Take a Mind-blowing 360° Tour of the Wilson Building on Your Phone, or From Your Desk

 

The Wilson Building is many things. It is our city hall, our statehouse, a landmark, an architectural gem; it is a place to learn about civics, testify at a hearing, lobby your Councilmember, or attend an event.

Now, thanks to the good folks at Google, people interested in the Wilson Building for any of those reasons can take a full tour of the building from their desk, or get a personal tour from a cell phone in the palm of their hand.

In May of 2015, a team from Google Maps arrived at the Wilson Building bright and early, at 5AM. The Street View camera was taken by an operator through the building, automatically gathering images as it goes. That imagery is then stitched together to create the 360-degree panoramas you see today in Google Maps.

While virtually all of the public areas of the Wilson Building are navigable by users via Google Street View, here are direct links to some of the building’s most beautiful, and/or frequented, spaces:

Council Chamber

Main Lobby

Hearing Room 120

Hearing Room 123

Hearing Room 412

Mayor’s Ceremonial Room

Atrium

Some other intriguing uses of the technology include:

  • Zooming in on the eight angels, and eight devils, that inhabit the Chamber’s ceiling
  • Reading the historic panels (featuring the history of the Council and the Wilson Building) located in the ground floor atrium, and just outside the Chamber
  • Visiting the Wilson Building’s vast art collection, curated by the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities

The imagery collection in the Wilson Building is part of Google Maps’ efforts to make the world’s diverse heritage and beauty accessible to everyone.To learn more about where the Trekker has travelled to so far, please visit: http://www.google.com/maps/about/behind-the-scenes/streetview/treks/

We are grateful to Google Maps for their assistance with this project, and proud to offer this additional service to citizens of the District, the United States, and the World.