These abandoned waterworks are crumbling into the Potomac River.

One of the most influential presidents in U.S. history wanted only this plain, elegant monument as his lasting memorial.

Helen Keller once broke ground on this historic center for the study of technologies to benefit the hearing impaired.

The only National Monument ever to go missing for nearly 50 years then resurface in a dump.

The preamble to the U.S. Constitution written entirely from vanity license plates hangs in the Smithsonian museum.

An unassuming, powerful monument north of the U.S. Capitol bears witness to the resilience of Japanese Americans during a time of grave injustice.

This unacceptably tall building was the real reason for Washington, D.C.'s skyscraper ban.

This robust fence in front of a historic Georgetown home is likely made from hundreds of recycled Revolutionary War firearms.

A fantastic array of trays and cables once whisked books over to the Capitol at 600 feet per minute.

The first presidential bomb shelter was located in an old vault under the Treasury, connected to the White House via tunnel.

This poor little statue is the most vandalized memorial in Washington.

Legend has it that President Grant’s frequent drinking in the lobby gave rise to the term “lobbyist.”

The "lovely red Vega" of the legendary record-settling pilot.

A little marble compass above George Washington's (empty) tomb in the Capitol marks where D.C.'s four quadrants intersect.

Sit where JFK proposed to Jackie or where Nixon dined on meatloaf at this storied pub.

Where the U.S. government kept its actual treasure, before Fort Knox.

The unique traffic pattern named for an influential urban planner is also known as the Pedestrian Scramble.

This restaurant has been a haven for D.C.'s LGBTQ community since the 1950s.

An easily overlooked memorial to a Ukrainian famine-genocide that killed over 4 million people.

Housing the National Women's Party since 1929, this historic house is now a monument to the fight for gender equality.

These recently uncovered walls are all that's left of Washington, D.C's first defense contractor.

A celebrity from the late Cretaceous period.

A computer bug so primitive it was an actual insect.

A haunting tribute to pioneering photographer Clover Adams.