SeeHistoric siteAdams Morgan-Columbia Heights

Meridian Hill Park

aka Malcolm X Park

A 12-acre park centered on a long, stunning, cascading waterfall, surrounded by European-style terraced landscaping, and administered by the National Park Service. The grounds have long been an esteemed commodity in the city, first surrounding an 1819 mansion that became President James Quincy's home following his presidency. Around 1900, Mary Foote Henderson, who owned the land, petitioned Congress to move the White House to or establish the Lincoln Memorial at Meridian Hill, since the National Mall was just north of the putrid stench of the mosquito and sewage-infested Washington City Canal in Waterfront. The plan didn't pass the House of Representatives. However, she did convince Congress to create a park and, in 1910, the federal government purchased the ground and later converted it into the extravagant Italianate park that you see today. After the 1968 DC riots, the park was a haven for open-air drug markets, which got worse and worse throughout the crack epidemic of the 1980s. Following the murder of a teenager in 1990, the community decided to take back control of the park, and organized regular citizen patrols throughout the day and night. They were very successful, and the park is quite safe today. The sword from the statue of Joan of Arc—the only female equestrian statue in the city— was stolen and replaced several times.

Address: 16th St NW &, W St NW
Getting there: bordered by 15th St, 16th St, W St, & Euclid St
Phone: +12028956000
Website: nps.gov (opens in a new tab)

Directions Suggest a nearby place

Listing from Wikivoyage: Washington, D.C./Adams Morgan-Columbia Heights, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Location and details from OpenStreetMap, © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Also listed in Overture Maps open data.

Updated 28 Sept 2026. Something wrong? Tell us.

Close by

SeeHistoric site

Wayland Seminary

Wayland Seminary was the Washington, D.C., school of the National Theological Institute. The institute was established beginning in 1865 by the American Baptist Home Mission Society (ABHMS). At first designed primarily for providing education and training for African-American freedmen to enter into the ministry, it expanded its offerings to meet the educational demands of the former enslaved population.

SeePublic art

Joan of Arc Memorial

Joan of Arc is a 1922 cast of the 1896 statue sculpted by French artist Paul Dubois. It is located in the center of the grand terrace at Meridian Hill Park, an urban park in Washington, D.C., United States. The bronze statue rests on a granite base designed by McKim, Mead & White.

DoLive music venueAdams Morgan-Columbia Heights

Sunday Drum Circle @ Meridian Hill Park

The weekly Drum Circle has been going on for nearly 50 years, and is one of the coolest events in the city, with the most diverse section of drummers, acrobats, and dancers. Come to hang out and enjoy the vibe, or bring your drum and join in the jam session!

Nice weather: Sun 3-9PM

SeePublic art

Serenity Statue

Serenity is a public artwork in Meridian Hill Park, an urban park in Washington, D.C. It was sculpted by Spanish-Catalan artist Josep Clarà, who created an identical version on display in Barcelona. The sculpture was commissioned by Charles Deering, an American businessman and art collector, who was friends with Clarà. The sculpture was completed in 1921 and Deering dedicated it to his lifelong friend, Lieutenant Commander William H. Schuetze, who died in 1902.