1. In 1790, the Residence Act was signed, which officially declared that the District of Columbia would serve as the permanent capital of the United States.
2. In 1846, the Washington National Monument was dedicated on August 17. The monument, which honors the first president of the United States, George Washington, is 555 feet tall and is one of the most iconic structures in the city.
3. On August 17, 1861, the Union Army successfully drove Confederate forces out of nearby Fairfax Court House during the American Civil War.
4. In 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt visited Washington, D.C. to sign the Banking Act of 1933, which established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and helped stabilize the banking system during the Great Depression.
5. In 1978, Mayor Marion Barry declared August 17 to be "Drummers and Drumming Day" in the District of Columbia, celebrating the city's rich history of African drumming and percussion.