Washington, DC (2nd Ed, 1983)

[Music] la Washington DC Capital City of the United States focal point for international representation World acclaimed Center of arts and culture it has no more renowned Monument than the great Dome that rises majestically over the United State's Capital when construction began on the capital in 1793 Washington DC was all swamp and the nation was still in its infancy only 3 years earlier Congress had decided to place the seat of the new government on this site along the pomac river Pierre charl laon a French engineer here was selected to lay out a plan for the new city LA's design featured a grand city radiating from the capital President Washington himself laid the capital's Cornerstone both wings of the new building were finally completed in 1811 but during the War of 1812 invading British soldiers Set Fire to the building almost totally destroying it since its reconstruction following the fire the Capital has continued to grow with the expanding nation in 1962 the last major modification of the building was completed the expansion of the East Front the new facade clad the original deteriorating limestone in marble and extended the central section by 32 1/2 [Music] ft the capital retunda fills with thousands of visitors every day its huge Dome has become a symbol of the American Republic the Dome over our heads is one of the largest in the world it's made out of cast iron it's in two layers and weighs almost 9 million PB it was constructed basically during the time of the Civil War the capital houses the Congress or legislative branch of government composed of the House of Representatives and the Senate congresswoman Geraldine Ferraro of New York describes the significance of the House of Representatives The house's major strength lies in its power to initiate money bills Taxation and appropriation for federal spending but its major importance lies in the way it represents the American people each representative is elected only by the voters of a single congressional district this allows a closer relationship between elected representatives and their constituents and and helps ensure that the will of the American people is heard by their [Music] government near the present House of Representatives chamber is the original House chamber now known as Statuary Hall it was set aside in 1864 to hold statues of noted citizens from each of the [Music] states opposite the house Wing is the Senate Wing Senator Howard Metson bomb of Ohio explains the Senate's constitutional responsibilities along with the members of the House of Representatives we and the senate share the obligation to represent the people of the United States in setting public policy and enacting federal laws this is the responsibility given to us by the Constitution the Senate is the living symbol of our Union of states to fulfill its highest IDE ideal it must not only Serve the People it must lead them there's no greater symbol of the executive branch of government than the executive Mansion known more familiarly as the White House it is both the office and home of the president of the United States like the capital it draws huge numbers of visitors more than a million and a half every year Mrs Ronald Reagan explains the significance of the executive mansion when you visit the White House it's something like the landlord visiting the tenant because the White House belongs to all the American people the president's family lives here only while the president is in office many important state events take place here on the White House lawn the president and first lady often greet outstanding Americans or foreign dignitaries sometimes the president signs legislation into law in outdoor ceremonies the president's family lives on the second floor of the White [Music] House on the first floor are the public rooms walking down the Halls I'm almost overcome with history and I think that every president except George Washington lived here can you imagine President Jefferson striding down a [Music] corridor or President Lincoln looking thoughtfully out of [Music] window the rooms on this floor are used to receive and entertain official [Music] visitors as the residents of the White House have changed over the years so has the White House [Music] itself laundry doesn't hang to dry in the east as it did during Abigail Adams day [Music] and Teddy Roosevelt's moose head no longer stares down from the wall of the state dining room on distinguished guests but whatever changes from one Administration to the next the White House always maintains its character and dignity this wonderful historic house symbolizes the continuity of our democracy from generation to [Music] generation across from the White House the old executive office building holds the offices of many of the President's advisers AIDS and other staff built in the late 1800s to house the war department many of its rooms are highly ornamented the Vice President also maintains Offices here the official residence of the vice president is several miles away on the grounds of the United States military Observatory the third branch of the United States government is the Judiciary embodied in the Supreme Court as the highest tribunal this court is charged with ensuring Equal justice under the law for the American [Music] people the Constitution the most sacred document in the nation contains the principles by which the American Republic functions it is enshrined at the National Archives where visitors May view it because of its his hisorical importance it is carefully protected at the end of each day lowered from its glass case into a vault deep below the archives [Music] floor among the largest of the federal government agencies is