On the Fourth of July this area will transform into a Pompeii-like storm of falling embers and ash.

A derelict bit of infrastructure from the canal that once ran through D.C. is landlocked in the heart of the city.

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

A line of blue paint marks the route of the inaugural parade.

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

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

A portal into the bricked up canal that runs through the heart of Washington D.C.

This seemingly out-of-place gas station by the Watergate hotel was once described as the most expensive gas station in the world.

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

The school tested mustard gas for the U.S. Army during World War I.

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

The national park was once a plantation estate.

The hidden offices underneath Memorial Bridge have been locked up since 1976.

An overlooked oasis of quiet on the grounds of Washington's monumental basilica.

This mysterious structure by the Washington Monument is a flood barrier designed to protect the White House against rising waters.

It was once the base for a series of domestic terror attacks.

This lovely pocket park is one of the most under appreciated in D.C.

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

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

Before Metro, Washington had a robust streetcar network—and you see the remains of this infrastructure if you know where to look.

The oldest continuously operating fish market in the United States.

Go take a picture with the inventor of the daguerreotype photographic process.

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

A celebrity from the late Cretaceous period.