National Archives and Records Administration, National archives in Washington, D.C., United States
The National Archives and Records Administration is a federal facility in Washington, D.C., holding government documents and records. Its 1930s building has a broad stone facade with a flight of steps leading to tall fluted columns and a triangular pediment filled with carved figures. Above the columns, an inscribed band reads "ARCHIVES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA".
The building opened in 1935 as a central repository for federal records, after President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the agency the year before. Prior to that, government documents were scattered across different departments and often stored unsafely.
The Rotunda displays the founding documents of the United States in glassed enclosures, visited daily by people from all parts of the country. Words from the historic papers are engraved on the walls, and each evening the documents are automatically lowered into an armored vault.
The exhibition entrance and the research entrance are separate, both reached from Constitution Avenue on the north side of the National Mall. Photography is not allowed in the exhibition hall. A free shuttle bus links the downtown building with the newer Archives II facility in College Park, Maryland.
Beyond the well-known founding documents, the facility holds millions of photographs, maps, and records spanning two centuries of government work. Researchers from around the world use the collections to explore family histories or historical events.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 92,085 contributors worldwide.