the Department of Defense housed in a huge complex called the Pentagon the defense department is responsible for keeping peace while preserving freedom to meet this goal it deters International Conflict by maintaining armed forces that are capable and [Music] ready inside top ranking military officials have their offices the tightly guarded Pentagon war room is the place where military leaders study Global military activity and activate lines of Defense in times of crisis in Arlington National Cemetery lie the remains of thousands who have served in the United States armed forces during conflicts from the Revolutionary War to the Vietnam [Music] War the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier memorializes is the unknown Dead who fought in World Wars 1 and two and in the Korean War at the far end of the Washington mall that stretches before the capital stands a long wedge of Black Stone engraved on it are the names of the 57,6 192 Americans who died in the Vietnam War [Music] one of the government facilities most important to the daily lives of American citizens is the treasury Department's Bureau of printing and Engraving high-speed printers turn out billions of postage [Music] stamps the printed sheets are perforated cut and packaged for delivery to the nation's post offices the bureau also produces billions of dollars in United States currency before they are cut into individual bills many notes are printed together on large sheets of special high quality paper and carefully inspected for defects flawed money will be shredded and burned [Applause] [Music] virtually all the major organizations in the country maintain offices in Washington here they Lobby the Congress and the president in order to voice their opinions about what the government is doing and nations from around the world maintain embassies and other institutions in Washington to represent their interest in international Affairs many individuals exercise their freedom of speech in the form of protests on any given day numerous signs and posters can be seen around government buildings often times people rally together in organized marches to alert officials of their feelings on important political issues but Washington is not only a city of government and politics the Washington National Cathedral represents the spiritual aspirations of the nation and the world though chartered by Congress as a national House of Prayer in 1893 the cathedral is still under construction as private donations are made from moments of mourning for the deaths of national and world leaders to festivals of Thanksgiving for the end of a war the cathedral is a place for all Humanity to confirm its common [Music] Bond among its many stained glass windows is one that commemorates the landing on the moon a moon moon rock is embedded in its colorful [Music] [Applause] design important collections of reference materials such as books manuscripts recordings and films are kept at the Library of Congress establish lished primarily as a research facility for the Congress the library also provides services to other libraries around the world and makes its vast resources available to the [Music] public hundreds of people use the library's various reading rooms daily its Holdings include almost 80 million items among them 20 million books and P in some 60 languages issues of over 1,200 newspapers some dating back to the 17th century and more than 250,000 reels of Motion Pictures new materials are acquired at the rate of 10 items per minute both Scholars and Casual tourists are attracted to the city's many specialized libraries and museums the fuler Shakespeare Memorial Library is one of the world's great independent research libraries a center for books and manuscripts written during the Renaissance Priceless books dating back more than six centuries are kept in a protective temperature and humidity controlled [Music] Vault among the folders most precious Holdings are some of the earliest printed works of Shakespeare [Music] the Smithsonian institution is the largest museum complex in the world most of its 13 museums are located along the National Mall to the west of the capital [Music] one of the most popular is the National Air and Space Museum which features exhibits of the history of flight from aircraft to spacecraft the two buildings of the National Gallery of Art contain one of the world's finest collections of European and American art its East Building is itself an impressive piece of architecture [Music] the design is among the most highly acclaimed works of the American architect IM [Applause] [Music] pay inside the gallery features paintings sculpture and graphic art by out standing modern artists the huge Mobile by Alexander Calder constantly sweeps over the space [Music] the west building offers the most comprehensive survey of Italian sculpture and painting in the Western Hemisphere including the only painting outside Europe generally acknowledged to be by Leonardo da Vinci [Music] the beautiful sometimes disturbing work in the hershorn museum and sculpture garden exemplify changes that have shaken the art World during the last 100 years [Music] [Music] but perhaps nothing in Washington more powerfully draws the attention of visitors than the imposing white monuments to three of the country's most beloved [Music] presidents Abraham Lincoln the great emancipator [Music] Thomas Jefferson author of the Declaration of Independence [Music] and the great Obelisk dedicated to George Washington father of our country [Music] George Washington the first president of the United States the patriot who laid the Cornerstone for the capital the citizen after whom the city of Washington DC takes its name [Music] a for [Music]