globe. Initially, these plants were placed in a greenhouse 

 specifically erected for the collection behind the Old Patent 

 Office Building in Washington. There they flourished until 

 1849, when an addition to the Patent Office made it neces- 

 sary to find a new location for the plants. 



Congress first approved construction of a new green- 

 house the following year at the west end of the Capitol 

 grounds on the exact site occupied by the Columbian Insti- 

 tute's garden. The Botanic Garden, officially named in 1856, 

 prospered in its new location, receiving widespread public 

 attention for its diversified plant collection and unique 

 seasonal displays. 



Early in the 1930s, the Botanic Garden was relocated, 

 as part of an extensive Washington beautification plan, to 

 its present site at Maryland Avenue and First Street, South- 

 west, directly south of the original site. Today, a century- 

 and-a-half after the founding of its earliest incarnation, the 

 United States Botanic Garden continues to carry on the hor- 

 ticultural and educational objectives first espoused by the 

 Columbian Institute for the Promotion of Arts and Sciences. 



