Washington Monument United States

Legendary

Completed in 1884, the 554-foot tall obelisk is a memorial to former general and president, George Washington.

Look closely at the Washington Monument and you'll see that it's two different colors. The bottom part is slightly lighter, and about a third of the way up, the stone turns a little darker.

That line is where construction stopped for more than 20 years. When workers finally came back, they had to use marble from a different quarry, and it never quite matched.

The monument honors George Washington, the first president of the United States. It stands on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

In 1833, a group of citizens started raising money to build it. They picked a design by architect Robert Mills, who planned a tall stone obelisk surrounded by a fancy circle of columns.

The cornerstone was laid on July 4, 1848, in front of a crowd of about 20,000 people. President James K. Polk was there.

Then the money ran out. By 1854, the monument was only about 150 feet tall, and work came to a stop.

Robert Mills died the next year. Soon after, the country was pulled into the Civil War, and the half-built stump sat unfinished for years.

Work finally started again in 1876. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers took over, led by Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Casey.

The plan changed a little. Mills had wanted it 600 feet tall, but Casey was convinced to make it exactly ten times as tall as its base was wide.

On December 6, 1884, workers raised the final 3,300-pound capstone into place. On top they set a small pyramid made of aluminum, which at the time was a rare, expensive metal.

The monument stood 555 feet, 5⅛ inches tall. It had just passed Cologne Cathedral in Germany to become the tallest building in the world.

It held that record until the Eiffel Tower was finished in 1889. It's still the tallest stone structure and the tallest obelisk on Earth.

The monument was dedicated in 1885 and opened to visitors in 1888, exactly 40 years after the cornerstone was laid. In 2011, an earthquake cracked some of its stones, and it closed for repairs before opening again.

Ride the elevator to the top for views across the city, from the Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial. Before you go up, stand at the base and look for the line where the marble changes color. Then walk the National Mall to see how the monument lines up with the other memorials around it.

Sources: National Park Service, Trust for the National Mall, and Ben's Guide.