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Discover America's Hidden Past on the National Mall

Discover United States History

Browse below to learn about hidden stories of the National Mall.

Install the AR Memory DC app for more and use AR to find the sites on the National Mall.

Notley Young’s Slave Plantation

Washington, D.C. is located on the grounds of several former slave plantations, one of which was owned by Notley Young. More ...

Enslaved Labor and the Capitol Building

Enslaved people contributed significantly to the construction of the Capitol Building. More ...

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Center Market Slave Auctions

In 1797, President George Washington designated a site for a public marketplace between 7th and 9th on Constitution Avenue. More ...

David Burnes Plantation

The epicenter of present-day downtown Washington DC, including the White House, was built on the site of a former tobacco plantation owned by David Burnes. More ...

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Jefferson and Slavery

Thomas Jefferson enslaved more than six hundred people in his lifetime, a fundamental contradiction to his iconic proclamation that “all men are created equal.” More ...

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Indigenous Human Remains at the Smithsonian

In the 1800s, government-sponsored expeditions shipped large amounts of sacred indigenous objects and human remains to Washington, D.C. More ...

Grant and Slavery

Ulysses S. Grant was the last U.S. president to have enslaved people. More ...

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