The old site at this address had a simple gallery of photographs taken during the planning of the redevelopment. This gallery replaces it with freely licensed images that follow the building from the 1890s to today. Choose a thumbnail to jump to the full photograph and its caption; each photograph is credited to its author.
A new landmark, 1890s to 1910s
The new building, about 1899 The Post Office Department building soon after completion, when its tower was the third-tallest structure in the city. Photo: DC Public Library Commons, No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons.A rainy day on the avenue The Post Office Department headquarters in an early twentieth-century news photograph. Photo: Bain News Service, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.Pennsylvania Avenue, about 1915 Looking along the avenue from the Treasury, with the post office tower in the distance. Photo: Unknown photographer, U.S. National Archives, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Granite, arches and a tower
Pennsylvania Avenue at dusk The building and its tower lit up in the evening, photographed by Carol M. Highsmith. Photo: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.An entrance arch Carved mouldings and foliage on one of the granite arches. Photo: Bmzuckerman, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.Carved capitals Clustered columns with Byzantine-style capitals at the base of an arch. Photo: Bmzuckerman, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.Inside the observation level About 270 feet up, the elevator housing stands in the centre and great arched openings look out over the city. Photo: APK, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.Tower and roofline The clock, belfry pinnacles, dormers and conical corner turrets, photographed in October 2026. Photo: G. Edward Johnson, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.The tower on the skyline Looking north-west along Pennsylvania Avenue past the National Archives, the tower stands out above its classical neighbours. Photo: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.Benjamin Franklin The statue of Franklin, the first Postmaster General, stands in front of the building. Photo: Cooper Renner, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Inside the light court
The light court in the Pavilion years Shops on two levels and a grand staircase in the court, decorated for the holidays. Photo: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.Looking up to the tower From the light court, the clock tower rises above the skylight. Photo: Cory Hartman, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.The Pavilion food court Diners at tables in the light court during the Pavilion years. Photo: Ben Schumin from Montgomery Village, Maryland, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.Shops under the skylight Souvenir and gift shops on the ground floor in the last years of the Pavilion. Photo: Ben Schumin from Montgomery Village, Maryland, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.The Congress Bells The ten change-ringing bells given by the Ditchley Foundation for the Bicentennial. Photo: dave_7 from Lethbridge, Canada, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
From the observation level
The view from the tower The Washington Monument and the red-tile roofs of the Federal Triangle from the observation level. Photo: APK, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.Looking across downtown The rooftops of downtown Washington seen from the tower's arched openings. Photo: APK, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The hotel years
October 2015 The building during its conversion into a hotel, a year before it opened. Photo: Rcgtrrz, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.Trump International Hotel The view along Pennsylvania Avenue between 2016 and 2022. Photo: Kurt Kaiser, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.Pennsylvania Avenue front, hotel era Flags hung above the three entrance arches. Photo: Kurt Kaiser, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.Waldorf Astoria Washington DC The building under its current hotel name. Photo: ajay_suresh, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.The Waldorf Astoria sign The new name went up in 2022. Photo: APK, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
