Washington, the capital of the United States, is situated on the Potomac River in the District of Columbia. The district is a piece of land ten miles square and it does not belong to any one state but to all the states. The district is named in honor of Columbus, the discoverer of America.
The capital owes much to the first President of the United States, George Washington. He chose the place for the District and laid in 1790 the corner-stone of the Capitol, where Congress meets.
Washington is not the largest city in the United States. It is smaller than New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, or Los Angeles. It has a population of about 900,000 people.
Washington is a city with one main industry: government. It does not produce much, except for very much paper. Every day, twenty-five railway cars leave Washington loaded with paper.
Washington has many historical places. The largest and tallest building is the Capitol, with its great Hall of Representatives and Senate Chamber. There are no skyscrapers in Washington because no other building is taller than the Capitol.
The White House is the President’s residence. All American presidents except George Washington (the White House was not yet built in his time) have lived there. It was built in 1799. It is a two-story white building. In 1814, during the war with England, the White House was burnt down. After the war, the charred remains of the building were whitewashed. Since that time, the residence of the American presidents has always been painted white.
Not far from the Capitol is the Washington Monument, which looks like a very big pencil. It rises 160 meters and is hollow inside. A special lift brings visitors to the top in 70 seconds, from where they can enjoy a view of the city.
The Jefferson Memorial was built in memory of the third President of the USA, Thomas Jefferson, who was also the author of the Declaration of Independence. The Memorial is surrounded by cherry trees.
The Lincoln Memorial is devoted to the memory of the sixteenth President of the United States, the author of the Emancipation Proclamation, which gave freedom to people who had been enslaved in America.
On the other bank of the Potomac lies the Arlington National Cemetery, where President Kennedy was buried. American soldiers and officers who died in World Wars I and II and in the Vietnam War are buried there as well.
