Prior to its construction, the Convention Hall located on 5th Street NW, between K and L had been used as an armory.[5] Construction on the new armory began on June 2, 1940, and it opened on July 13, 1941.[6] The structure was designed by the city's Municipal Architect, Nathan C. Wyeth.[7][8] The D.C. Armory replaced the National Armory, a 1910 structure which was designed by New York City architect Electus D. Litchfield.[9][10]
OPLAN 1954, a 1954 war game preparing for an atomic bomb exploding over Washington, D.C., supposed that a vacant parking lot near the Armory could be turned into an emergency airstrip for delivering medical supplies.[11] Initially, nonmilitary use of the Armory was facilitated by the D.C. Armory Board, which was formed in 1948.[3] During its existence the board oversaw the use of both the Armory and RFK Stadium.[3] In 1994 the board was dissolved and the city's use of the Armory came under the authority of the D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission (DCSEC), which later became the Washington Convention and Sports Authority.[3][12]
The Armory's Drill Field is approximately 80,000 square feet (7,400 m2)[3] and has hosted trade shows, concerts, warehouse sales,[14] the Washington Auto Show,[15] sporting events, and Presidential inauguration balls.[3]
^" The parts of the Armory so set aside for the use of the National Guard shall be under the control and jurisdiction of the Commanding General of the National Guard [of the District of Columbia] for all purposes except maintenance and repair of the Armory."[2]
^Badges Of Distinction: Second Regiment Soldiers Receive Their Marksmanship Medals - April 26, 1893 - The Washington Post - page 2
^"Public to See Ground-Breaking For New Armory". The Washington Post. June 2, 1940. p. 12; "D.C. Armory Cornerstone Rites Today". The Washington Post. July 13, 1941. p. 7.
^"E. D. Litchfield, 80, Architect, Is Dead: Civic Leader Here Won Reversal of Grandfather's Demotion in Court-Martial of 1814," New York Times, November 28, 1952, p. 25.
