Other Designations · District of Columbia
Constitution Gardens
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Check the official park website for current access, conditions and visitor information.
Introduction
Background: 1
Officially established in 1965, National Mall and Memorial Parks actually protects some of the older parkland in the National Park System. Areas within this premier park provide visitors with ample opportunities to commemorate presidential legacies; honor the courage and sacrifice of war veterans; and celebrate the United States commitment to freedom and equality.
Geography
History and culture
History & Culture: 5
Constitution Gardens is a living legacy to the founding of the republic as well as an oasis in the midst of a city landscape. The 50 acres of the park were originally beneath the Potomac River. Near the end of the nineteenth century, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers initiated a dredging project that created the land that became Potomac Park.
Beginning in World War I, the government maintained "temporary" office buildings on this site for use by the United States Navy and the Munitions Department. Nicknamed "Tempos," these structures remained until the 1970s when President Richard M. Nixon ordered their removal. After the Navy finally withdrew from them, the buildings were demolished in 1971. President Nixon then directed that a park be laid out on the land, leading to the creation of Constitution Gardens.
The Gardens were dedicated in May of 1976 as an American Revolution Bicentennial tribute. On July 2, 1984, the Memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence was dedicated on the small island in the lake.
On September 17, 1986, in honor of the Bicentennial of the U.S. Constitution, President Ronald Reagan issued a proclamation making Constitution Gardens a living legacy tribute to the Constitution. Visitors enjoy the park all year as the home for a wide array of urban wildlife. Constitution Gardens has been a separate park unit since 1982.
Visitor information
Sources & field notes
Source records (8)
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Background · Official park structured information. Open source ↗
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- 2026-10-30
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- NPS-supplied text; NPS-authored government work generally public domain, subject to third-party rights.
Low stone blocks arranged in an arc of the 56 Signers Memorial with the Washington Monument in the background. · Carol Highsmith. Open source ↗
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- 2026-10-30
- Catalog image date
- 10/04/2008
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- Constitution Gardens
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- Single source; not independently corroborated.
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- Public domain:Full Granting Rights
- Rights
- Public domain:Full Granting Rights
Designation · National Park System directory. Open source ↗
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- 2026-10-30
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- Factual reference data; source attribution retained.
State or territory · National Park System directory. Open source ↗
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- 2026-10-30
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- Single source; not independently corroborated.
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- Factual reference data; source attribution retained.
History & Culture · National Park Service. Open source ↗
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- Not supplied by the source
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- 2026-10-30
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- Single source; not independently corroborated.
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- NPS-authored U.S. government material is generally public domain; third-party material may have separate rights. No images copied.
Physical Address · Official park structured information. Open source ↗
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- 2026-10-30
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- Single source; not independently corroborated.
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Mailing Address · Official park structured information. Open source ↗
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- 2026-10-30
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Telephone · Official park structured information. Open source ↗
- Information date
- Not supplied by the source
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- 2026-10-30
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
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- NPS-supplied text; NPS-authored government work generally public domain, subject to third-party rights.