A tiny monument to the unsuccessful attempt by Thomas Jefferson to place the prime meridian in Washington.

Look closely and you’ll notice that the color changes a third of the way up the tower.

The most decorated dog of World War I is preserved in the Smithsonian.

A much-maligned monument to teetotalism.

Perhaps the most scandalous statue of America's first president.

This sandwich shop has a century-old elevator behind a sheet of plexiglass.

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

At 207 feet, one of the world's longest continuous escalators.

The little-known, 300-year history of the area includes former lives as a bustling tobacco port, parking lot, and industrial dump.

Cold War intelligence agents monitored communist embassies from an attic in a former pigeon coop.

‘Bush the old fire dog died of poison July 5th, 1869. RIP.’

The sculptor was instructed to add “stallion attributes” to the general's bronze mare.

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

Behind an abandoned storefront is an example of pioneering 1930s gas station architecture.

A diminutive memorial marks the site of a successful assassination by a right-wing death squad in America's capital.

The most accurate timepiece in the world.

A hidden passageway now marks the site of an assassination attempt on Ronald Reagan that some say broke a 140-year-old curse.

The iconic D.C. restaurant where the Cuban Missile Crisis was negotiated, now a Walgreens.

You could be standing at the site of one of D.C.'s most fatal tragedies and not even know it.

An obscure federal monument honors the French diplomat who served as Ambassador to the U.S. during WWI.

An old-timey peepshow allows visitors to gawk at some of the world's most freakishly large footwear.

A museum dedicated to the history and exploration of both popular music and science fiction.

A wall of chewing gum moonlights as collective art.

This private residence was the template for one of the most beloved television homes of all time.