The Roadside America website (
visit link) informs us:
"Washington, DC: The Zero Milestone
In 1923, the granite marker was expected to be the milestone from which all road distances in the U.S. would be reckoned. It didn't work out that way.
Address:
E St. NW, Washington, DC
Directions:
On the north edge of The Ellipse, where it meets E Street NW. Just west of the National Christmas Tree, and just south of the White House.
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Visitor Tips and News About The Zero Milestone
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Zero marker. The Zero Milestone
The Zero Milestone sits in front of the National Christmas Tree. Foreign tourists will crowd the milestone and have their pictures taken, obscuring the text. They must think that it holds national importance.
[Nate M, 05/17/2008]
The Zero Milestone
When this marker was dedicated in 1923, it was expected that it would be the milestone from which all road distances in the U.S. would be reckoned. Obviously people in places like Oregon and California didn't like the idea that their road markers would begin and end in the 3,000s, and the idea was scrapped. Now the Zero Milestone only anchors roads distances in Washington, DC.
It's an inscribed granite block, set inside a big brass compass on the sidewalk, about four feet high. It's popular with tourists who rest their cameras on it to take pictures of The White House, but who are otherwise oblivious to its purpose.
Zero Milestone advocates attempted to export the idea to other cities -- which, if you reflect on it for more than zero seconds, totally cheapens the idea of a Zero Milestone. Perhaps that's why only two were built: one in Grant Park in San Diego, the other in Memorial Park in Nashville.
[RoadsideAmerica.com Team, 04/26/2007]"