The tallest building in the world when it was completed in 1884, the Washington Monument was meant to capture the respect and gratitude American citizens have for our first president. The journey to build the obelisk was long and arduous, including a 23-year gap in the construction. According to Mark Twain, the incomplete monument looked like ‘a factory chimney with the top broken off.’ On this day in 1876 the Washington Monument was accepted into the National Park System, and today it’s one of the most recognizable buildings in the US.
An uncommon look at an American icon
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
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Brown-throated three-toed sloth in cecropia tree, Costa Rica
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Fall colors below Mount Sneffels near Ridgway, Colorado
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Halfway Day
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National Park Week begins
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Red lechwe, Okavango Delta, Botswana
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Star Wars Day
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A narrow passage
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Moon Day
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Oktoberfest, Munich, Germany
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Beech tree in a cereal field, Hampshire, England
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Preservation Hall in New Orleans, Louisiana
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Collared aracari in Costa Rica
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Skógafoss waterfall, Iceland
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GOAL!
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National Public Lands Day
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Oh, the places you’ll go
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In the Most Serene Republic
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Tom Turkey takes Manhattan
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Ceremony Hall at Sweden s Icehotel
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At the gates of the ksar
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International Sloth Day
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Midnight sun
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International Museum Day
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Castle Day Japan
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Bukhansan National Park, South Korea
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Great horned owl near Lake Tohopekaliga, Florida
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World Turtle Day
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Rockin with the rockhoppers
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Dubrovnik, Croatia
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International Archaeology Day
Bing Wallpaper Gallery

