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Washington, D.C.

State Department Protocol Gift Office

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

NASA Full Scale Wind Tunnel Propeller

While most wind tunnels test scale models, the "Cave of Winds" was large enough for actual airplanes.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
Washington, D.C.

The Highest Court In the Land

There just so happens to be a court even higher than the U.S Supreme Court: a basketball court in the building itself.
Oliver Hong Added by Oliver Hong
Washington, D.C.

Steam Tunnels Under Capitol Hill

100 years later, they're still down there.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
Washington, D.C.

FDR's Swimming Pool

There's an old indoor swimming pool hidden directly underneath the White House Press Briefing Room.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
Washington, D.C.

C&O Boat Elevator Ruins

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

Defense Intelligence Agency Museum

Amid the sprawling Defense Intelligence Agency Headquarters is one of Washington's least accessible museums.
Edward Denny Added by Edward Denny
Washington, D.C.

National Cathedral Bell Tower

There’s a special club house at the top for the bell ringers.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
Washington, D.C.

Washington Monument Lightning Rod

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

FDR's Bomb Shelter

The first presidential bomb shelter was located in an old vault under the Treasury, connected to the White House via tunnel.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
Washington, D.C.

Senate Bathtubs

Senators used to relax in the nearly forgotten marble tubs now hidden in the U.S. Capitol Building's basement.
Added by SaraB
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.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
Washington, D.C.

Amelia Earhart's Lockheed Vega

The "lovely red Vega" of the legendary record-settling pilot.
Annetta Black Added by Annetta Black
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.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
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.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
Washington, D.C.

Treasury Department Cash Vault

Where the U.S. government kept its actual treasure, before Fort Knox.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
Washington, D.C.

Carousel on the National Mall

Washington's iconic carousel has a nice piece of Civil Rights history.
R Stemple Added by R Stemple
Washington, D.C.

D.C.'s Underground Bald Cypress Fossils

Four bald cypress trees in Lafayette Square, across from the White House, mark the southern edge of a 100,000 year old cypress swamp.
erikmoe Added by erikmoe
Washington, D.C.

USNO Master Clock

The most accurate timepiece in the world.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
Washington, D.C.

U.S. Naval Observatory Library

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

Grace Hopper's Bug

A computer bug so primitive it was an actual insect.
Molly McBride Jacobson Added by Molly McBride Jacobson
Washington, D.C.

Abandoned Drawbridge Control Room

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

Alferd Packer Cannibal Plaque

A brass plaque dedicated to a convicted cannibal hangs in the National Press Club, and that's not even the craziest part of the story.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
Washington, D.C.

Peirce Mill Spy Station

Cold War intelligence agents monitored communist embassies from an attic in a former pigeon coop.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter