Photo: Rachel Hendrix, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.

SightseeingIconicHistory Buff

Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial

See Dr. King's 30-foot granite likeness emerge from the Stone of Hope beside the Tidal Basin, ringed by a wall of his words.

1850 West Basin Dr SW · Washington, DC

About Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial

This memorial sits at the northwest corner of the Tidal Basin, on a sightline between the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials. You enter by passing through the Mountain of Despair, two granite pieces, to reach the Stone of Hope, a 30-foot relief of Dr. King. A crescent-shaped granite wall 450 feet long carries fourteen quotations from his sermons, speeches and writings. Cherry trees on the grounds bloom in early spring.

#civil rights
#memorial
#national mall
#tidal basin
#monument

Printable maps

What's around here?

The closest stops to Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

Sightseeing
History Buff
District of Columbia War Memorial
No admission fee
Step inside a small marble temple on the National Mall that honors the 499 Washingtonians who died in World War I.
Transit: reachable by public transit
Steps awayMore like this
Sightseeing
History Buff
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial
No admission fee
Walk through four open-air rooms of red granite, cascading water and bronze sculpture that trace FDR's four terms beside the Tidal Basin.
Steps awayMore like this
Sightseeing
Iconic
Korean War Veterans Memorial
No admission fee
Walk among 19 stainless steel soldiers on patrol beside a black granite wall etched with the faces of those who served.
Transit: reachable by public transit
0.2 mi awayMore like this
Sports & Outdoors
Iconic
Tidal Basin
No admission fee
Walk the path around a 107-acre basin lined with cherry trees, past the Jefferson, FDR and Martin Luther King, Jr. memorials.
Transit: reachable by public transit
0.3 mi awaySwitch it up: Sports & Outdoors
Sports & Outdoors
Constitution Gardens
No admission fee
A quiet park on the National Mall with a pond and island memorial.
Transit: reachable by public transit
0.3 mi awaySwitch it up: Sports & Outdoors
Museums
Local Gem
Art Museum of the Americas
No admission fee
See modern and contemporary Latin American and Caribbean art for free in a Spanish Colonial-style house beside the Organization of American States.
Transit: reachable by public transit
0.5 mi awaySwitch it up: Museums