Constitution Gardens is a park area in Washington, D.C., United States, located within the boundaries of the National Mall.[1] The 50-acre (200,000 m2) park is bounded on the west by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, on the east by 17th St NW, on the north by Constitution Avenue, and on the south by the Reflecting Pool.
Constitution Gardens
A willow and pond at the center of Constitution Gardens
USGS satellite image of Constitution Gardens, located north of the reflecting pool, northeast of the Lincoln Memorial (#1 on the image), east of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial (#2 on the image), and northwest of the National World War II Memorial (#3 on the image).East side of the Constitution GardensBenches sit along paths in the park.Trees are scattered throughout the park.
The land that became Constitution Gardens was originally submerged beneath the Potomac River and was dredged at the beginning of the 20th century by the Army Corps of Engineers. The U.S. Navy built the Main Navy and Munitions Buildings as temporary offices on the land during World War I. The buildings were demolished in 1970 due in part to lobbying by President Richard Nixon, who had served in the offices as a navy officer. President Nixon subsequently ordered that a park be established on the land, and in 1976, Constitution Gardens was finally dedicated as a "living legacy American RevolutionBicentennial tribute." It has been a separate park unit in the National Park Service since 1982, administered under the National Capitol Parks-Central (NACC).
On September 17, 1986, President Ronald Reagan formally proclaimed the park a "living legacy tribute" to the United States Constitution, in honor of the bicentennial of the U.S. Constitution one year later.
From March 17 to March 19, 2003, Constitution Gardens was the site of a bizarre standoff between federal police and a disgruntled tobacco farmer, Dwight Watson. Watson drove his tractor into the center of the pond and claimed to have explosives, prompting the evacuation of the area and holding the FBI and U.S. Park Police at bay for 48 hours before he surrendered. During the standoff, Watson dug up part of the island and damaged a retaining wall (for which he received a conviction for destroying federal property) but apparently did not harm any of the monuments. No explosives were found.
As home to famous monuments, Constitution Gardens continues to have millions of visitors every year. It is also the site of an annual naturalization ceremony for new U.S. citizens hosted by the National Park Service.
In a series of plans and designs, architecture firm Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill (SOM) and Modern landscape architect Dan Kiley completed Constitution Gardens in 1976 as a picturesque restful park with a small lake, which would contrast with the "formalism of the Grand Axis." Meandering paths would traverse meadows shaded by tree canopy. Construction budgets were reduced from $14million to $6.7million.[2]
In 1984, the Memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence was completed and placed on an island in Constitution Gardens Lake. It was designed by EDAW, with Joe Brown, FASLA, as the principal landscape architect. The low-key design features a granite semi-circle with gold signatures of the Founding Fathers, organized by the original thirteen states.[2]
Renovationedit
This section needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(May 2020)
A 2011–12 national design competition was sponsored by the Trust for the National Mall to select a design team for the redesign of three sites: Constitution Gardens, the Sylvan Theater, and Union Square.[2] After an intense and highly publicized competition, the Trust for the National Mall has announced the three winning teams selected to redesign the neglected sites of "America's front yard". As reported by The Washington Post, Rogers Marvel Architects and PWP Landscape Architecture will redesign Constitution Gardens east of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.[3] Peter Walker and Partners will transform the lake into a critical piece of water infrastructure that reduces the damaging impacts of stormwater while creating a source of water for reuse in irrigation and toilets.
^(PDF). National Park Service. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-12-26. Retrieved 2010-05-20.
^ abc"History" (PDF). The Landscape Architect's Guide to Washington, D.C.: Constitution Gardens. Washington, D.C.: American Society of Landscape Architects. (PDF) from the original on 2016-03-08. Retrieved 2017-06-19.
^Rosenfield, Karissa (2012-05-03). "Winners announced for the National Mall Redesign Competition". ArchDaily. from the original on 2017-01-13. Retrieved 2017-06-19.
. Constitution Gardens. Washington, D.C.: National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2017-06-06. Retrieved 2017-06-19.
External linksedit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Constitution Gardens.
