Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-04-18
GEOGRAPHIC SITE
TO Be IMPROVED
Society Will Add to Present
Structure With Half Block
on Sixteenth Street.

DR.. Gilbert Grosvenor. president of
the National Geographic Society. today
announced plans for an imposing addi-
ton to the society's headquarters at
Sixteenth and M streets. The new
building will extend along a 135-foot
frontage on Sixteenth street. It will
house the society's scientific collections,
its library of current geography and rare
collection of historic voyages and
travels, also the worlds largest collec-
ton of geographic photographs, and the
editorial rooms of its official journal, the
National Geographic Magazine.
AS designed by Arthur Heaton, archi-
tect, and approved by the United States
Fine Arts Commission, the additional
structure will carry out the general
scheme of the older headquarters build
ing in the italian Renaissance style.
The central motif will be a colonnade
portal and ornamental pediment, with
balancing wings of the building on each
side.
Half Block on 18th Street.
Thirty years ago, when the society
had but few thousand members, his
toric Hubbard Memorial Hall. still
standing at the corner, was large enough
to house all it activities. Now, with its
membership grown to 1,250,000 repre-
senting every civilized community in
the world, the societys home will oc-
cupy a building half a block long on
Sixteenth street. as well as the large
lexington annex at First and r streets
northeast, which include the society's
Office buildings and storage warehouse
An up-to-date ventilating and tenn
perature control system will be installed
in both the new and old buildings.
This modern plant is similar to that
used in the White House and the
United States Capitol. In Summer air
will be reconditioned and cooled and
in Winter heated.
Thousands of out-of-town members
call annually at the society's Washing
ton HEADQUARTERS. Reception and ex,
hibition rooms, taStefully decorated. will
be provided in the new building to re-
ceive these visitors. Photographs, IL
Illustrations In colors and exhibits will
depict the activities and the diScov-
cries of the societyS many expeditions
sent out to remote places of the world
Provision is also being made for an
up-to-date cafeteria, where employees
will be served wholesome and palatable
luncheons at the cost of the food.
100000 Photographs in Library.
The society's Photographic library has
more than 30o, 900 photographs, includ-
ing many natural color plates, taken
by photographers in every part of the
globe. These are catalogued and filed
in vaults for future use as illustrations
in the National Geographic Magazine.
Spacious quarters and fireproof safes
are to be provided in the new building
for this priceless collection.
The Society's photographers will have
ample room for their extensive map
making projects. which include large
color maps, sent to all the society's
members, of the continents, the States
of the United States, and other world
areas, such as that now being made
which shows the Antarctic continent
with vast areas first mapped by Admiral
Byrd.
Additional space also will be pro-
vided for the society's extensive educa-
tional activities, experimenting its
National Geographic Magazine. such as
the bullentin material it provides for
newspaper use and for thousands of
schools throughout the country.