Jefferson Memorial aerial view, Washington, D.C.

Jefferson Memorial, aerial view, Washington, D.C. (Credit: Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division)

Jefferson Memorial aerial view. The Thomas Jefferson Memorial is a presidential memorial in Washington, D.C. that is dedicated to Thomas Jefferson, an American Founding Father and the third president of the United States. The neoclassical building was designed by John Russell Pope. It was built by Philadelphia contractor John McShain. Construction began in 1939, the building was completed in 1943, and the bronze statue of Jefferson was added in 1947.