| Existing comment:
Even before General Meigs retired from the U.S. Army in 1882, 50 years after his career began at West Point, he had secured his next job directly from Congress. Meigs was asked to site, design, and construct a "brick and metal fireproof building" for the Pension Bureau. The work (1882-1887) was his last and most important architectural undertaking. One hundred years later, in 1985, this structure was designated a National Historic Landmark and opened its doors as the National Building Museum. |