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 Bulfinch Gatehouse Water Marks - Washington, DC Posted by:  DougK
N 38° 53.542 W 077° 02.029
18S E 323613 N 4306798
The Bulfinch Gatehouse stands on the NW corner of Constitution Avenue and 15th Street. This sandstone structure has two high water marks with dates etched into the decaying sandstone. One date is from 1877; the other is from 1881.
Waymark Code: WMBAJC
Location: District of Columbia, United States
Date Posted: 04/26/2011
Views: 8
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Two high water marks are cut into the sandstone of this Bulfinch Gatehouse at Constitution Avenue and 15th Street.
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Upper Mark
The higher of the two marks reads "HIGH WATER MARK, Feb 12, 1881".
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Lower Mark
Beneath the upper mark is a second mark, with a month in the date that has weathered away. It reads "HIGH WATER MARK" in a circular arc of lettering, with a date underneath the arc "[???] 26, 1877".
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From the National Park Service website:
Built in 1828, these sandstone guardians silently watched over the U.S. Capitol grounds until 1874. In 1889, this gatehouse and its twin, located on Seventeenth Street and Constitution Avenue, were reconstructed in their present locations.
These houses have weathered several floods, water, and the effects of acid rain. On the southeast side are markers indicating the high-water marks during floods.
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Natural or man made event?: Natural
What type of marker?: lines and letters etched in sandstone walls
When did this occur?: Feb 12, 1881
Website related to the event..: [Web Link]
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Visit Instructions:
A picture showing the level along with any markers telling of what had occurred can be used. Better yet would be a picture of you or someone standing next to the high level mark, that would show if you would have been just wading or completely submersed.
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