Washington Monument Editorial Photo

The Washington Monument is an obelisk on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate George Washington, once commander-in-chief of the Continental Army and the first President of the United States. Located almost due east of the Reflecting Pool and the Lincoln Memorial,[2] the monument, made of marble, granite, and bluestone gneiss,[3] is both the world`s tallest stone structure and the world`s tallest obelisk, standing 554 feet 7 11⁄32 inches 169.046 m tall according to the National Geodetic Survey measured 2013–14 or 555 feet 5 1⁄8 inches 169.294 m tall according to the National Park Service measured 1884.[n 1] It is the tallest monumental column in the world if all are measured above their pedestrian entrances.[n 2]