Monument(al) tribute
Architecture
By Shirish Joshi

IT all began in 1783, after George Washington became the first President of a little country called the United States of America. People thought this was no small work and wanted to build a monument so that no one would ever forget him. But Washington was a modest man. He asked people to spend their money on other more important things.

Respecting his wishes, people dropped the idea of his monument. However, when he was no longer alive to protest, they took up the project again. The project stopped again while people discussed the design. Not every one agrees on everything even today. After 50 years of debates and discussions, the Washington Monument Society became wise and held a contest.

Robert Mills, a leading architect, submitted the design that won the contest. His idea was to construct an obelisk — a tapering tower like the Qutab Minar — made entirely out of stone. It included a Greek-style temple that would hold tombs of revolutionary heroes of America. He also suggested a statue of George Washington wearing a toga — a Greek-Roman form of dress made out cloth — driving a chariot.

The collection of money started in 1833. The society requested a contribution of $1 from every American. All states of America contributed stones for its construction. The project began to take shape and became a true national monument. Every state in the US is represented by at least one stone. The stone from Alaska, the last state, was installed in 1982. It is carved in solid green Jade — a semi-precious stone — estimated to be worth several million dollars.

On July 4, 1848, the Independence Day of the USA the 11-tonne marble cornerstone for the monument was said to be laid with the same trowel that Washington had used at the laying of the cornerstone for the Capitol, the massive building in Washington city. The Senate and Congress members of the US hold their sessions in Capitol building. It is like our Parliament House or Lok Sabha Bhavan at New Delhi.

In 1854, when the monument was only 45 metres tall, the construction stopped. It started once again in 1880 after the end of Civil War between the states of the US. There is a symbolic line on the monument at this height signifying the stoppage of work due to Civil War. By August, 1884, the memorial soared to 150 metres, making it the highest building in Washington and the tallest freestanding masonry structure in the world then.

Built of rubble masonry and granite, faced with marble, it is the tallest all-stone structure (without steel) in the world, and is about 169 metres high. The width at base 16.79-m tapers to 10.39m. It then breaks sharply at the top into a pyramid, 22.26-m high tipped with aluminium. The walls at the bottom are 6.m thick while at the top they are 0.6m thick.

Dedicated to the nation in 1885, and opened to public in 1888, it quickly became America’s meeting place for protests and agitations.

Although President Chester A. Arthur was in office at the time the Washington Monument was completed, he never made it to the top. It wasn’t until January 13, 1946, that President Harry Truman became the first President in office to travel to the top of the monument.

Voices for truth and justice have been raised on the ground adjoining this monument. Marchers for civil rights like Dr Martin Luther King spoke to a 250,000 men and women on August 28, 1963, at this monument. Fireworks like those on Independence Day mark the national celebrations.

A lift takes tourists to an observation room to see the city of Washington sprawling on all sides. There are long queues every day, from morning to evening, but people wait for hours.

By 1997, the monument had been standing tall for nearly 152 years. Along with the country, it has withstood World War I and II, Great Depression of the 1930s, weather and finally the footsteps of millions of people who come from all the states in the US and the world over to see it.

Once at the top, visitors can look out over five counties in two states, plus the federal district of Columbia. On a clear day visibility is often in excess of 56 km sometimes (when there is no haze and little humidity, usually in the middle of the winter) visibility is as great as 100 km.

In commemoration of the 190th anniversary of the birth of George Washington, 48 American flags representing the then 48 states of the Union, encircling the monument, were raised on February 22, 1922. The current configuration of the more durable aluminium flagpoles date to 1959, following the inclusion of Alaska and Hawaii into the Union as the 49th and 50th states.

Wear and tear has taken its toll. The monument needed repairs. The cost of repair is estimated at $ 5 million. The people of America raised this sum in one year. The repair work is expected to be complete just in time for the celebration of the Independence Day in the year 2000.

The height was measured very accurately in August 1999 with the help of global positioning satellites (GPS). It was found to be a little more than 169 metres.