United States Botanic Garden
Botanic Garden
The United States Botanic Garden (USBG) is a botanic garden on the grounds of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., near Garfield Circle.
The Botanic Garden is supervised by the Congress through the Architect of the
Capitol, who is responsible for maintaining the grounds of the United States
Capitol. The USBG is open every day of the year, including federal holidays. It
is the oldest continually operating botanic garden in the United States.
The very tract of land the Botanical Garden of the Columbian Institute occupied, became the site of the United States Botanic Garden, established in 1850, thirteen years after the demise of the institute.
In 1867, Congress provided money for the construction of the first greenhouses.
The main conservatory building was erected, 30 feet long with a dome 60 feet
high.
Several historic trees stood on the site including the Crittenden Oak which
marks the spot where John J. Crittenden made an address in an effort to avert
the Civil War. Also, the Beck-Washington Elm was a scion of an elm earlier
planted by Washington himself. A plane tree which Thaddeus Stevens brought from
the Vale of Cashmere, a sycamore planted by Senator Daniel Voorhees and a
Chinese oak from the grave of Confucius, two cedars of Lebanon, and several
others that have historic associations.
The Bartholdl Fountain, the work of Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, the same
sculptor who designed the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor stood in a
central site in the gardens, however, it was placed in storage for several years
to make way for the memorial to General Meade, the hero of Gettysburg.
The garden "was formally placed under the jurisdiction of the Joint Committee on
the Library of Congress in 1856 and has been administered through the Office of
the Architect of the Capitol since 1934. The Architect of the Capitol has served
as Acting Director of the United States Botanic Garden and is responsible for
the maintenance and operation of the Garden and for any construction, changes,
or improvements made."
Text from Wikipedia
misty jungle
waiting in line to see the Christmas train exhibit
American Indian Museum in the background
view toward the Capitol
