DC -- Dept of Agriculture Building (Jamie L. Whitten Bldg):
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- Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
- USDA_200322_01.JPG: United States Department of Agriculture
1862 1930
[Why these dates?
1862 = When Abraham Lincoln created the agency
1930 = When the central section of the HQ building was completed
United States Department of Agriculture
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), also known as the Agriculture Department, is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of farmers and ranchers, promotes agricultural trade and production, works to assure food safety, protects natural resources, fosters rural communities and works to end hunger in the United States and internationally.
Approximately 80% of the USDA's $141 billion budget goes to the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) program. The largest component of the FNS budget is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly known as the Food Stamp program), which is the cornerstone of USDA's nutrition assistance. ...
Formation and subsequent history
On May 15, 1862, Abraham Lincoln established the independent Department of Agriculture to be headed by a commissioner without Cabinet status, and the agriculturalist Isaac Newton was appointed to be the first such commissioner. Lincoln called it the "people's department." ...
Jamie L. Whitten Building
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Administration Building, also known as the Jamie L. Whitten Building, houses the administrative offices of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C. The Administration Building projects into the National Mall from the larger U.S. Department of Agriculture South Building, and is the only building on the Mall that is not intended for use by the general public. It was the first large Beaux-Arts style building in Washington and set the prototype for the later buildings of the Federal Triangle. The east and west wings were the first Federal office buildings to be built of reinforced concrete. The Whitten Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
History
The placement of the new building on the Mall was at odds with the proposed McMillan Plan, which envisioned a Mall free of intrusive buildings. The Agriculture Department's proposed placement was opposed by Commission members Daniel Burnham and Charles McKim. After a series of intercessions by President Theodore Roosevelt the building was moved to be in accordance with the Plan, but only after foundations were in place for a building 106 feet to the east of the final location.
As the public face of the Department of Agriculture, the Beaux-Arts style Administration Building was designed by architects Rankin, Kellogg and Crane to a higher standard than the South Building. However, a limited budget enforced a comparative plainness when set against other buildings on the Mall. The L-shaped wings were completed between 1904 and 1908, but the central block was not finished until 1930. The prototype for the design was Ange-Jacques Gabriel's 1774 Hôtel de la Marine on the Place de la Concorde in Paris. The pediment features sculpture by Adolph Alexander Weinman, while interior murals are by Gilbert White. While the earlier east and west wings featured reinforced concrete construction, the central portion was built in steel.
The building was named the Jamie L. Whitten building in 1995 in honor of Mississippi Congressman Jamie L. Whitten, former chairman of the United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies. ]
- USDA_200322_19.JPG: Knapp Memorial Arch
In recognition of the public service of seaman A. Knapp in extension work for the Department of Agriculture from 1899 to 1911.
[Note there is a letter missing on the side of the arch away from the Metro station.]
- USDA_200322_22.JPG: Knapp Memorial Arch
In recognition of the public service of seaman A. Knapp in extension work for the Department of Agriculture from 1899 to 1911.
[Note there is a different letter missing on the side of the arch near the Metro station.]
- USDA_200411_02.JPG: High Accuracy Geodetic Control Mark
USDA Forest Service 100th Anniversary
- USDA_200411_08.JPG: 100 Years of Caring for the Land and Serving People
Forest Service
Department of Agriculture
1905-2005
- USDA_200509_02.JPG: Wilson Memorial Arch
In recognition of the public service of James Wilson as Secretary for the Department of Agriculture from 1897 to 1913.
