National Museum of African American History and Culture

Early efforts to establish a federally owned museum featuring African-American history and culture can be traced to 1915, although the modern push for such an organization did not begin until the 1970s. After years of little success, a much more serious legislative push began in 1988 that led to authorization of the museum in 2003. A site was selected in 2006, and a design submitted by Freelon Group/Adjaye Associates/Davis Brody Bond was chosen in 2009. Construction began in 2012 and the museum completed in 2016. The NMAAHC is the largest museum dedicated to African-American history and culture. It ranked as the fourth most-visited Smithsonian museum in its first full year of operation. The museum has more than 40,000 objects in its collection, although only about 3,500 items are on display. The 350,000-square-foot, 10 story building and its exhibits have won critical praise. 

Located in: National Mall
Address: 1400 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20560, United States
Departments: Smithsonian National African American Museum
Established: December 19, 2003
Hours: Closed ⋅ Opens 11AM Sat
Architects: David Adjaye, Phil Freelon, J. Max Bond Jr.
Architecture firms: David Adjaye, Freelon Adjaye Bond/SmithGroup