The Capitol at Night: Scandals, Murder, Politics Adults Only Tour

A group of people sitting on a bench in front of a large building with a dome, likely a government building, during daylight. 1

A group of people standing on a sidewalk at night, some holding bags, with a building and trees in the background. 2

By DC by Foot

Exceptional

Free cancellation available

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Features

Free cancellation available
1h 30m
Mobile voucher
Instant confirmation

Overview

Step into the dramatic side of Capitol Hill on a walking tour filled with political intrigue, scandal, and shocking moments from American history. From secret affairs and courtroom dramas to duels of honor and deadly rivalries, discover the stories Congress would rather forget. Along the way you’ll hear about spies in the Civil War, lawmakers attacked on the Senate floor, a journalist’s murder on the Capitol steps, and even a scandalous love story that shook Washington society. This tour reveals that behind the marble monuments and grand institutions of Capitol Hill lies a history packed with ambition, betrayal, and controversy. Join us to explore the scandals, secrets, and sensational stories that unfolded just steps from the U.S. Capitol.

Activity location

Capitol Hill
- First St and East Capitil St NE,
- 20004, Washington DC, District of Columbia, United States

Meeting/Redemption Point

Capitol South Station
- 70 C Street Southeast
- 20003, Washington, District of Columbia, United States

Check availability

Dates

Travellers

Capitol Hill at Night: Scandal

1h 30m
English

Language options: English

Starting time: 20:00

Price details

RM 198.07 x 1 AdultRM 198.07

Total

Until Tue, 25 Aug

What's included, what's not

Adult Only Tour
Professional Local Tour Guide & Gossip Peddler
Nightime views of US Capitol, Supreme Court, Library of Congress, National Mall and more...
Gratuities

Know before you book

- Wheelchair accessible
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
- All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels

Activity itinerary

Capitol Hill

After dark, Capitol Hill tells a very different story. On this adults-only evening walking tour, your guide takes you through the dramatic, outrageous, and often shocking history that unfolded in the shadow of Congress, from deadly duels and scandalous affairs to smuggling schemes and backdoor political deals. With the iconic dome glowing overhead and stops past the Supreme Court and Library of Congress, this is Washington at its most gloriously unfiltered.

Library of Congress

The Library of Congress has burned more than once, and Congress managed to make it worse each time. After the British destroyed the original collection in 1814, a chimney fire in 1851 took out another 35,000 of the 55,000 volumes before legislators finally agreed to build a separate, fireproof building in 1864. The stunning Jefferson Building you see tonight is the result of Congress finally, reluctantly, deciding that the nation's books were worth protecting. We do not enter any buildings on this tour.

Senate and House Office Buildings

In 1884, Kentucky Congressman William Campbell Preston Breckinridge met seventeen-year-old Madeline Pollard on a train to Lexington and began a relationship that would last nearly a decade. When he married someone else instead of her after his wife died, Pollard sued him for breach of promise in a trial that became a national sensation, arguing not just for damages but for the principle that men and women should be held to the same standard when it came to matters of the heart. The jury agreed, she was awarded $15,000, and Breckinridge lost his seat in Congress shortly after.

Supreme Court

Before this block held two of America's most iconic institutions, it was the site of a Civil War prison that held some of the Confederacy's most notorious figures. Rose Greenhow, a widowed Washington socialite turned Confederate spymaster, was imprisoned here after running a spy network out of her 16th Street home and passing intelligence that helped the South win the first Battle of Bull Run. Also held here was Henry Wirz, the commander of the Andersonville prison camp, who was executed on these grounds in 1865 after being convicted of war crimes for the deaths of thousands of Union prisoners.

U.S. Capitol

The building at the center of it all has witnessed more than two centuries of drama within its own walls, and this tour barely scratches the surface. Tonight you will hear about senators beaten on the floor, vice presidents who died in the building's basement bathtubs, congressmen who collapsed mid-speech and mid-vote, a nationalist attack that sent thirty rounds raining down from the gallery onto the House floor, and the ghost of a black cat that generations of night watchmen swear still prowls the corridors before moments of national crisis. We do not enter any buildings on this tour.

James A. Garfield Monument

The man immortalized in bronze above you was shot not far from where you are standing, and the story of how he actually died is not quite what most people expect. Tonight you will hear about the assassin, the motive, and the medical decisions that may have done more damage than the bullet itself.

Ulysses S. Grant Memorial

The manicured grounds stretching out before you have been the setting for two of the tour's most unexpected stories, separated by nearly two centuries but equally difficult to believe actually happened. One involves a public execution that went spectacularly wrong before it even began, and the other involves a congressman's wife, a late-night session, and these very steps.

Location

Activity location

Capitol Hill
- First St and East Capitil St NE,
- 20004, Washington DC, District of Columbia, United States

Meeting/Redemption Point

Capitol South Station
- 70 C Street Southeast
- 20003, Washington, District of Columbia, United States

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