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A view of the Capitol after the conflagration of the 24th August 1814 / G. Munger del. ; W. Strickland sculp.

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A view of the Capitol after the conflagration of the 24th August 1814 / G. Munger del. ; W. Strickland sculp.

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Summary

Print shows a view from southeast of fire-damaged U.S. Capitol building, a result of the War of 1812. On August 24, 1814, British general Robert Ross led his troops into Washington with strict orders to burn only public buildings. On August 25, a tornado blew through the city, bringing torrential rains that quelled both fires and British desire to pursue further action in Washington.

Copyright secured.
Reference copy filed in LOT 4386-6D Fires & disasters.
Exhibited: "Out of the Ashes : A New Library for the Nation" at the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., May - November, 2015.

United States Capitol Free Sock Photos. Public Domain, Royalty Free Images. The United States Capitol, often called the Capitol Building or Capitol Hill, is the home of the United States Congress, and the seat of the legislative branch of the U.S. federal government. President George Washington in 1791 selected the area that is now the District of Columbia from land ceded by Maryland. French engineer Pierre Charles L'Enfant who planned the new city of Washington located the Capitol at the elevated east end of the Mall, on the brow of what was then called Jenkins' Hill. The site was, in L'Enfant's words, "a pedestal waiting for a monument." President Washington laid the cornerstone of the U.S. Capitol in the building's southeast corner on September 18, 1793, with Masonic ceremonies. Construction was a time-consuming process: the sandstone used for the building had to be ferried on boats from the quarries at Aquia, Virginia and workers had to be induced to leave their homes to come to the relative wilderness of Capitol Hill. Some third-floor rooms were still unfinished when the Congress, the Supreme Court, the Library of Congress, and the courts of the District of Columbia occupied the U.S. Capitol in late 1800.

date_range

Date

01/01/1814
person

Contributors

Strickland, William, 1787-1854, engraver
Munger, George, 1781-1825, artist
place

Location

Washington, District of Columbia, United States38.90719, -77.03687
Google Map of 38.9071923, -77.03687070000001
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Source

Library of Congress
copyright

Copyright info

No known restrictions on publication.

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