Existing comment:
The Tip at the Top:
IN 1884 engineers and workers placed an aluminum tip, called an "apex," at the top of the completed Washington Monument. The apex was the world's largest piece of aluminum at the time. Engineers chose this rare metal because it would not tarnish and discolor the stones below.
To mark this moment, the apex was inscribed on all four sides.
Transcription:
East: "Laus deo" (meaning "Praise be to God") in Latin) "Repaired 1934. National Park Service, Department of the Interior" (added during the 1934 restoration)
West: "Corner Stone laid on bed of foundation, July 4, 1848. First stone at height of 152 feet laid August 7, 1880. Capstone set December 6, 1884."
North: "Joint Commission at setting of capstone. Chester A. Arthur. W.W. Corcoran, Chairman M.E. Bell. Edward Clark. John Newton. Act of August 7, 1876."
South: "Chief Engineer and Architect, Thos. Lincoln Casey, Colonel, Corps of Engineers. Assistants:: George W. Davis, Captain, 14th Infantry. Bernard R. Green, Civil Engineer. Master Mechanic: P.H. McLaughlin." |