Some of Excel Marketing’s team recently visited our nation’s capital, Washington DC. There they captured some spectacular photos of old doors and hardware. The hardware and fixtures featured below are most likely from the early 1900s.
Lincoln Memorial
The Lincoln Memorial was built between 1914 and 1922, and the theme of the building represents the Union. The 36 columns on the outside walls stand for the 36 states in the Union at the time of Lincoln’s death. The names of the 48 states in the Union when the memorial was completed are carved along the outside of the memorial; a plaque honoring Alaska and Hawaii is in the approach plaza. (source)
While there are no records of the decorative cast bronze doors at the Lincoln Memorial, a restoration company used x-ray fluorescence to help gain insight into the patina chemicals. They used their findings to restore the doors to the appearance intended by the memorial’s architect, Henry Bacon. (source)
History of Washington D.C
Founded on July 16, 1970, Washington, DC is unique among American cities because it was established by the Constitution of the United States to serve as the nation’s capital. From its beginning, it has been embroiled in political maneuvering, sectional conflicts, and issues of race, national identity, compromise, and power. (Source)
Like many decisions in American history, the location of the new city was to be a compromise: Alexander Hamilton and the northern states wanted the new federal government to assume Revolutionary War debts, and Thomas Jefferson and the southern states wanted the capital placed in a location friendly to slave-holding agricultural interests. (Source)
Old Doorknobs Found in America
In the Victorian era, intricate detail and surface ornamentation was a popular way to add elegance to one’s home or business. From the 1860s until World War I, ornate metal doorknobs and handles could be found on even the most ordinary cottages and farmhouses, adding a touch of detail to otherwise functional objects. The Great War caused a metal shortage, resulting in the popularity of beautiful, jewel-like glass doorknobs which remained in vogue until the advent of modernism’s clean lines in the 1950s. (Source)
Our Nation’s Capital
The history of our Nation’s Capital isn’t just in the history lessons that are taught in school. It is readily on display in the architecture and hardware of its original buildings.
The Old Post Office was constructed from 1892 to 1899. The building is an example of Richardsonian Romanesque, part of the Romanesque Revival architecture of the 19th-century United States.
Old Doorknobs Found in America
In the Victorian era, intricate detail and surface ornamentation were popular ways to add elegance to one’s home or business. From the 1860s until World War I, ornate metal doorknobs and handles could be found on even the most ordinary cottages and farmhouses, adding a touch of detail to otherwise functional objects. The Great War caused a metal shortage, resulting in the popularity of beautiful, jewel-like glass doorknobs which remained in vogue until the advent of modernism’s clean lines in the 1950s. (Source)
