The Smithsonian Castle is one of the most recognized buildings on the National Mall. Designed by architect James Renwick, it was completed in 1855 and has served as a national museum filled with curiosities, science laboratories, lecture halls, libraries, an art gallery, a children's room, dormitories, and more. Presidents and politicians, kings and queens, judges, actors, authors, ordinary Americans, and international visitors have walked the halls of the Castle. (In the late 1800s, two bison, acquired for what became the National Zoo, even walked behind the Castle—in a paddock in the South Yard.)
It was built with red sandstone that came from the Seneca quarry, a long-forgotten historic site just off the C&O Canal. The story of the stone is just as remarkable as that of the building. The quarry operators filed for bankruptcy twice, suffered through floods, and contributed to a national scandal that embarrassed the Ulysses S. Grant presidency.
Richard Stamm, curator of the Smithsonian Castle Collection, and historian and author Garrett Peck offer an illustrated look at the Castle’s history followed by a guided walking tour around the Castle’s exterior and its surrounding gardens.
Stamm’s The Castle: An Illustrated History of the Smithsonian Building (Smithsonian Books) and Peck’s The Smithsonian Castle and the Seneca Quarry (The History Press) are available for signing. One participant who correctly answers several questions will take home a free copy of each book.
