On December 6, 1884, in Washington, D.C., workers placed a nine-
inch aluminum pyramid atop a tower of white marble, completing
the construction of an impressive monument to the city’s namesake
and the nation’s first president, George Washington. As early as
1783, the infant U.S. Congress decided that a statue of George
Washington, the great Revolutionary War general, should be
placed near the site of the new Congressional building,
wherever it might be.

After then-President Washington asked him to lay out federal
capital on the Potomac River in 1791, architect Pierre L ‘Enfant
left a place for the statue at the western end of the sweeping
National Mall (near the monument’s present location). It wasn’t
until 1832, however–33 years after Washington’s death–that
anyone really did anything about the monument.

Workers set the capstone on top of the Washington Monument on
Dec. 6, 1884.

On this day in 1884, in Washington, D.C., workers (above) place a nine-inch aluminum pyramid atop a tower of white marble, completing the construction
of an impressive monument to the city’s namesake and the nation’s first
president, George Washington. As early as 1783, the infant U.S. Congress
decided that a statue of George Washington, the great Revolutionary War
general, should be placed near the site of the new Congressional building, wherever it might be. After then-President Washington asked him to lay out
a new federal capital on the Potomac River in 1791, architect Pierre L’Enfant
left a place for the statue at the western end of the sweeping National Mall
(near the monument’s present location).

It wasn’t until 1832, however–33 years after Washington’s death–that anyone
really did anything about the monument. That year, a private Washington
National Monument Society was formed. After holding a design competition
and choosing an elaborate Greek temple-like design by architect Robert Mills,
the society began a fundraising drive to raise money for the statue’s
construction.

The Washington Monument is under construction in 1859 in
Washington D.C.

The Washington Monument in 1888, the year it was
open to the public.

The Monument reopened to the public in September after a three-
year closure for elevator repairs and other updates.

Cowboy-movie star Tom Mix was killed when he lost control of his speeding
Cord Phaeton convertible (above) and rolls into a dry wash (now called the
Tom Mix  Wash) near Florence, Arizona. He was 60 years old. Today, visitors
to the site of the accident can see a 2-foot–tall iron statue of a rudderless
horse (below) and a somewhat awkwardly written plaque that reads: “In
memory of Tom Mix whose spirit left his body on this spot and whose characterization and portrayals in life served to better fix memories of
the Old West in the minds of living men.” 

Mix was born in Driftwood, Pennsylvania; deserted the Army in 1902; and
was a drum major in the Oklahoma Territorial Cavalry band when he went
off to Hollywood in 1909. Before there was a Clint Eastwood and before
there was a John Wayne … there was Tom Mix.

Thomas Edwin Mix (Thomas Hezikiah Mix)
(January 6, 1880 – October 12, 1940)

The 9/11 memorial and ground zero today.

     
   

The Washington Monument was officially dedicated in Washington,
DC. on this day in 1885. It opened to the public in 1889.

Artist’s rendering of the capstone being placed by
hand on the top of the Washington Monument. It
was the tallest building in the world at the time of
its completion in 1884, standing 555 feet, 5.125
inches.

NOTE:  The Washington Monument is closed until spring 2019. The National Park Service is modernizing the elevator to increase long
term reliability.