Fencing surrounds Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool ahead of Fourth of July event

Chain-link fencing now surrounds the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, turning one of the National Mall’s most open sight lines into a controlled perimeter ahead of a Fourth of July celebration. The long basin between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument still draws gawkers, even as the barriers mark a sharper line between public access and event security.

The reflecting pool was not finished in time for the Lincoln Memorial’s dedication in 1922, and it was completed in 1924. The pool and the elm-tree promenade running beside it have become two of Washington’s most recognizable and filmed settings, framed by the memorial landscape shaped by the 1902 Senate Park Commission Plan, also known as the McMillan Plan.

National Mall and Memorial Parks is “America’s Front Yard.” The Lincoln Memorial sits at one end of the basin, the Washington Monument at the other, and the stretch is used for ceremonies, concerts and public gatherings. More than 4,000 permitted activities take place at National Mall and Memorial Parks each year, ranging from small setups to events built for as many as one million participants.

Temporary fencing appears often at the site. The Lincoln Memorial receives over 8 million visitors a year, placing it among the most visited sites in the National Park System, and every major holiday or civic ritual brings crowd control measures.

The Reflecting Pool has also drawn scrutiny over renovation problems and cleanup work. The route around the water has become more orderly, more monitored and less free-flowing than the Mall’s usual open expanse.