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U.S. Department of Agriculture Administration Building
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Jamie L. Whitten Building in 2012
Location	12th St. and Jefferson Dr., SW., Washington, D.C.
Coordinates	38°53′17″N 77°1′48″W / 38.88806°N 77.03000°W / 38.88806; -77.03000
Built	1908
Architect	Rankin, Kellogg & Crane
Architectural style	Classical Revival, Beaux Arts
Website	Official website
NRHP reference No.	74002175 (original) 15000845 (increase)
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	January 24, 1974
Boundary increase	December 1, 2015

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Administration Building, also known as the Jamie L. Whitten Building, houses the administrative offices of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C. The Administration Building projects into the National Mall from the larger U.S. Department of Agriculture South Building, and is the only building on the Mall that is not intended for use by the general public. It was the first large Beaux-Arts style building in Washington and set the prototype for the later buildings of the Federal Triangle. The east and west wings were the first Federal office buildings to be built of reinforced concrete. The Whitten Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

History

The placement of the new building on the Mall was at odds with the proposed McMillan Plan, which envisioned a Mall free of intrusive buildings. The Agriculture Department's proposed placement was opposed by Commission members Daniel Burnham and Charles McKim. After a series of intercessions by President Theodore Roosevelt the building was moved to be in accordance with the Plan, but only after foundations were in place for a building 106 feet (32 m) to the east of the final location.

As the public face of the Department of Agriculture, the Beaux-Arts style Administration Building was designed by architects Rankin, Kellogg and Crane to a higher standard than the South Building. However, a limited budget enforced a comparative plainness when set against other buildings on the Mall. The L-shaped wings were completed between 1904 and 1908, but the central block was not finished until 1930. The prototype for the design was Ange-Jacques Gabriel's 1774 Hôtel de la Marine on the Place de la Concorde in Paris. The pediment features sculpture by Adolph Alexander Weinman, while interior murals are by Gilbert White. While the earlier east and west wings featured reinforced concrete construction, the central portion was built in steel.

The building was named the Jamie L. Whitten building in 1995 in honor of Mississippi Congressman Jamie L. Whitten, former chairman of the United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies.

• Administration Building, c. 1934
• Façade of the building with Corinthian columns
• A Department of Agriculture employee uses a mule-drawn tiller to plant a new lawn, 1931

Linking bridges

In 1936 bridges were built across Independence Avenue to link the wings to the South Building. The single-span stone arches form a dramatic accent on Independence Avenue. The soffits of the bridges are faced with Guastavino tile. The east bridge is dedicated to Seaman A. Knapp, while the west bridge commemorates Agriculture Secretary James Wilson.

References

1. ^ "U.S. Department of Agriculture Administration Building". National Register of Historic Places: Digital Archive on NPGallery: National Register Digital Assets. Washington, D.C.: United States Department of the Interior: National Park Service. Archived from the original on September 15, 2016. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
2. ^ (1) Milner, John D., AIA, Executive Director, National Heritage Foundation, Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania (June 22, 1973). "U.S. Department of Agriculture Administration Building". National Register of Historic Places Inventory — Nomination Form: For Federal Properties (Form 10–36). Washington, D.C.: United States Department of the Interior: National Park Service. Archived from the original on January 21, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link).
   (2) Marzella, Bill, Historic Preservation Planner, EHT Traceries, Inc., Washington, D.C. (August 5, 2015). "U.S. Department of Agriculture Administration Building (Boundary Increase and Additional Documentation)" (PDF). United States Department of the Interior: National Park Service: National Register of Historic Places Registration Form (NPS Form 10-900). Washington, D.C.: United States Department of the Interior: National Park Service. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 22, 2017. Retrieved February 10, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link).
3. Scott, Pamela; Lee, Antoinette J. (1993). "The Mall". Buildings of the District of Columbia. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 99–100. ISBN 0-19-509389-5.
4. "Histories of the USDA Headquarters Complex Buildings". U.S. Department of Agriculture. 2004. Archived from the original on April 25, 2009. Retrieved May 10, 2009.

External links

• Official website

v t e United States Department of Agriculture
Headquarters: Jamie L. Whitten Building Tom Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture Xochitl Torres Small, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture
Under Secretary of Agriculture for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs	Foreign Agricultural Service United States Codex Office
Under Secretary of Agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment	Forest Service
Under Secretary for Rural Development	Rural Housing Service Rural Utilities Service Rural Business-Cooperative Service
Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services	Food and Nutrition Service (Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion)
Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food Safety	Food Safety and Inspection Service
Under Secretary of Agriculture for Research, Education, and Economics	Agricultural Research Service (National Agricultural Library) National Agricultural Statistics Service Economic Research Service National Institute of Food and Agriculture Office of the Chief Scientist
Under Secretary of Agriculture for Marketing and Regulatory Programs	Agricultural Marketing Service Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Under Secretary of Agriculture for Farm Production and Conservation	Farm Service Agency (Commodity Credit Corporation) Risk Management Agency (Federal Crop Insurance Corporation) Natural Resources Conservation Service Farm Production and Conservation Business Center
Office of the Chief Financial Officer	National Finance Center
*Reports directly to the Secretary of Agriculture

• Government buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C.
• Office buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C.
• Neoclassical architecture in Washington, D.C.
• Beaux-Arts architecture in Washington, D.C.
• Government buildings completed in 1908
• Office buildings completed in 1908
• National Mall
• 1908 establishments in Washington, D.C.