"Constitution Gardens", National Park Service
U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Constitution Gardens
February 16, 2024
constitution, gardens, park, area, washington, united, states, located, within, boundaries, national, mall, acre, park, bounded, west, vietnam, veterans, memorial, east, 17th, north, constitution, avenue, south, reflecting, pool, willow, pond, center, location. Constitution Gardens is a park area in Washington D C United States located within the boundaries of the National Mall 1 The 50 acre 200 000 m2 park is bounded on the west by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the east by 17th St NW on the north by Constitution Avenue and on the south by the Reflecting Pool Constitution GardensA willow and pond at the center of Constitution GardensLocationWashington D C U S Coordinates38 53 28 14 N 77 2 35 052 W 38 8911500 N 77 04307000 W 38 8911500 77 04307000Public transit accessFoggy Bottom GWU amp Farragut WestUSGS satellite image of Constitution Gardens located north of the reflecting pool northeast of the Lincoln Memorial 1 on the image east of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial 2 on the image and northwest of the National World War II Memorial 3 on the image East side of the Constitution GardensBenches sit along paths in the park Trees are scattered throughout the park Constitution Gardens has a small pond which contains the Memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence on an island open to pedestrians Contents 1 History 2 Design 3 Renovation 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksHistory editThis section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed June 2017 Learn how and when to remove this template message The land that became Constitution Gardens was originally submerged beneath the Potomac River and was dredged at the beginning of the 20th century by the Army Corps of Engineers The U S Navy built the Main Navy and Munitions Buildings as temporary offices on the land during World War I The buildings were demolished in 1970 due in part to lobbying by President Richard Nixon who had served in the offices as a navy officer President Nixon subsequently ordered that a park be established on the land and in 1976 Constitution Gardens was finally dedicated as a living legacy American Revolution Bicentennial tribute It has been a separate park unit in the National Park Service since 1982 administered under the National Capitol Parks Central NACC In July 1982 the Memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence was dedicated on the small island in the lake On November 13 of the same year the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall was also dedicated within Constitution Gardens On September 17 1986 President Ronald Reagan formally proclaimed the park a living legacy tribute to the United States Constitution in honor of the bicentennial of the U S Constitution one year later From March 17 to March 19 2003 Constitution Gardens was the site of a bizarre standoff between federal police and a disgruntled tobacco farmer Dwight Watson Watson drove his tractor into the center of the pond and claimed to have explosives prompting the evacuation of the area and holding the FBI and U S Park Police at bay for 48 hours before he surrendered During the standoff Watson dug up part of the island and damaged a retaining wall for which he received a conviction for destroying federal property but apparently did not harm any of the monuments No explosives were found As home to famous monuments Constitution Gardens continues to have millions of visitors every year It is also the site of an annual naturalization ceremony for new U S citizens hosted by the National Park Service nbsp Aerial photograph of Constitution Gardens from above the Potomac River nbsp Each stone at the Memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence includes the delegate s signature name occupation and place of residence Design editIn a series of plans and designs architecture firm Skidmore Owings and Merrill SOM and Modern landscape architect Dan Kiley completed Constitution Gardens in 1976 as a picturesque restful park with a small lake which would contrast with the formalism of the Grand Axis Meandering paths would traverse meadows shaded by tree canopy Construction budgets were reduced from 14 million to 6 7 million 2 In 1984 the Memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence was completed and placed on an island in Constitution Gardens Lake It was designed by EDAW with Joe Brown FASLA as the principal landscape architect The low key design features a granite semi circle with gold signatures of the Founding Fathers organized by the original thirteen states 2 Renovation editThis section needs to be updated Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information May 2020 A 2011 12 national design competition was sponsored by the Trust for the National Mall to select a design team for the redesign of three sites Constitution Gardens the Sylvan Theater and Union Square 2 After an intense and highly publicized competition the Trust for the National Mall has announced the three winning teams selected to redesign the neglected sites of America s front yard As reported by The Washington Post Rogers Marvel Architects and PWP Landscape Architecture will redesign Constitution Gardens east of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial 3 Peter Walker and Partners will transform the lake into a critical piece of water infrastructure that reduces the damaging impacts of stormwater while creating a source of water for reuse in irrigation and toilets See also editFounding Fathers of the United States Architecture of Washington D C References edit Foundation Statement for the National Mall and Pennsylvania Avenue National Historic Park PDF National Park Service Archived from the original PDF on 2017 12 26 Retrieved 2010 05 20 a b c History PDF The Landscape Architect s Guide to Washington D C Constitution Gardens Washington D C American Society of Landscape Architects Archived PDF from the original on 2016 03 08 Retrieved 2017 06 19 Rosenfield Karissa 2012 05 03 Winners announced for the National Mall Redesign Competition ArchDaily Archived from the original on 2017 01 13 Retrieved 2017 06 19 History amp Culture Constitution Gardens Washington D C National Park Service Archived from the original on 2017 06 06 Retrieved 2017 06 19 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Constitution Gardens Constitution Gardens National Park Service Trust for the National Mall Constitution Gardens U S Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System Constitution Gardens Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Constitution Gardens amp oldid 1203429465, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
