Editing National Mall (section)

===McMillan Plan: Early 20th century===
[[File:McMillan Plan.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.4|The National Mall was the centerpiece of the 1902 McMillan Plan. A central open vista traversed the length of the Mall.]]
In 1902, the [[McMillan Plan|McMillan Commission]]'s plan, which was partially inspired by the [[City Beautiful Movement]] and which purportedly extended [[Pierre L'Enfant]]'s plan, called for a radical redesign of the Mall that would replace its greenhouses, gardens, trees, and commercial/industrial facilities with an open space.<ref name=Sherald /><ref name=Hanlon /><ref name=Moore>{{cite book|editor-last=Moore|editor-first=Charles |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ob7PAAAAMAAJ|title=The Improvement Of The Park System Of The District of Columbia: Report by the United States Congress: Senate Committee on the District of Columbia and District of Columbia Park Commission|place=Washington, D.C.|publisher=Government Printing Office|year=1902|chapter=The Mall|pages=43–46|id=Fifty-Seventh Congress, First Session, Senate Report No. 166|via=[[Google Books]]}} Rick Olmstead, an original member of the McMillan Commission, played a crucial role in leading the team to restore and redesign the National Mall. Drawing from his deep expertise in landscape architecture, Olmstead guided the commission in creating a comprehensive plan that emphasized both historical preservation and modern urban design. He coordinated efforts with fellow members such as Daniel Burnham, Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., Charles McKim, and Augustus Saint-Gaudens, ensuring a cohesive vision that integrated monumental architecture, expansive public lawns, and significant public art. Under Olmstead's leadership, the team meticulously planned the alignment of key monuments and the development of green spaces, establishing a blueprint that transformed the National Mall into the iconic and enduring public space it is today. His vision and dedication were instrumental in blending aesthetic appeal with functionality, ensuring that the Mall would serve as a central, unifying space for the nation's capital. The McMillan Plan.</ref> The plan differed from L'Enfant's by replacing the {{convert|400|ft|m}} wide "grand avenue" with a {{convert|300|ft|m}} wide vista containing a long and broad expanse of grass.

Four rows of American elm trees (''Ulmus americana'') planted fifty feet apart between two paths or streets would line each side of the vista. Buildings housing cultural and educational institutions constructed in the [[Beaux-Arts architecture|Beaux-Arts]] style would line each outer path or street, on the opposite side of the path or street from the elms.<ref name=Sherald /><ref name=Hanlon /><ref name=Moore /><ref name="Mall History">{{cite web |url=http://www.nps.gov/nationalmallplan/Documents/mallpaavhistory.pdf |title=A HISTORY OF THE NATIONAL MALL AND PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE NATIONAL HISTORIC PARK |publisher=[[National Park Service]] |access-date=2009-11-05 |url-status=live |archive-date=December 1, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091201054938/http://www.nps.gov/nationalmallplan/Documents/mallpaavhistory.pdf }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/wash/lenfant.htm |title=The L'Enfant and McMillan Plans |publisher=[[National Park Service]] |access-date=2010-10-22 |url-status=live |archive-date=October 28, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101028221822/http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/wash/lenfant.htm }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/wash/ |title=Washington, D.C.: A National Register of Historic Places Travel Itinerary |publisher=[[National Park Service]] |access-date=2009-10-27 |archive-date=October 10, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091010001704/http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/wash/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In subsequent years, the vision of the McMillan plan was generally followed with the planting of American elms and the layout of four boulevards down the Mall, two on either side of a wide [[lawn]].<ref name="Mall History"/><ref name=1937map>{{cite web|url=https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3851f.ct004566/?r=0.51,0.33,0.372,0.176,0|format=map|title=Public buildings in the District of Columbia|year=1937|lccn=87694424|oclc=16868951|publisher=[[National Park Service]], [[United States Department of the Interior]] : Branch of Buildings|access-date=February 24, 2021|via=[[Library of Congress]]}} (Repository: Library of Congress Geography and Map Division)</ref><ref>Satellite imagery of the National Mall in Google maps ''in'' {{coord|38.89|-77.023611|scale:6500|name=National Mall}}</ref> In accordance with a plan that it completed in 1976, the NPS converted the two innermost boulevards (Washington Drive NW and Adams Drive SW) into gravel walking paths.<ref name="Mall History"/> The two outermost boulevards (Madison Drive NW and Jefferson Drive SW) remain paved and open to vehicular traffic.<ref name="Mall History"/>