- USDA_200509_31.JPG: United States
Department of Agriculture
Jamie L. Whitten
Federal Building
- Wikipedia Description: Jamie L. Whitten Building
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
U.S. Department of Agriculture Administration Building
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Administration Building, also known as the Jamie L. Whitten Building, houses the administrative offices of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C. The Administration Building projects into the National Mall from the larger U.S. Department of Agriculture South Building, and is the only building on the Mall that is not intended for use by the general public. It was the first large Beaux-Arts style building in Washington and set the prototype for the later buildings of the Federal Triangle. The east and west wings were the first Federal office buildings to be built of reinforced concrete. The Whitten Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
The placement of the new building on the Mall was at odds with the proposed McMillan Plan, which envisioned a Mall free of intrusive buildings. The Agriculture Department's proposed placement was opposed by Commission members Daniel Burnham and Charles McKim. After a series of intercessions by President Theodore Roosevelt the building was moved to be in accordance with the Plan, but only after foundations were in place for a building 106 feet to the east of the final location.
USDA building shortly after completion
As the public face of the Agriculture Department, the Beaux-Arts style Administration Building was designed by architects Rankin, Kellogg and Crane to a higher standard than the South Building. However, a limited budget enforced a comparative plainness when set against other buildings on the Mall. The L-shaped wings were completed between 1904 and 1908, but the central block was not finished until 1930. The prototype for the design was Ange-Jacques Gabriel's 1774 Hôtel de la Marine on the Place de la Concorde in Paris. The pediment features sculpture by Adolph Alexander Weinman, while interior murals are by Gilbert White. While the earlier east and west wings featured reinforced concrete construction, the central portion was built in steel.
In 1936 bridges were built across Independence Avenue to link the wings to the South Building. The single-span stone arches form a dramatic accent on Independence Avenue. The soffits of the bridges are faced with Guastavino tile. The east bridge is dedicated to Seaman A. Knapp, while the west bridge commemorates Agriculture Secretary James Wilson.
The Administration Building was named the "Jamie L. Whitten" building in 1995 in honor of Mississippi Congressman Jamie L. Whitten, former chairman of the United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies.
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U.S. Department of Agriculture South Building
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The U.S. Department of Agriculture South Building is an office building in southwest Washington, D.C., United States, built beginning in 1930 to house the expanded offices of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Construction was completed on the U.S. Department of Agriculture Administration Building to the north of Independence Avenue in 1930, but Depression-era agriculture programs demanded far more office space than the main building could provide. The phased construction was completed in 1936. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2007.
Completed in 1936, the South Building was the largest office building in the world until the completion of the Pentagon, with dimensions of 458 feet (140 m) by 944 feet (288 m) in seven stories with 4500 rooms. The building's design is credited to Louis A. Simon of the Federal Office of the Supervising Architect. The South Building was joined to the Administration Building by two enclosed pedestrian bridges spanning Independence Avenue, thus consolidating USDA operations into one complex. The new building contained laboratory space as well as offices. It was originally referred to as the "Extensible Building", which could be expanded in a phased fashion. Phasing was necessary due to the time required to acquire such a large parcel of land.
The architecture of the South Building is a stripped-down example of Classicism, with plain detailing that borrows from Classical form and proportion without using a great deal of expensive and time-consuming detail. The style became popular for government buildings until the advent of the Modern style in government architecture, reaching its apex at the Pentagon. In the case of the South Building, the lesser level of detail indicated its subordinate position vis-à-vis the Administration Building. The interior is based on a rigidly-enforced network of corridors; only the departmental auditorium and library deviate from the corridor grid. Interiors are even more plain than the exterior.
The building is arranged in seven north-south wings, connected at the ends by the Headhouse (paralleling Independence Avenue} and Tailhouse (paralleling C Street). The 12th and 14th Street elevations were planned to be seen from the National Mall and so were sheathed in limestone. The C Street and Independence Avenue elevations, which are not visible from the National Mall, used brick as the primary material, with limestone and terra cotta detailing. The 14th Street elevation also features a monumental entrance with sixteen Corinthian columns. Elsewhere, relief panels between windows feature depictions of animals native to the United States by sculptor Edwin Morris.
Since the relocation of laboratory space to the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, the South Building has been occupied exclusively by offices.
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