Capitol Reflecting Pool

The Capitol Reflecting Pool is located at the eastern end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built above a tunnel of northbound Interstate 395 lanes.

It is set into a plaza that includes, on the east, the Ulysses S. Grant Memorial; to its west is a tree-dotted grassy area that extends to Third Streets, NW and SW.

(Other elements of the plan were the creation of the Third Street Tunnel under the Mall and the relocation of a memorial to Civil War General George G. Meade from the northwest section of Union Square; that memorial now stands near the intersection of Constitution Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue, NW).

The new pool was designed to serve as a counterpart to the one at the western end of the Mall, between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument.

The broad, gently sloped limestone coping and the steps that lead down from ground level afford seating for visitors as they enjoy the reflections of the Capitol, the surrounding sights, and the sky as well as the ducks and seagulls that often swim in the pool.