Columbus Circle (Washington, D.C.)
| Columbus Circle | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Washington, DC | |
| Roads at junction |
Massachusetts Avenue NE Louisiana Avenue NE Delaware Avenue NE 1st Street NE E Street NE |
| Construction | |
| Type | Traffic circle |
| Maintained by | DDOT |
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Columbus Circle
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In the center of Columbus Circle is the Columbus Fountain, a monument to Christopher Columbus.
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| Coordinates | 38°53′47.04″N 77°0′23.76″W / 38.8964000°N 77.0066000°WCoordinates: 38°53′47.04″N 77°0′23.76″W / 38.8964000°N 77.0066000°W |
|---|---|
| Built | 1912 |
| NRHP reference # | 80004523 |
| Added to NRHP | April 9, 1980 |
Columbus Circle, also known as Union Station Plaza or Columbus Plaza, is a traffic circle at the intersection of Delaware, Louisiana and Massachusetts Avenues and E and First Streets, Northeast in Washington, D.C. It is located in front of Union Station right next to the grounds of the United States Capitol. Union Station and its access roads interrupt this circle on one side, forming an arc.
The Thurgood Marshall Federal Judiciary Building is located on the eastern side and the National Postal Museum is on the western side of the plaza next to Union Station. Both buildings are on the northern side of Massachusetts Avenue NE.
In 1907, Union Station opened on the site of what was once a poor Irish neighborhood called Swampoodle. Most of the land around it had been leveled and all the houses razed. The area in front of the Station originally was called Union Station Plaza or the Plaza of Union Station.
The plaza was put through a massive renovation between 2011 and 2013.
The Circle the Congressional approbration leading to the Columbus Fountain (1906)
Columbus Circle with the fountain from the air in the 1920s
The Columbus Fountain in 1919
The centerpiece of the circle is the Columbus Fountain, flanked by three 110 ft (34 m) flagpoles, designed by Daniel Burnham and sculpted by Lorado Taft. It was unveiled on June 8, 1912 in a three-day celebration involving tens of thousands of people (including the US Army, Navy and Marines) and several dignitaries including President William H. Taft and the Italian Ambassador to the United States. Parades, concerts and fireworks drow citizens of the city and many Knights of Columbus from around the country. It was not part of the original design of the Circle or of Union Station. This is when the plaza started to be called Columbus Circle due to the monument present in its center.
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Wikipedia