Memorial (District of Columbia)

Vietnam Veterans Memorial (District of Columbia)

Nearest National Park

Shenandoah

Explore More – Why did I include Civil War-era Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park as a related site for the World War I Memorial?

District of Columbia

Vietnam Veterans Memorial

November 11, 2025 Raven About The Parks 2 Comments

Vietnam Veterans Memorial

District of Columbia

Managed by National Park Service

Established 1982

2 acres

Website: nps.gov/vive

Overview

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund was incorporated as a nonprofit charity in 1979 to build a monument listing all the names of those killed or missing during the Vietnam War. It was originally the idea of Jan Scruggs, an infantry corporal, and it was important to the veterans that it not make a political statement about the controversial war in Southeast Asia. Selected from 1,421 design entries, Maya Ying Lin intended her memorial to be a quiet, protected place for reflection. The polished black marble she chose to inscribe the half-inch-tall names also reflects the surrounding trees and grass in Constitution Gardens adjacent to the National Mall. The $7-million cost of the memorial was entirely funded by corporate and private donations, including those from 275,000 individual Americans.

Highlights

Memorial wall, Three Soldiers sculpture, Vietnam Women’s Memorial, In Memory plaque

Must-Do Activity

Located near the Lincoln Memorial, the walls of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial stretch 246.75 feet in length, inscribed with 58,256 names listed chronologically by date of casualty. People come to make rubbings of their loved one’s name and often leave small items at its base. Added nearby in 1984, a life-size bronze sculpture by Frederick Hart depicts three male soldiers beneath a 60-foot flagpole. The In Memory plaque was added in 2004 to recognize the many men and women who served and later died from causes related to the war.

Best Trail

There is no trail here, but there is always plenty of walking done when visiting the many memorials on the National Mall.

Photographic Opportunity

Dedicated on November 11, 1993, the Vietnam Women’s Memorial is a bronze sculpture by Glenna Goodacre that depicts three women helping a fallen soldier. There were also eight yellowwood trees planted to commemorate the eight servicewomen killed in action in Vietnam.

Peak Season

Spring and fall

Hours

Open 24 hours

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Traffic can be slow and parking expensive in Washington, D.C., so consider taking the Metro to the National Mall.

Camping

There are National Park Service campgrounds in Maryland’s Greenbelt Park and Virginia’s Prince William Forest Park.

Related Sites

Korean War Veterans Memorial (District of Columbia)

World War II Memorial (District of Columbia)

World War I Memorial (District of Columbia)

Nearest National Park

Shenandoah

Explore More – When her design was selected in 1981, Maya Ying Lin was a 21-year-old student from Athens, Ohio; where was she attending college at the time?

District of Columbia

Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial

August 14, 2025 Raven About The Parks Leave a comment

Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial

District of Columbia

Managed by National Park Service

Established 2020

4 acres

Website: nps.gov/ddem

Overview

Dwight D. Eisenhower was the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe during World War II and the 34th U.S. President (1953 to 1961). His presidential library is located in his hometown of Abilene, Kansas and his post-presidency home on a Pennsylvania farm is run by the National Park Service adjacent to Gettysburg National Military Park. The U.S. Congress created a Memorial Commission in 1999, but the groundbreaking did not occur until 18 years later. The dedication ceremony was scheduled for the 75th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day, but postponed to September 17 because of the pandemic.

Highlights

Sculptures, steel tapestry, audio tour, gift shop

Must-Do Activity

Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial is located one block off the National Mall in a plaza on Independence Avenue SW across from the National Air and Space Museum. It was designed by architect Frank Gehry and went through several iterations before settling on three bronze sculptures by Sergey Eylanbekov representing “Ike” as a boy, general, and president. The site is always open with a downloadable audio tour and a small gift shop open daily where you can pick up a “unigrid” pamphlet.

Best Trail

There is no trail here, but you can spend all day walking in D.C. through the National Mall and the nearby National Air and Space Museum, National Museum of the American Indian, and United States Botanic Garden.

Photographic Opportunity

The artist Tomas Osinski created a stainless-steel tapestry (447 feet long by 60 feet tall) out of 600 panels depicting a line drawing of the Pointe du Hoc promontory on France’s Normandy coastline, a site significant to the D-Day landings during World War II.

Peak Season

Spring and fall

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/ddem/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None

Road Conditions

The memorial is located on Independence Ave SW across from the National Air and Space Museum, which has parking garages nearby, or you can take the Metro into the city.

Camping

Greenbelt Park Campground in Maryland is the closest run by the National Park Service, which also manages campgrounds at Virginia’s Prince William Forest Park and Shenandoah National Park, as well as several in Maryland’s Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park. Smallwood State Park and Cherry Hill Park in Maryland both offer RV sites and tent sites.

Related Sites

World War II Memorial (District of Columbia)

Eisenhower National Historic Site (Pennsylvania)

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial (District of Columbia)

Nearest National Park

Shenandoah

Explore More – What landscape was originally going to be depicted on the steel tapestry?

District of Columbia

National Mall and Memorial Parks

July 8, 2021 Raven About The Parks Leave a comment

National Mall and Memorial Parks

Managed by National Park Service

Established 1965

6,547 acres

Website: nps.gov/nama

Overview

Part of Pierre L’Enfant’s 1791 design for Washington, D.C., his “grand avenue” was not fully realized until the 1900s when a train station was removed to fully open up two miles of grass between the U.S. Capitol and Lincoln Memorial. Today, America’s front lawn is lined with National Park Service (NPS) memorials and Smithsonian museums. The 2003 Reserve Act declared the National Mall a completed work of civic art and restricted further construction after completion of the World War II Memorial. However, in 2014 the American Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial was dedicated at its eastern end.

Highlights

Lincoln Memorial, Reflecting Pool, Washington Monument, World War I Memorial, World War II Memorial, Ulysses S. Grant Memorial, District of Columbia War Memorial, U.S. Capitol

Must-Do Activity

There is no official visitation count kept for the National Mall, but if there was its 30-million annual visitors would make it the number one busiest site in the entire NPS system. Not far from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial where he gave his most famous speech in 1963, is the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, one of the numerous NPS sites located here. The National Air and Space Museum is one of several awesome galleries of the Smithsonian Institution, containing Charles Lindbergh’s The Spirit of Saint Louis, an Apollo Lunar Module, and the original Wright Brothers flyer used in 1903. There is so much to see and do, you could easily spend more than a week exploring.

Best Trail

One of the greatest overlooks of the National Mall is from the U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial (part of George Washington Memorial Parkway), located across the Potomac River in Arlington, Virginia. It is a bit of a walk from the National Mall, but the view is especially breathtaking at night.

Instagram-worthy Photo

At some point during your visit, do yourself a favor and come after dark. It is nicely decorated each December (but you might need a tripod for photographs).

Peak Season

Summer, and also weekends during the National Cherry Blossom Festival (March-April)

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/nama/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None

Road Conditions

As with most NPS sites in Washington, D.C., it is easier to walk or take the Metro than find parking for your car.

Camping

There are no NPS campgrounds in the Washington, D.C. area, so it might be best to head for Shenandoah National Park in Virginia.

Related Sites

Lincoln Memorial (District of Columbia)

World War I Memorial (District of Columbia)

World War II Memorial (District of Columbia)

Korean War Veterans Memorial (District of Columbia)

Explore More – The Tidal Basin (home to the Thomas Jefferson Memorial and Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial) is considered part of the National Mall, so when were the famous cherry trees (a gift from Japan) planted there?

District of Columbia

Lincoln Memorial

May 6, 2021 Raven About The Parks 6 Comments

Overview

Abraham Lincoln has even more National Park Service (NPS) sites dedicated to him than Theodore Roosevelt (and both are carved into Mount Rushmore National Memorial). The Lincoln Memorial at the west end of the National Mall in Washington D.C. is by far the busiest with around 7-million visitors annually. President Lincoln will always have his place in history for issuing the Emancipation Proclamation during the Civil War.

Highlights

Bookstore, statue, view of the National Mall

Must-Do Activity

The Lincoln Memorial was inspired by Greek temples and features 36 Doric columns, a giant statue of the seated man, and two large murals. Be sure to walk to either side of the statue to read two speeches: his Gettysburg Address of 1863 and his Inaugural Address of 1865. We looked long and hard for a penny-crushing machine at the Lincoln Memorial. We thought it would be awesome to have that building stamped onto a penny.

Best Trail

None

Instagram-worthy Photo

If you ever have the chance to visit the National Mall in Washington D.C., do yourself a favor and come after dark. Seeing the white marble and limestone shining under spotlights is quite spectacular (but you might need a tripod for photographs).