Library of Congress Review

Wow. It is so big and overwhelming. A great place to relax and read.

I went in at the end of a long weekend, tired and worn out with a baby in tow. This was such a lovely building and I am so glad I went! The staff were very friendly too.

Free admission to a historical library of congress, yes please! There's also AC in here. The structure itself is beautiful, it feels like a European museum in there. The oldest books in the US can be found here too. Lots of good US history and information. You definitely can get lost in here.

One of my most favourite places in the DC. The Thomas Jefferson Building is just stunning inside and out and the concept that learning is universal and indescrimate of age and gender is built in and practiced throughout. Don't miss the free public tour!

If you get a reader's card you can read inside the rotunda. Very cool. Librarians are awesome and helpful.

I went to the library and asked for a book on how to let customers down politely. The librarian said I m terribly sorry sir but I can t help you with that I said Yes that s the one :)

Is an amazing building, lots of time need to see everything, couldn't believe all the books they have, it's definitely a must visit place in DC

The building is absolutely beautiful and you can spend a long time admiring it's artistic details. Make sure to look up. Multiple floors with multiple gallery exhibits to enjoy on a variety of topics. When I went, they had exhibits on baseball, WWII, Women Illustrators, the colonization of the New World, and entertainers and politics. People flock to see the Gutenberg Bible and line up to view the reading room from the balcony. They offer multiple daily tours, but get there early. There is a reading room open to the public for children in the back lower left corner. Go down the hall. It seems like you're not supposed to, but it's okay. The gift shop is of medium size featuring literary and USA themed knick knacks, but fewer books than you would expect. See just how much Thomas Jefferson liked to read in the display of his library and then buy a tote bag with his quote on it. No food and no drink allowed but there are water fountains, bathrooms, a phone charging station, and tables outside in the sun. Entrance facing the Congretional building.

Viewing one of the original copies of the Magna Carta, the Declaration of Independence,any of Alexander Hamilton s library.
We took the Tour arranged through the office of my Congress person, Nancy Pelosi. We booked 6 months in advance to assure getting a tour reservation.
The congressional office bounced that request to a time to book according to Library of Congress reservation protocols.
I think we rebooked just a few months prior. Capital tours required the longer advanced booking.
The building itself was remarkable; seeing documents relating to the founding of the nation was remarkable. The Magna Carta viewing was stunning.
Interesting to note that antique documents is available to those making requests in advance. Some archived items require advance arrangement to be available.
Now many resources are available in digital form online. I think loc.gov is the website.
Several display editions were absent due to scheduled digitizing. A tremendous resource. Check it out.

A great view from both inside and outside. The special exhibitions made the visit even better.

Awesome place. It's worth a visit on your trip to DC!

If you are in DC and don't know where to start, this is the place! I spent half a day there, but still that wasn't enough. I'm going to read more about the place and visit again.

This place is fantastic expanding information of interest to all audiences.

biblioteca do congresso nacional dos estados unidos

Beautiful repository of our nation's library and a fabulous research center for primary documents.

The is an incredible library. We took a tour and got to see and hear the history. The gothic design and american style fits well here.
The only negative here was our tour lady. My son (young) sneezed in her vicinity. The visual and verbal reaction from her was over the top! We might as well have injected her with AIDS or something. My son wasn't even sick or showed any sickness. No runny nose or anything. He sneezed ... ONCE ... THAT time ... through the whole tour. My son felt so bad and embarrassed and we got the feeling she cancelled the tour early because of it.

A very beautiful inside and outside. Very informational exhibits.

Amazing library, it s huge, makes you feel like your in a Harry Potter movie

We saw the Gutenberg bible and the atrium. We would have stayed longer but the guards were SO RUDE. They yelled, literally yelled, at our kids just for jumping in place! I'd say they don't really want kids here, and to just visit if you are adults or have older kids.

An amazing library with beautiful architecture and amazing collection, worth the visit.

Great place. What is not to like at the Nation's biggest and official library. Wish our Congress persons would find it and spend more time there, instead of spending time with Lobbyists.

