Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial

The National Mall, Day 2

We took a second trip down to the Mall a few days later to complete the circle…to see the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial.

All were impressive. The last time Gary and I were in Washington D.C., in 2019, we saw the Martin Luther King, Jr. and Jefferson memorials.

Side view of Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, April 2025.

I was happy to see them again. And, we were glad we could see the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial this time. We decided it was our favorite.

Among many wise, sensible, and profound FDR quotes etched into the granite (that I wish our current administration would read, believe, and act on) the monument itself was well designed with four series of waterfalls representing different periods of FDR’s life and presidency.

One of the falls created for the FDR Memorial, April 2025.

Apparently, water was a major part of FDR’s life…from his childhood upbringing on the Hudson River to using water as a therapy during his illnesses (polio). Franklin Delano Roosevelt was 32^nd president of the US and served from 1933 to 1945. In 1921 he was paralyzed at 39 years old.

The bronze statues of Franklin Delano Roosevelt (in a wheelchair) and his dog, Fala. April 2025.

The first waterfall is a simple waterfall symbolizing the fresh energy FDR brought to the presidency. The second falls are a series of steps to represent the Tennessee Valley Authority project FDR founded. The TVA Act was part of Roosevelt’s broader “new Deal” initiative to address the Great Depression. The third falls has chaotic falls to represent the destruction from World War II. The fourth falls includes a still pool that symbolizes his death.

The bronze statue of Eleanor Roosevelt, April 2025.

The FDR memorial is the largest memorial on the Mall. A couple more unique features include it’s the only memorial that includes a sculpture of a First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt, and the only one to include a sculpture of a dog, FDR’s dog named Fala. Because of FDR’s disabilities, the memorial was intentionally designed to be accessible to people of all abilities.

Once again we walked back to the Metro station and past the Washington Monument, which I remember climbing steps to the top, as a kid, when I was in Washington D.C. with my parents.

This was another fun day with the grandkids, walking several miles everyday, for each of our adventures.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Today is set apart to honor the civil rights activist Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

He had much wisdom to share, but his overall message was unconditional love.

MLK statue at the memorial in Washington DC.

There were several inspiring quotes by MLK in marble at the memorial.

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate only love can do that.”

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality. Tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”

Memorable Hikes – Washington D.C. 2018

Continuing my series on memorable hikes…

After a beautiful Easter morning service that included the singing of Christ the Lord is Risen Today and hearing the Hallelujah Chorus at a church we were visiting in the D.C. area, we decided to take the train to the National Mall and walk around.

The metro system in Washington D.C. is user friendly and we hopped on the train, along with our host for the weekend, and “people watched” for thirty minutes while we enjoyed the train ride to the National Mall.

As soon as we stepped out of the metro station we saw the Washington monument standing tall. There were lots of people everywhere…and this was April…I can’t imagine the crowds during summer. We turned and looked behind us, to the East, and saw the U.S. Capitol from a distance, and then started our hike walking west toward the Washington Monument.

It was wonderful to see the cherry trees in bloom.

The day was cool but the cherry trees were in bloom and it was beautiful. We walked from memorial to memorial, beginning at the Washington Monument (built in 1848). I have been up in the Washington Monument on a prior visit, but it is currently closed for renovation until 2019. We glanced at the White House to the north as we passed it, then walked through the WW II Memorial (dedicated in 2004) on our way to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial (dedicated in 1982), and a Vietnam Women’s Memorial, a sculpture dedicated in 1993 for the women who served in the Vietnam war.

Next we stopped at the Lincoln Memorial (dedicated in 1922) which is a favorite of mine, and for many I believe.

A classic view of the Lincoln Memorial from one end of the Reflecting Pool.

Next we walked to the Korean War Veterans Memorial (dedicated in 1995) and then to the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial.

The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial is a fairly new memorial dedicated in 2011, and this was the first time I saw it and it immediately became a favorite for me. The Stone of Hope is a granite sculpture out of which the carving of Dr. King emerges. The memorial covers four acres and is located on the Tidal Basin. The walls surrounding the statue are etched with several different quotes from Dr. King Jr. such as:

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

At this point we were on a trajectory to see the Jefferson Memorial (dedicated in 1943) which took us past the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial (dedicated in 1997), also new to me.

A view of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial across the Tidal Basin.

The King, Roosevelt and Jefferson memorials are all on the Tidal Basin, off the Potomac River, surrounded by blooming cherry trees.

The cherry trees along the Tidal Basin were given as a gift of friendship to the People of the United States from the People of Japan in 1912.

When we started out we had no idea we would hike a total of six miles that afternoon, but it was fun to see these truly amazing memorials. There are interesting stories behind each one.

They are continually adding new memorials and museums in this area. For instance, they are planning a Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial, under construction at this time, and we visited the newly opened Museum of the Bible which was very interesting.

Washington D.C. is a very unique place to visit and a fun place to hike around, and I am grateful we had the opportunity to do so in the cherry tree blooming season.

Click here to view a good map of the National Mall.