Federal Hall National Memorial

You are standing before a site that has been reinvented several times over the centuries. The building you see now is not the original structure where George Washington took the oath of office in seventeen eighty-nine. That earlier colonial-era building was demolished in eighteen twelve after it was no longer needed as a capitol. The current granite and marble edifice was constructed in eighteen forty-two, specifically to serve as the United States Custom House for the Port of New York.