![]() This is a reminder to the visitor of Jefferson’s connection to and love of the land and his belief in an agrarian nation.Īn interesting story about the statue concerns the date of the dedication of this memorial. The capital design was created by Jefferson himself. ![]() The pedestal is 6’, almost 2 meters tall, bringing the entire height to 25’ or 8.5 meters.Įvans included two capitals, one made of tobacco plants and the other made of corn plants. The statue itself measures 19’, just a tad under 6 meters tall and weighs 10.000 lbs, or 4,536 kg. Jefferson is posing heroically while looking north out onto the Washington Monument and the White House. Jefferson is wearing a cloak given to him by his dear friend Polish freedom fighter Thaddeus Kosciuszko, a veteran of the American Revolutionary War while holding the Declaration of Independence in his left hand. Standing in the center is the bronze statue of Thomas Jefferson, designed by Rudolph Evans.Įvans was tasked with depicting Jefferson addressing the Continental Congress, emphasizing his strength of character. The chamber has four entrances marking the cardinal directions, north, south, east, and west, each containing 4 ionic columns of roughly 39’ or 12 meters, slightly smaller than those found rimming the exterior of the memorial.īetween each opening are memorial walls, four in all. The chamber measures 82’, roughly 25 meters in diameter, and reaches a height of just over 91’, roughly 28 meters in height, to the highest point of the dome. Jefferson, which doubled the land of the United States. Jefferson’s statue stands on a pedestal of Minnesota Black Granite which is skirted with Missouri Gray Marble.Īll locations are reminders of lands included in the Louisiana Purchased, authorized by Mr. The floor is made with Tennessee Pink Marble, the ceiling is made with Indiana limestone. There is symbolism here as Vermont and Georgia represent the northern and southern boundaries of the original 13 colonies. While the outside section of the memorial uses marble quarried in Vermont, the interior walls and columns use Georgia White Marble. As you are walking from the outside, take notice of how the marble changes. copies of the 4 leading Washington, DC newspapers of the day.a copy of the 1939 annual report of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Commission.writing from Thomas Jefferson, including The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth, better known as the Jefferson Bible.a copy of the Declaration of Independence.This cornerstone was laid by President Roosevelt on November 15, 1939, as the war was waging in Europe and Asia. ![]() Legend has it that President Franklin Delano Roosevelt has several cherry trees removed so that he could observe the construction of the Jefferson Memorial through binoculars from his White House office.Īs you enter the main chamber, keep an eye out to your right. There you will see the South Portico of the White House. However, if you look directly across the Basin, you will see a section where the trees break. Across the Tidal Basin, your eyes will immediately fall upon the Washington Monument. Now walk up the stairs until you reach the main platform, stopping in the center of the 10 column front and turn around 180 degrees. To Jefferson’s right sit Benjamin Franklin and John Adams and to his left sit Roger Sherman and Robert Livingston. However, Jefferson’s writing talents were widely known and respected, so he received the assignment to write the Declaration with the others serving essentially as editors. Jefferson was actually not originally intended to represent Virginia at the 1st Continental Congress, but was rather a substitute and thus a junior member. The Thomas Jefferson Memorial is located at the southern tip of the Tidal Basin, just to the east of the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial and the George Mason Memorial ( map). Though it is located relatively far away from other attractions it is still a safe area to visit at night.ĭue to its distance, we do not visit it up close but talk about it from across the water on our Memorials and Moonlight tour. It is a beautiful memorial and well-lit at night. daily, except for Christmas Day, to answer questions. The Jefferson Memorial is open 24 hours a day, but the National Park Service Rangers are on duty from 9:30 a.m. He was an amateur architect with two UNESCO World Heritage sites under his belt, including the Rotunda and the academic village at the University of Virginia as well as his home, Monticello. Don't forget, Jefferson was also a farmer, an author, a scientist, an inventor, and an innovator, who invented a type of the plow and improved on a cipher machine, cloth hangers, and dumb waiters, just to name a few.
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