Washington, D.C.
Smithsonian Sushi Collection
Seemingly unremarkable items like empty sushi trays, chef hats, and freshness stickers are being preserved so future generations can look back on this beloved cultural import.
Places keyholeelf Wants to Go
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Places I want to go
Places on this traveler's wishlist.
Washington, D.C.
Watergate Steps
Decades before the scandal, this staircase on the river was a literal "water gate."
Washington, D.C.
St. Elizabeths Hospital
Government testing at the asylum briefly explored using marijuana as a "truth serum" on Nazi prisoners of war.
Washington, D.C.
Ruins of the McMillan Sand Filtration Site at Reservoir Park
An Industrial Revolution-era public work that purified water using nothing but sand.
Washington, D.C.
Sergeant Stubby
The most decorated dog of World War I is preserved in the Smithsonian.
Washington, D.C.
Water Gate at the Watergate Complex
Before Nixon, "watergate" meant canals.
Washington, D.C.
Hecht Company Warehouse
Art deco landmark on the outskirts of Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Sharpshooter's Tree
A diminutive plaque recalls the treetop sniper who almost killed Abe Lincoln.
Washington, D.C.
Cher Ami
A heroic pigeon that, through a barrage of gunfire, delivered a message that saved over 100 lives in World War I.
Washington, D.C.
FDR's Swimming Pool
There's an old indoor swimming pool hidden directly underneath the White House Press Briefing Room.
Washington, D.C.
Washington Monument Lightning Rod
The monument's pointy aluminum tip has been melted down by repeated lightning strikes.
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.
Washington, D.C.
Memorial to Japanese-American Patriotism in World War II
An unassuming, powerful monument north of the U.S. Capitol bears witness to the resilience of Japanese Americans during a time of grave injustice.
Washington, D.C.
Belmont-Paul Women's Equality National Monument
Housing the National Women's Party since 1929, this historic house is now a monument to the fight for gender equality.
Washington, D.C.
Abandoned Drawbridge Control Room
The hidden offices underneath Memorial Bridge have been locked up since 1976.
Washington, D.C.
U.S. Naval Observatory Library
A hoard of sky catalogs, astrophysical journals, even the works of Galileo and Copernicus.
Washington, D.C.
Old Stone House
The oldest building in the District of Columbia was preserved because of a mistaken connection to George Washington.
Washington, D.C.
International Temple of the Order of the Eastern Star
Obscure Freemasons still live in D.C.’s largest private residence.
Washington, D.C.
Uncle Beazley the Triceratops
A celebrity from the late Cretaceous period.
Washington, D.C.
Carnegie Library of Washington, D.C.
D.C.'s first central library was born out of a chance encounter with the philanthropist whose name it bears.
Washington, D.C.
The Portrait Monument
Rumor has it the uncarved lump behind the three famous suffragists is reserved for the first woman president.
Washington, D.C.
Ruins of the Columbian Cannon Foundry
These recently uncovered walls are all that's left of Washington, D.C's first defense contractor.
Washington, D.C.
Theodore Roosevelt Island
The national park was once a plantation estate.
Permanently Closed
Washington, D.C.
Church of Two Worlds
A Spiritualist house of worship where believers communicate with the dead in the spirit world.
