When people think of the History of the USA, Washington DC is probably the first city on their mind. There is so much to see and do for history lovers in Washington DC that we could write entire books about it. But we don’t write books; we run tours and experiences for people who want to make the most out of their visit to Washington DC. If you love history and you’re planning to visit Washington DC, then we’d like to suggest a few locations that you can visit!
African American History Month — Attend Smithsonian Events
African American History Month is February, and The Smithsonian Institute hosts a huge range of events to explore and celebrate African American History, making Washington DC, arguably, the best city in the US for anyone eager to celebrate and learn about African American history. You can attend panel discussions, film screenings, and special exhibits and discussions throughout the month. All of these events take place across the breadth of The Smithsonian’s range of Washington DC locations. You can see the entire list of African American History Month here. If you love visiting museums and other sites of history and culture when you visit any city, then you’ll be pleased to know that Washington DC has quite a lot of free museums and museums with free events planned throughout the year!
President’s Day — Visit George Washington’s Home
From February 16 to 18 (in 2019, when this blog post was written), the US celebrates President’s Day Weekend in honor of George Washington. While the official day is always the third Monday of February, we usually celebrate the whole weekend. This is also officially called Washington’s Birthday, but most of us just call it President’s Day. It’s a little strange that it’s Washington’s birthday, considering that the date changes every year. The first time Washington’s Birthday was held, it was held on his actual birthday (February 22), but it was later changed to the third Monday in February. While this day doesn’t just belong to Washington, but to all of the US presidents, Washington is ‘The Father of his Country’ and will always be more special than the USA’s other presidents. To celebrate President’s Day, why not visit George Washington’s old home: his plantation on Mt Vernon. Take our Mount Vernon and Arlington National Cemetery tour from Washington DC for the complete experience!
You could also use President’s Day Weekend as an excuse to try to meet every single US president in history. While it’s true that most of them are no longer with us, you shouldn’t let that stop you meeting them and getting your picture taken with them! Head over to Madame Tussauds and meet most of them there!
November 22 Anniversary of JFK Assassination — Visit the Kennedy Center in his Honor
When talking about the USA’s history, you can’t skip past John F. Kennedy. While JFK was assassinated in Dallas, Washington’s Kennedy Center was named in his honor and might offer the most enjoyable way to celebrate one of America’s brightest, most beloved presidents. As John F. Kennedy was a huge patron of the arts, it felt appropriate to name the National Cultural Center after him. The center had been in production ever since President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed legislation in 1958 to create the center and one of the Kennedy Center’s theaters is named after Eisenhower. The US went into deep shock and mourning after the assassination of JFK and The Kennedy Center serves as a living memorial to the man’s life and what he stood for. If you’re looking for something meaningful to do this November 22, why not see a production at The Kennedy Center!
That’s all we have time for today and we haven’t even scratched the surface of Washington DC’s incredible history and heritage; if you’d like as much history as you can possibly take, check out our range of Washington DC monuments and memorials. We hope we’ve inspired a few history-lovers to visit Washington DC in the near future! If you have any questions about our range of Washington DC tours, please feel free to get in touch!