Washington — Valuable real estate inside the Washington Monument will be going to a commemorative plaque donated by the people of Ireland.
At a ceremony Thursday, Irish dignitaries presented the National Park Service with the plate that will join 193 commemorative stones that line the interior stairwell walls of the monument.
“New stones are now accepted only in rare circumstances,” spokesman for the National Mall and Memorial Parks Mike Litterst said.
The tradition began in 1849, Litterst said, when the state of Alabama donated a decorative stone to be placed inside the monument to honor George Washington. Since then states, foreign countries and fraternal and civic organizations have made contributions.
In the spirit of the commemorative stones, the people of Ireland donated the plaque to mark the shared centennials of the founding of the National Park Service and the Easter Rising that led to Ireland’s independence.
This is a big year for centennial anniversaries that also include World War I, Marine Corps Base Quantico, NASA’s Langley Research Center and the birth of John F. Kennedy.
The Washington Monument is currently closed for repairs and is set to reopen in the spring of 2019.
You can see all of the Washington Monument’s commemorative stones on the National Park Service website.
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