Constitution Gardens
West end of the National Mall
Between the Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument
Southwest Washington, D.C.
Metro Stop: Smithsonian

The 50-acre oasis in the midst of the city landscape is Constitution Gardens.  It was dedicated in 1976 as a "living legacy American Revolution Bicentennial tribute." 

The land that became Constitution Gardens was originally submerged beneath the Potomac River and was dredged at the beginning of the 20th century by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.  During World War I, the U.S. Navy built temporary offices on the land, which were demolished in 1971.  Subsequently, President Richard Nixon ordered a park be established on the land.

Constitution Gardens has a small lake, which contains an island open to pedestrians.  In 1982 the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence Memorial was dedicated on the small island in the park.  In 1986, in honor of the Bicentennial of the U.S. Constitution that year, President Ronald Reagan issued a proclamation making Constitution Gardens a "living legacy tribute to the Constitution."

Constitution Gardens is open 24 hours a day year round.  There are no fees to visit the park.

Constitution Gardens Links

• Constitution Gardens NPS Website 

Places of Interest Nearby

• Vietnam Veterans Memorial
• Lincoln Memorial
• Korean War Veterans Memorial
• World War II Memorial
• Washington Monument
• National Mall
• President’s Park

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