[United States Government Manual]
[June 01, 2004]
[Pages 45-46]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



UNITED STATES BOTANIC GARDEN

Office of Executive Director, 245 First Street SW., Washington, DC 20024

Phone, 202-226-8333. Internet, www.usbg.gov.

Conservatory, 100 Maryland Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20024

Phone, 202-225-8333

Production Facility, 4700 Shepherd Parkway SW., Washington, DC 20032

Phone, 202-563-2220
Director (Architect of the Capitol)               Alan M. Hantman, 
                                                          Acting
Executive Director                                Holly H. Shimizu

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The United States Botanic Garden informs visitors about the aesthetic, 
cultural, economic, therapeutic, and ecological importance of plants to 
the well-being of humankind.

The U.S. Botanic Garden has artistic displays of plants, exhibits, and 
educational programs promoting botanical knowledge through the 
cultivation of an ordered collection of plants; fostering plant 
conservation by acting as a repository for endangered species; and 
growing plants for the beautification of the Capitol complex. Uniquely 
situated at the heart of the U.S. Government, the Garden seeks to 
promote the exchange of ideas and information relevant to its mission 
among national and international visitors and policymakers.
    The Garden's collections include orchids, epiphytes, bromeliads, 
carnivorous plants, ferns, cycads, cacti, succulents, medicinal plants, 
rare and endangered plants, and plants valued as sources of food, 
beverages, fibers, cosmetics, and industrial products.
    The U.S. Botanic Garden's facilities include the Conservatory, 
Bartholdi Park, an administration building, and an off-site Production 
facility. The Garden is currently undergoing a significant expansion and 
transformation. The Conservatory, one of the largest structures of its 
kind in this country, re-opened on December 11, 2001, after undergoing 
major renovation that required more than 4 years to complete. In 
addition to upgraded amenities for visitors, it features 12 new exhibit 
and plant display areas. Renovation of the administration building and 
Bartholdi Park are scheduled for 2005-2006. A new public feature, the 
National Garden, is planned for the three-acre site just west of the 
Conservatory.
    Outdoor plantings are showcased in Bartholdi Park, a home landscape 
demonstration area located across from the Conservatory. Each of the 
displays is sized and scaled for suitability in an urban or suburban 
setting. The gardens display ornamental plants that perform

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well in this region arrayed in a variety of styles and themes. Also 
located in this park is Bartholdi Fountain, created by Frederic Auguste 
Bartholdi (1834-1904), sculptor of the Statue of Liberty.
    The Garden's staff is organized into horticulture, operations, 
administration, and public programs divisions. Programs for the public 
are listed in a quarterly calendar of events and also on the Garden's 
Web site. A horticultural hotline is available to answer questions from 
the public.
    The U.S. Botanic Garden was founded in 1820 under the auspices of 
the Columbian Institute for the Promotion of Arts and Sciences, an 
organization that was the outgrowth of an association known as the 
Metropolitan Society, which received its charter from Congress on April 
20, 1818. The Garden continued under the direction of the Institute 
until 1837, when the Institute ceased to exist as an active 
organization.
    In June 1842, the U.S. Exploring Expedition under the command of 
Captain Charles Wilkes returned from its 4-year voyage with a wealth of 
information, artifacts, pressed-plant specimens, and living plants. The 
living plants were temporarily placed on exhibit on a lot behind the old 
Patent Office under the care of William D. Brackenridge, the 
Expedition's botanist. By November, the plants were moved into a 
greenhouse built there with funds appropriated by Congress. 
Subsequently, the greenhouse was expanded with two additions and a small 
growing area to care for the burgeoning collection. In 1843, stewardship 
of the collection was placed under the direction and control of the 
Joint Committee on the Library, which had also assumed responsibility 
for publication of the results of the Expedition. Expansion of the 
Patent Office in 1849 necessitated finding a new location for the 
botanical collections.
    The act of May 15, 1850 (9 Stat. 427), provided for the relocation 
of the Botanic Garden under the direction of the Joint Committee on the 
Library. The site selected was on The Mall at the west end of the 
Capitol Grounds, practically the same site the Garden occupied during 
the period it functioned under the Columbia Institute. This site was 
later enlarged, and the main area continued to serve as the principal 
Garden site from 1850 to 1933, when the Garden was relocated to its 
present site.
    Although the Government had assumed responsibility for the 
maintenance and stewardship of the plant collection in 1842, the two 
functions were divided between the Commissioner of Public Buildings and 
the Joint Committee on the Library, repectively. In 1856, in recognition 
of their increasing stature, the collections and their associated 
operations and facilities were officially named the United States 
Botanic Garden, and the Joint Committee on the Library assumed 
jurisdiction over both its direction and maintenance (11 Stat. 104). An 
annual appropriation has been provided by Congress since 1856.
    Presently, the Joint Committee on the Library exercises its 
supervision through the Architect of the Capitol, who has held the title 
of Acting Director since 1934.

For further information concerning the United States Botanic Garden, 
contact the Public Programs Division, 245 First Street SW., Washington, 
DC 20024. Phone, 202-225-8333. Plant Hotline, 202-226-4785. Internet, 
www.usbg.gov. E-mail, [email protected].

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