REPORT OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM BUILDING COMMISSION 



FOR 1880. 



Washington, D. C, January 15, 1881. 

 To the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution : 



GentlejMEN : At your annual meeting on the lOtli of last January, 

 the National Museum Building Commission submitted a report of opera- 

 tions in conuection with the new building for the E'ational Museum, from 

 their inception to the close of 1879. 



In that report attention was called to the necessity for increased 

 accommodations for the national collections in charge of the Smithsonian 

 Institution; to the endeavors of yol^r Board ih previous years to obtain 

 from Congress "an appropriation for the same, and to their final success 

 in 1879 in securing an appropriation of $250,000 for the purpose. 



Mention was also made that the Executive Committee of the Board of 

 Eegents and the Secretary of the Institution, who are charged by resolu- 

 tion of the Board of January 17, 1879, with the duty of " carrying into 

 efiect the provisions o'f ahy act of Congress that might (may) be passed 

 providing for the erection of a building for the J^ational Museum," had 

 organized under the title of "National Museum Building Commission." 

 Also, you were informed of the action of the Commission in early 

 adopting such measures as appeared to it best calculated to realize with 

 the least possible delay the intention of Congress in making provision 

 for a new building; of the employment of Messrs. Cluss & Schulze as 

 superintending architects; of the acceptance by General Meigs of the 

 invitation of the Commission to act as its consulting engineer; and of 

 the opinions of Mr. Edward Clark, Architect of the Capitol, and General 

 Meigs as to the sufficiency of the appropriation for the erection of a 

 building in accordance with the plans approved by Congress. Eeference 

 was also made to the action of the Secretary of the Treasury in detailing 

 an officer of the Treasury Department to disburse the appropriation, by 

 which action the fund was made immediately available. In addition, a 

 resume was presented of the active operations in the construction of the 

 building whereby you were made aware that ground was broken on the 

 17th of April, 1879 ; that the concrete foundations were begun April 29; 

 that the brick work of the walls was commenced May 21, and that the 

 walls were completed on the 1st day of November. 



Moreover, mention was made of the good fortune of the Commission 

 in securing exceedingly favorable contracts, especially for the brick and 

 iron work, previous to the early subsequent rapid advance in the prices 



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