Library of Congress14 min
You'll start inside the Thomas Jefferson Building, where the app introduces Ripley Bates, the ghost hunter whose notes you'll follow, and hands you the first question in the main reading room. You'll answer it from what you see around you, then climb to the Minerva mosaic on the upper floor for a second one. You'll learn about Cecil Balda, the scholar who studied here every day until he left for the First World War, and the seat that visitors say still feels taken.
Supreme Court10 min
You'll cross First Street to the Supreme Court and look at the portraits in the Great Hall to solve a challenge about the longest-serving justice in the court's history. You'll learn about William O. Douglas, who sat on the bench for 36 years.
U.S. Capitol10 min
You'll walk over to the Capitol and answer a question about where Congress met before Washington existed. You'll also learn why the building is said to be haunted by a cat and by a president who never stopped giving speeches.
United States Botanic Garden10 min
You'll head down to the United States Botanic Garden, the oldest continuously operating one in the country. You'll solve a challenge and learn the story of the burning bride, Laura Schaffer, whose 1868 wedding never happened.
National Museum of the American Indian10 min
You'll stop at the Buffalo Dancer, the bronze figure beside the museum entrance, and inspect it to answer a question. You'll learn what a kachina is in Pueblo belief and why the dancer is said to step down from his perch.
National Air and Space Museum14 min
You'll go inside the Air and Space Museum and put four aircraft in the right historical order, from the 1903 Wright Flyer to the first parachute plane. Upstairs you'll solve a second challenge about Evel Knievel's most famous jump.
National Gallery of Art10 min
You'll walk through the galleries of the West Building and work out which period the art around you belongs to. You'll read about the Renaissance masters whose work hangs here.
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden10 min
You'll go down into the sculpture garden to find a giant bronze rabbit and answer a question about what it's holding. You'll learn who made it and why rabbits have stood for rebirth since the beginning of recorded history.
Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History10 min
You'll enter the Natural History Museum and solve a challenge among the dinosaurs. You'll learn about Mary Anning, the fossil hunter many call the mother of palaeontology, and what really killed the dinosaurs.
National Museum of American History10 min
You'll stand in front of the flag mosaic in the main hall and answer a question about the Star-Spangled Banner. You'll learn how a lawyer watching the bombardment of Fort McHenry wrote the national anthem to the tune of an English drinking song.
Washington Monument12 min
You'll finish at the base of the Washington Monument with the last question of the case, about the staircase nobody is allowed to climb anymore. You'll learn why the stones hold together without any mortar and what is engraved on the aluminium tip.
Washington DC National Mall Self-Guided Puzzle Adventure
Reflections on a Nation Self-Guided National Mall Highlights Tour
