Pan American Union Building

The Pan American Union Building is the headquarters for the Organization of American States. It is located at 17th Street N.W. between C Street N.W. and Constitution Avenue, Northwest, Washington, D.C.[1]

Pan American Union Building
Organization of American States headquarters building, with the Statue of Isabella I in front (2015)
Pan American Union Building is located in Central Washington, D.C.
Pan American Union Building
Location17th Street NW between C Street NW and Constitution Avenue, NW.
Washington, D.C.
Coordinates38°53′34″N 77°02′25″W / 38.89288°N 77.04026°W / 38.89288; -77.04026
Built1908–1910
ArchitectPaul P. Cret and Albert Kelsey
NRHP reference No.69000298, 10000625
Significant dates
Added to NRHP4 June 1969
Designated NHL13 January 2021

History

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On the former site of the John Peter Van Ness Mansion. The cornerstone was laid on May 11, 1908, by Theodore Roosevelt, Elihu Root, and Andrew Carnegie[2] (who largely financed the building's construction), and the building was dedicated on April 26, 1910.[3]

In 1919, the initial meeting of the International Labour Organization was held in the building.[4]

Between 1921 and 1922, the building was used for committee and subcommittee hearings throughout the Washington Naval Conference while closely guarded by marines with fixed bayonets. [5]

The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1969, and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2021, for its architecture and its role in international diplomacy.

References

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  1. ^ Pan American Union Building at archINFORM
  2. ^ "Hall of Americas for Arms Meeting" (PDF). The New York Times. August 27, 1921.
  3. ^ "Building Stones of Our Nation's Capital: Walking Tour Stops 1-6".
  4. ^ http://www.ilo.org/public/libdoc/ilo/P/09616/09616(1919-1).pdf [bare URL PDF]
  5. ^ Wright, Quincy (1922). "The Washington Conference". The American Political Science Review. 16 (2): 285–297. doi:10.2307/1943964. JSTOR 1943964. S2CID 147404493.
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