President's Park South
a.k.a. The Ellipse and adjacent parkland
Constitution Ave., Washington, DCThe President's Park South is significant as an important element of Pierre Charles L'Enfant's 1791 plan for Washington and as the primary remnant of Andrew Jackson Downing's 1851 landscape design for the Mall and adjoining area.
L'Enfant's plan prescribed the creation of a "President's park" extending from the Executive Mansion south to a "Canal through Tiber Creek" along the alignment of present Constitution Avenue. This greensward would join a longer green swath (the Mall) running westward from the Capitol, with the axes of the two intersecting at a monument to George Washington. Neither the L'Enfant plan nor the 1792 Andrew Ellicott map stemming from it specified the internal layout of the area below the White House.
The President's Park South was acquired by the Federal Government in the 1790s as a part of Reservation 1, which also included the sites of the present Lafayette Park, the Treasury and old Executive Office buildings, and the White House. Well after the White House was built during that decade, the land here remained unlandscaped and descended to an unattractive swamp at the mouth of the Tiber Creek. Conversion of the creek to the Washington City Canal (now Constitution Avenue) after 1810 did little to improve appearances, for the land remained low-lying and the canal ultimately degenerated to an open sewer before it was buried in the early 1870s.
In 1851, however, the noted landscape architect Andrew Jackson Downing prepared a new development plan for the Mall and the President's Park. The Mall portion of his plan, which called for a romantic layout of curving carriage drives bordered by trees, was partially executed but ultimately reversed in the 20th century in favor of the formal east-west linearity of the L'Enfant plan. The President's Park South, on the other hand, has retained the essential character of Downing's design. He drew a large circular drive with intersecting access roads, including one curving southward from the White House grounds in the manner of South Executive Avenue. The center of the circle, which Downing labeled a parade, was open and unbroken; in the remainder of the area were trees and pathways. As executed, Downing's circle was squeezed to an oval to leave more space for the White House grounds, but the basic curvilinearity and road and vegetative patterns of his plan were adhered to. Much fill was added to the southern portion of the park after the Civil War to bring it up to its present grade.
The President's Park South evolved in the 20th century as the setting for several monuments and memorials, as described in the preceding section. These were held to its periphery, leaving open the expanse of the Ellipse. The Sherman Monument and the First Division Monument in particular are significant as expressions of the memorial art of their time of special importance is the open vista from the White House south through the Ellipse to the Jefferson Memorial, listed separately on the Register.
Local significance of the site:
L'Enfant's plan prescribed the creation of a "President's park" extending from the Executive Mansion south to a "Canal through Tiber Creek" along the alignment of present Constitution Avenue. This greensward would join a longer green swath (the Mall) running westward from the Capitol, with the axes of the two intersecting at a monument to George Washington. Neither the L'Enfant plan nor the 1792 Andrew Ellicott map stemming from it specified the internal layout of the area below the White House.
The President's Park South was acquired by the Federal Government in the 1790s as a part of Reservation 1, which also included the sites of the present Lafayette Park, the Treasury and old Executive Office buildings, and the White House. Well after the White House was built during that decade, the land here remained unlandscaped and descended to an unattractive swamp at the mouth of the Tiber Creek. Conversion of the creek to the Washington City Canal (now Constitution Avenue) after 1810 did little to improve appearances, for the land remained low-lying and the canal ultimately degenerated to an open sewer before it was buried in the early 1870s.
In 1851, however, the noted landscape architect Andrew Jackson Downing prepared a new development plan for the Mall and the President's Park. The Mall portion of his plan, which called for a romantic layout of curving carriage drives bordered by trees, was partially executed but ultimately reversed in the 20th century in favor of the formal east-west linearity of the L'Enfant plan. The President's Park South, on the other hand, has retained the essential character of Downing's design. He drew a large circular drive with intersecting access roads, including one curving southward from the White House grounds in the manner of South Executive Avenue. The center of the circle, which Downing labeled a parade, was open and unbroken; in the remainder of the area were trees and pathways. As executed, Downing's circle was squeezed to an oval to leave more space for the White House grounds, but the basic curvilinearity and road and vegetative patterns of his plan were adhered to. Much fill was added to the southern portion of the park after the Civil War to bring it up to its present grade.
The President's Park South evolved in the 20th century as the setting for several monuments and memorials, as described in the preceding section. These were held to its periphery, leaving open the expanse of the Ellipse. The Sherman Monument and the First Division Monument in particular are significant as expressions of the memorial art of their time of special importance is the open vista from the White House south through the Ellipse to the Jefferson Memorial, listed separately on the Register.
Landscape Architecture; Art
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
About National Register Listings
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.
The original design of the city was influenced by a French architect: Pierre Charles L'Enfant, a French architect and engineer, was hired by George Washington to design the city in 1791. L'Enfant's design was influenced by the layout of several European cities, including Paris and Versailles.