Beautiful architecture, I especially loved the inside, it simply feels like a European royal palace, yet it's a symbol of democratic power.

The US library of Congress is the world's largest library .it has 160 million items and is spread across 3 building.

DC visitors, don't pass up a tour. At least come walk around.

Researching:
(1) Get a research card. (2) Request your items 2 hours beforehand. It's that easy.

Beautiful building, great staff, and a lot to see. It's amazing what's in the library (For example, one of the first maps of what explorers thought North America looked like) and this is a place well worth a visit.

It's really pretty Big, massive and beautiful library
Personally, I think that the beauty of the House of Parliament is the Library of Congress.

The architecture alone is enough to fall in love with. The art and detail are impeccable and breathtaking. It really is overwhelming and a lot to take in, in a good way... like if you were holding the last piece of chocolate on Earth and you want to savor it and take a long time eating it, because you know you'll never have it again. Jefferson's library is impressive and I would have been happy to stay in the main hall forever. I didn't want to leave.

Famous place worth visit if you have very limited time in DC. The hall is amazing.

The building perfectly conveys the cultural significance of the library. You feel the greatness and the meaning of knowledge.

How to get into the Great Hall, Hidden Tunnels, & Secured Rooms!

Come to the Library of Congress for your free library card. It's the world s biggest book collection with amazing architecture, hidden tunnels, the Guttenburg Bible, and 160 million books, photos, films, recordings, maps, newspapers, pieces of art, and artifacts from around the world. (See photos.)

In a word, this place is epic.

Get your free "Reader Registration" federal Photo ID library card to become a Library of Congress Researcher! Take the tunnel to the Madison Building, Room LM 140. Now you can get into the Great Hall Main Reading Room where Nicolas Cage found the Book of Secrets in National Treasure.

See the Bob Hope and Gershwin exhibits and many more. The information desk can set you up with a guided tour. When you are done, you can take another hidden tunnel across the street to the US Capitol, Capitol Hill. Everything is free!

The Library of Congress Jefferson Building represents 2 of the most stunning interior spaces in Washington, DC. The Great Hall is open to the public at all times. The Main Reading Room, directly adjacent to the Great Hall is available to anyone with a LOC library card, which you can get at the nearby James Madison building. General public access (and photography) of the Reading Room is only allowed on two days of the year; President's Day (Feb.) and Columbus Day (Oct.) for their Open House. There is a view of the Reading Room from the upper staircase in the Great Hall, where some of my pics were taken.

Was closed by the time we made it over.
IMPORTANT!!! Hours posted on google info are NOT public hours!

Public hours end at 5:00

5:30 to 9:30 is reserved for special researchers and staff!

Very cool. Another must see in Washington DC. There are public tours, but you can roam around as well. It is all free, and the architecture is very cool.

the copy of 50 shades of grey I wanted had most of the pages stuck. also couldnt take it home. wasre of an afternoon !

Inside the library is just like from the movie scene, and it's free!

Beautiful building ..... in addition to the time I visited a beautiful exhibition on women's struggle for the right to vote.
Contains the only visible copy of the Bible printed by Gutenberg and Thomas Jefferson's private library

An amazing place that brings together a lot of essentials from the USA.

The most beautiful library in the world. Try to groups entry to avoid long queues.

I have to say that the foreign libraries are very good, very clean and comfortable.

Pretty cool to get the tour and see some stuff on display like the Gutenberg bible. Take an extra 10 minutes and go to the Madison Building and get a reader card.

Loved the tour. Didn't have an official tour though, however, I enjoyed my self tour just as much.

An amazing, beautiful building. Definitely worth the time to walk around and see it all.

The architecture of the building is simply stunning. Definitely one of my favorite buildings on capitol hill.

Nice architecture. Thank managed to get a tour of the Asian section, but that is typically reserved for members. It s a phenomenal place to visit while in DC, if just for the architecture inside alone. Would recommend (also its always free!)

An essential stop for a government buff or a book nerd. Gorgeous architecture and design on the interior, but can be a little bit more difficult to tour or otherwise access compared to other stops, especially if you want to actually read something from the collection.

