Temple for Our History 700 BLOCK CONSTITUTION AVENUE NW
The National Archives building was the first permanent repository for records of the federal government, including the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. More than one million people visit each year to see those records and others on exhibit. Thousands research their family histories using census, land, or military pension records. Others delve into the records of Congress and the Supreme Court, military records from the Revolution onward, documents pertaining to Native Americans, and more. For decades Congress debated where and how to store America’s most precious documents. Over time, many were damaged or destroyed. In 1913 Congress directed the secretary of the treasury to plan a National Archives building. Construction began in 1931, and three years later President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed legislation creating the National Archives as a government agency. John Russell Pope, architect of the Jefferson Memorial and the National Gallery of Art, designed and oriented the Archives building to stand out from the rest of the Federal Triangle. With 72 Corinthian columns and elaborately sculpted pediments, it embodies the importance of safeguarding historical records. At the stairs are two sculptures by James Earle Fraser: Heritage , with a mother holding a baby and an urn filled with ashes of past generations; and Guardianship , whose sword and lion skin safeguard records for future generations. The National Archives and Records Administration maintains billions of records in presidential libraries, regional archives, federal records centers, and a facility in College Park, Maryland.
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