Historic American Buildings Survey,
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George Washington Masonic National Memorial, 101 Callahan Drive, Alexandria, Alexandria (Independent City), VA
- Title: George Washington Masonic National Memorial, 101 Callahan Drive, Alexandria, Alexandria (Independent City), VA
- Creator(s): Historic American Buildings Survey, creator
- Related Names:
Helmle & Corbett
Helmle, Frank J
Corbett, Harvey Wiley
Osgood & Osgood
Osgood, Sidney J
Osgood, S Eugene
Olmsted Brothers
Parker, Carl Rust
Cranford Paving Company
George Washington Masonic National Memorial Association
Alexandria-Washington Lodge No. 22
Jacobs, James A , project manager
Kocyba, Kate M , historian - Date Created/Published: Documentation compiled after 1933
- Medium:
Photo(s): 23
Color Transparencies: 2
Data Page(s): 53
Photo Caption Page(s): 4 - Reproduction Number: ---
- Rights Advisory:
No known restrictions on images made by the U.S. Government; images copied from other sources may be restricted. (http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/res/114_habs.html)
- Call Number: HABS VA-1431
- Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
- Notes:
- Significance: Constructed between 1922 and 1932, the George Washington Masonic National Memorial is a unique monument built and paid for by the freemasons of the United States to honor George Washington. The unprecedented building project, which occurred during what might be considered a golden age of Freemasonry in America, brought together the independent Grand Lodges of the states and territories in a rare initiative among freemasons having a national scope. The practical origins of the building were in creating a repository and museum for the materials and artifacts associated with George Washington. These objects, known as “Washingtonia,” had been left to the Alexandria-Washington Lodge No. 22 whose first Master, upon being chartered in 1788, was Washington. Very quickly, this local initiative gained broader interest and support among freemasons and was expanded to celebrate George Washington in a more complete manner. George Washington had previously been viewed and memorialized primarily as commander in chief of the Continental Army and as the first President of the United States. Paralleling trends in contemporary scholarship in and public interest about Washington, the freemasons sought to present and celebrate a more complete picture of the man. This goal in part focused on how aspects of Freemasonry had shaped his character and influenced his actions taken during the Revolution and during the establishment of the nation. Alexandria, Virginia was the obvious location for such a monument, as it was home to a Masonic lodge that Washington helped charter and it also possessed a collection of Washingtonia. Alexandria was also the town where he attended church and maintained a business office; and it was located along a modern-day “pilgrimage route” created when a trolley line connecting Washington, DC, and Mount Vernon opened in 1896. The freemasons established the George Washington Masonic National Memorial Association for the purpose of realizing this goal. The Association met for the first time in 1910, but it would be another decade before they would be in the position to move purposefully forward with the project, at the beginning of a transformative decade in American architecture. The Association hired the well-known New York firm of Helmle & Corbett to design the memorial, which was one of the leading offices specializing in tall commercial buildings. Harvey Wiley Corbett was the principal for the project and he devised a striking memorial for a dramatic hillside site overlooking Alexandria. The resulting eclectic building combined neoclassical austerity common to contemporary American memorials and civic buildings with the excitement and energy of modern skyscraper design. The appropriately strong and sober podium contrasts with the dynamism of the set-back tower crowned by a pyramid and beacon, exhibiting strong Art Deco influences and clearly reflecting the strengths and interests of the architect. The skyscraper memorial was felt to be a modern and fitting adaptation of an ancient lighthouse form, yet it also situated the building within the 1920s mania optimistically exploring the potential of high-rise buildings for virtually any function. As with many of the tall buildings rising throughout the country, the monolithic reinforced concrete and granite behemoth not only looked modern, but was also realized using modern construction technology and engineering. When taking into consideration the impetus and deep meaning of the memorial, the high-profile building site, and the period’s preoccupation with notions of “modernism,” the George Washington Masonic National Memorial was an extremely successful architectural solution to a multifaceted design problem.
- Survey number: HABS VA-1431
- Building/structure dates: HABS VA-1431
- Subjects:
- Place:
- Latitude/Longitude: 38.807566, 77.066088
- Collections:
- Part of: Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)
- Bookmark This Record:
https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/va2095/
The Library of Congress generally does not own rights to material in its collections and, therefore, cannot grant or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute the material. For further rights information, see "Rights Information" below and the Rights and Restrictions Information page ( https://www.loc.gov/rr/print/res/rights.html ).
