The Octagon Museum: The Museum of the American Architectural Foundation [DC]
The Octagon Museum, the oldest U.S. museum of art and design, permits the American Architectural Foundation to share an understanding of and interest in architecture with the general public. The Federal period museum structure was built between 1799 and 1801. However, today, the interior and exterior reflect the period between 1817 and 1828. Collections include more than 100,000 original architectural drawings, 760 decorative arts artifacts, and over 12,000 archaeological items and architectural fragments found during restoration.
The museum offers exhibits and tours. Tours are unavailable during architectural restoration.