by Dan Blade

Created on: March 05, 2009   Last Updated: April 18, 2011

The Pentagon is one of the most unique landmarks in the United States, which also serves as an everyday function. Seeing this majestic building in the movies or TV program relays an instant recognition to the viewer that the United States military is going into action. When you walk up to the building for the first time your initial thought is likely to be "It is absolutely huge!"

Huge is truly an understatement because pictures are deceptive on just how enormous the building really is. As you approach the Pentagon you can't help but be impressed by its magnificent presence.

History

The Pentagon was commissioned in August 1941, and construction was started on September 11th, 1941. Construction progressed 24 hours a day and seven days a week until competed in January 1943.

The building style of the Pentagon is called Stripped Neo-Classical, and the material for the reinforced concrete was sand dredged from the Potomac River. Instead of waiting for the entire building to be completed, each wedge was immediately occupied as it was finished.

Current Function

As it was originally designed, the Pentagon is the literal and figurative center of Department of Defense also known as DOD. It holds many of the offices that lead the DOD to include Joint Staff, Air Force, Navy and Marines, and National Military Command Center (NMCC).

There is an operations center that stays open 24/7 and monitors DOD and news around the world, ready to react to any crisis. The Pentagon is the work place for some 30,000 military, Government employees, contractors and support personnel every single day.

Museum

Aside from being the center of the Department of the Defense, the Pentagon boasts several historical exhibits equivalent to many museums. When you tour the building you are apt to see many of them.

There are over 35 exhibits in the halls of the building that range from its building, September 11th, Iron Curtain, Navajo code talkers, Vietnam Woman exhibit , POW/MIA, NATO, Humanitarian Relief hallway, Air Force Aircraft and Combat Art just to name a few. The Sept 11th memorial garden is the most recent exhibit which opened Sept 11th 2008.

When you walk around the halls of the Pentagon it clearly demonstrates that the DOD is part of the United States, not some Spartan type organization separate from the rest of the nation.

Inside the Pentagon

It is said that you can move between any 2 points in the Pentagon in 17 minutes or less. How do you navigate in an essentially

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