Watergate Steps

Watergate Steps

Library of Congress

Quick Facts

Location:

Washington, DC

Amenities

2 listed

Scenic View/Photo Spot, Wheelchair Accessible

The Watergate Steps, the broad granite terraces that descend from the Lincoln Memorial plaza down toward the Potomac River, were completed in the early 1930s as part of the Arlington Memorial Bridge project and originally envisioned as a grand ceremonial “water gate” where dignitaries arriving by boat could be welcomed into the nation’s capital. In practice, that intended function never materialized, but the space found a new and beloved life as one of Washington’s most memorable outdoor cultural venues.

On July 14, 1935, the first of what would become a decades-long summer music tradition was inaugurated when the National Symphony Orchestra performed from a specially outfitted barge anchored in the Potomac at the foot of the steps. This early “Sunset Symphony” concert featured works like Wagner’s Die Meistersinger overture and attracted crowds who sat on the steps, on the surrounding grass, and even on boats and along nearby bridges to listen as the music drifted across the water. Tickets were modest—just a few cents to a dollar—while others enjoyed the performances free from informal vantage points, making the series a genuinely democratic event in the heart of the capital.

What began as a single performance quickly grew into an annual tradition that defined summer evenings in Washington. Over the next three decades, the Watergate Steps became a natural amphitheater for the orchestra’s concerts, military bands, opera selections, and other musical offerings. Audiences swelled to as many as 10,000–12,000 people, creating a festive riverfront atmosphere unique to the Potomac shoreline. In its heyday, the series was estimated to have drawn millions of listeners and featured not just symphonic works but a wide range of music embraced by the community.

The acoustics of open air and water proved magical, and for many Washingtonians and visitors, the experience of evening music under the sky with the Lincoln Memorial looming above became a cherished seasonal ritual. However, by the mid-1960s the concert series came to an end when the rise of jet traffic at nearby Washington National Airport made it increasingly difficult to overcome the noise with amplification, and the final barge-based performances ceased around 1965.

Though the steps no longer host orchestral barges, their legacy as a stage for music and community endures, reminding visitors of a time when the Potomac shores echoed with the sounds of symphony and song beneath the summer sky.