Last updated: November 11, 2018
NPS
Quick Facts
- Location:
- 16th Street & W Street NW, Washington, D.C.
- Significance:
- Architecture and landscape design
- Designation:
- Park
- OPEN TO PUBLIC:
- Yes
A Garden Fit for an Aristocrat, Open to the Public
In 1819, John Porter erected a mansion on Meridian Hill. The site was called Meridian Hill because it was on the exact longitude of the original District of Columbia milestone marker, placed on April 15, 1791. In 1829, the mansion became departing President John Quincy Adams' home. After its conversion to a public park, Union troops encamped on the grounds during the Civil War.
The U.S. government purchased the grounds in 1910. Landscape architects George Burnap and Horace Peaslee planned an Italian style garden. The structures made revolutionary use of concrete aggregate as a building material.
Notable Features
- The thirteen basin cascading fountain is the longest in North America.
- The Joan of Arc Statue is the only equestrian statue of a woman in Washington, D.C.
- Dante statue
- James Buchanan Memorial
Hours: Meridian Hill Park is open during daylight hours.
Fees: Free
Fountain: The pipe that supplies water to the cascade fountain at Meridian Hill Park is broken. A contract has been awarded, and the contractor has already begun to make repairs. However, we will need to replace this cast iron pipe and replace it with ductile iron pipe. The new pipe is expected to last much longer--perhaps even 100+ years.
The cost and scope of the project has increased due to pipe replacement. We are currently in negotiations with the contractor and expect the work to proceed and be completed in the coming weeks.
In addition, the upper fountains at Meridian Hill Park, on the great terrace where the Joan of Arc Statue is located, are off due to waterline breaks that connect these two fountains.