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Photo: G. Edward Johnson, CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
There is a lot here in one of the city's most informative museums, covering topics ranging from war to technology, social and political history. The biggest draw, though, is the Treasure Room, with an astonishing set of iconic Americana objects, ranging from the original Star-Spangled Banner and Abraham Lincoln's top hat, to Kermit the Frog and Dorothy's ruby slippers!
The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center is a historical museum in Washington, D.C. It collects, preserves, and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific, and military history. Among the items on display is the original Star-Spangled Banner. The museum is part of the Smithsonian Institution and located on the National Mall at 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW in Washington, D.C.
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The newest museum on the Mall, with a collection of remarkable artifacts illustrating the history of African American culture, from the years of slavery to the Civil Rights Movement to pop culture figures. Given the interest in the museum, admission is refused without a timed entry pass. A few walk-up passes are released on weekdays (not weekends) at 1PM, but otherwise passes must be booked online. A limited number of same-day passes are available online every morning starting at 6:30AM, but they go quickly; the only other option are advanced passes, booked 3 months in advance.
The real show stoppers here are the gargantuan, complete dinosaur fossils, and you won't have to search to find them! Further into the museum you'll find displays of world cultures, meteorites, mineral samples, and the evolution of life from beginnings to today. Don't leave without seeing the overawing precious rock collection, including the Hope Diamond, the enormous blue diamond of legend. A dining area is on the first level of this museum. The food is good, but somewhat pricy.
Asia is a rather large place, and a tour through these Asian Art museums is a bit like a travel from Japan to Turkey. The Asian galleries, along with the connected African Art museum are a lot quieter and more peaceful than the huge museums to the east, which can be quite a relief! Like their companion museum above, the Freer and Sackler galleries host very frequent events.
This distinctive brick-red structure was the original Smithsonian museum. The building now presents an overview of the Smithsonian system as well as occasional exhibitions. Just south of the castle, the beautiful Haupt Garden features an ornate parterre as well as some quieter enclaves; it is a great place to stop to rest or eat.
No man looms larger over American history than the first president, and no monument looms larger over D.C. than this, both the world's tallest stone structure and its tallest obelisk. When completed in 1884 it was the world's tallest structure, and remains one of the tallest buildings in D.C. Viewed from either end of the Mall its size may not be evident, but enter the enormous square on which it stands, and you'll realize just how monumental it is. The view from the 555-foot top is great on a clear day, allowing you to see up and down the Mall, and out as far as the Shenandoah Valley. The observation level reopened in September 2019 and is open for viewing with a ticket. Entrance is by timed ticket, which are distributed on a first come first served basis starting at 8:30AM from a National Park Service booth on 15th St east of the monument or online, if booked months in advance.
A much smaller museum of art than the massive National Gallery and Hirshhorn museums, but it is excellently exhibited, and extremely family-friendly, with daily events and programs for kids. The exhibits subvert the name of the museum, showing that creative arts from the African continent, traditional and contemporary, are too diverse to fit neatly under the title of "African Art." The museum hosts frequent performances of storytellers, musicians, films, etc.