- Rights Advisory: No known restrictions on images made by the U.S. Government; images copied from other sources may be restricted. http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/res/114_habs.html
- Reproduction Number: ---
- Call Number: HABS VA-1431
- Medium:
Photo(s): 23
Color Transparencies: 2
Data Page(s): 53
Photo Caption Page(s): 4
If Digital Images Are Displaying
You can download online images yourself. Alternatively, you can purchase copies of various types through Library of Congress Duplication Services.
HABS/HAER/HALS materials have generally been scanned at high resolution that is suitable for most publication purposes (see Digitizing the Collection for further details about the digital images).
- Photographs--All photographs are printed from digital files to preserve the fragile originals.
- Make note of the Call Number and Item Number that appear under the photograph in the multiple-image display (e.g., HAER, NY,52-BRIG,4-2).
- If possible, include a printout of the photograph.
- Drawings--All drawings are printed from digital files to preserve the fragile originals.
- Make note of the Survey Number (e.g., HAER NY - 143) and Sheet Number (e.g., "Sheet 1 of 4"), which appear on the edge of the drawing. (NOTE: These numbers are visible in the Tiff "Reference Image" display.)
- If possible, include a printout of the drawing.
- Data Pages
- Make note of the Call Number in the catalog record.
If Digital Images Are Not Displaying
In the rare case that a digital image for HABS/HAER/HALS documentation is not displaying online, select images for reproduction through one of these methods:
- Visit the Prints & Photographs Reading Room and request to view the group (general information about service in the reading room is available at: http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/info/001_ref.html). It is best to contact reference staff in advance (see: http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/address.html) to make sure the material is on site. OR
- P&P reading room staff can provide up to 15 quick copies of items per calendar year (many original items in the holdings are too old or fragile to make such copies, but generally HABS/HAER/HALS materials are in good enough condition to be placed on photocopy machines). For assistance, see our Ask a Librarian page OR
- Hire a freelance researcher to do further selection for you (a list of researchers in available at: http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/resource/013_pic.html).
- You can purchase copies of various types, including quick copies, through Library of Congress Duplication Services (price lists, contact information, and order forms for Library of Congress Duplication Services are available on the Duplication Services Web site):
- Make note of the Call Number listed above.
- Look at the Medium field above. If it lists more than one item:
- The entire group can be ordered as photocopies or high-quality copies.
- All the items in a particular medium (e.g., all drawings, all photographs) can be ordered as photocopies or high-quality copies.
- Call Number: HABS VA-1431
- Medium:
Photo(s): 23
Color Transparencies: 2
Data Page(s): 53
Photo Caption Page(s): 4
Please use the following steps to determine whether you need to fill out a call slip in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room to view the original item(s). In some cases, a surrogate (substitute image) is available, often in the form of a digital image, a copy print, or microfilm.
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Is the item digitized? (A thumbnail (small) image will
be visible on the left.)
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Yes, the item is digitized. Please use the digital image in preference to requesting the original. All images can be viewed at a large size when you are in any reading room at the Library of Congress. In some cases, only thumbnail (small) images are available when you are outside the Library of Congress because the item is rights restricted or has not been evaluated for rights restrictions.
As a preservation measure, we generally do not serve an original item when a digital image is available. If you have a compelling reason to see the original, consult with a reference librarian. (Sometimes, the original is simply too fragile to serve. For example, glass and film photographic negatives are particularly subject to damage. They are also easier to see online where they are presented as positive images.)
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No, the item is not digitized. Please go to #2.
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Do the Access Advisory or Call Number fields above indicate that
a non-digital surrogate exists, such as microfilm or copy prints?
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Yes, another surrogate exists. Reference staff can direct you to this surrogate.
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No, another surrogate does not exist. Please go to #3.
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If you do not see a thumbnail image or a reference to another surrogate, please fill out a call slip in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room. In many cases, the originals can be served in a few minutes. Other materials require appointments for later the same day or in the future. Reference staff can advise you in both how to fill out a call slip and when the item can be served.
To contact Reference staff in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room, please use our Ask A Librarian service or call the reading room between 8:30 and 5:00 at 202-707-6394, and Press 3.