Great collection. A must see for all travelling through DC

Stunning architecture and artwork and has interesting exhibits.

Beautiful place. Don't forget to see Gutenberg Bible!

This was our favorite part of a recent trip to DC. Highly recommend the guided tour, staff is well educated and you'll learn more about the architecture, building, and books on display than with a self guided tour. Don't miss the Gutenberg Bible and view of the reading room from the top floor. Highly recommend!

Loved visiting the library of congress on my Washington DC trip. Great knowledgable staff. Would definetly reccomend stopping by!

Beautiful architecture, rooms, and marble. Worth the visit.

Tucked away on the lowest public level down the hallway just past the Bob Hope Exhibit, lies a labyrinth of corridors and offices. I would love to do some more exploring!

This library was started by Thomas Jefferson's Personal Collection of books.

Beautiful building .. also reachable from the Capitol in the underground street .. a visit to the central part of the library is only possible for a few minutes .. the interiors are very beautiful .. there are some historical exhibitions to visit freely ..

That's so beautiful building to visit. It is an amazing place to see, especially because the building is really amazing. So many details you can see on the wall and selling. Also there are some exhibition about maps and culture. You can also see the very first impressed bible. It is supposed to be a fast tour.

Great staff, really helpful. Beautiful building. Interesting to see the names of famous Greeks and British engraved on the walls, yet no references to black Americans.

An amazingly impressive building. Self guided tours are easy and very informative. The art and architecture are absolutely beautiful. The Jefferson library is incredibly neat and worth spending some time examining.

Most beautiful national treasure. I love the splendor of this building. I even got my library card- no more viewing the stacks through glass.

There are some more unique DC souvenirs to be had here.

After visiting the Capitol, I recommend visiting the Library of Congress, which is accessed through a tunnel without having to go outside. A very interesting site and the building is beautiful.

The awe of viewing this building from the outside alone kicks in the sense of wonder for what it contains. The architecture and artistry both inside and out is amazing, and I could have spent days admiring it.

Even though security is tight, as with many locations in the capitol, the personnel were polite, professional, and provided both respect for your time as well as ensuring the safety of those inside.

The type of library that makes you humble to literature and textbooks. Knowledge accumulation becomes visible here.

Bookshop as beautiful from the outside that reminds of Italian buildings as the interior reminiscent of Opera Garnier.
You can visit it for free and see exhibitions.

It s probably one of the most beautiful libraries you will see in your life. Looks like an opera house, a Renaissance palace. Very worthy.

beautiful

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the de facto national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. The Library is housed in three buildings on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.; it also maintains the National Audio-Visual Conservation Center in Culpeper, Virginia.

The Library of Congress claims to be the largest library in the world. Its "collections are universal, not limited by subject, format, or national boundary, and include research materials from all parts of the world and in more than 450 languages.

Great place and excursion! Very interesting. Gorgeous interiors! The main place in your trip.

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I visited the library of Congress on a recent field trip with my daughter class. It was a beautiful facility and worth the tour and visit .

Great place to study. Be wary of the contracted security guards who give you attitude when you ask simple questions. Horrible customer service.

Amazing building! The guided tour is a must. For families with little children, the Young Readers Center is superb, but note that the center is only open Mon. to Fri. from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. I worked 21 yrs at the USDOL on Constitution Ave. across from the Capitol Bldg. In our view THIS IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL BLDG. IN WASHINGTON ON THE INTERIOR bar none and sadly few sightseers bother with it simply because they do not know what they're missing. Don't be among them.

It has a gorgeous marble interior and the most beautiful dome of any bldg. in D.C.including the U.S. Capitol. It also has the Gutenberg Bible in plain view and on full display. We took a number of out of town guests here over the years.

I Walked through the grounds of this bldg. to and from work five days a week while living in D.C.

Oh, it also has BOOKS more than 16 million and nearly eight times as much other "STUFF" providing proof positive of Solomon's adage "of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh." Ecclesiastes 12:12