A bas relief commemorates the "Nuns of the Battlefield" who cared for soldiers on both sides of the conflict.

When it comes to handsignals (and colonialism) rock always beats scissors.

The district's only illusionarium supports free writing programs for local students with every purchase.

There’s a special club house at the top for the bell ringers.

A historic arena where the Beatles played their first concert in the U.S.

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

The discovery site of the "Capitalsaurus," the official dinosaur of Washington, D.C.

For 60 years, the academy had no permanent location until members voted Washington D.C. as its forever home.

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

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

The only Civil War battle in Washington D.C. took place near this highest natural point in the city.

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

This unique museum cafeteria showcases the history and regional diversity of African American cuisine.

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 traveling postal dog covered 48 states and more than 140,000 miles, and he lives on as taxidermy, patched up with a rabbit's foot and a pig's ear.

Washington's iconic carousel has a nice piece of Civil Rights history.

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

In the basement of the U.S. Capitol Building is a hidden storage room full of ornate floor tiles leftover from the 1850s.

The remains of Martha, the last known passenger pigeon, serve as a tool to educate about conservation.

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.

Those with a sharp eye can find the hidden image of a German Shepherd on the memorial's Mural Wall.

The privately owned cemetery that holds room for Washington's finest when they step down from life.