New Union Station App Gives Visitors History Lesson, Scavenger Hunt

Union Station visitors now can go on a scavenger hunt and learn about the building’s history, with the help of their smartphones.

The “Union Station Tour: Washington, DC” mobile application is out with photo tours through the building’s past, a quiz and a scavenger hunt, among other features, the Union Station Redevelopment Corporation announced this week. The self-described “official app on the history of Washington’s Union Station” is available for free on iTunes and Google Play.

The app encourages users to find and take pictures of the “The Progress of Railroading” statues and the two pavilions that feature Death Cab for Cutie lyrics in Morse code, as part of its scavenger hunt.

It also asks users to test their knowledge of Union Station’s history. Questions include: “When the station was first built, where were the ticket counters located?”

“We have received continued interest from the public on the history of Union Station, which we like to encourage,” USRC president and CEO Beverley Swaim-Staley said in a statement. “We hope this app will harness that interest and allow visitors of Union Station to learn more about the grand historic structure, outside of what’s visible today.”

The National Trust for Historic Preservation partially funded the app through a grant.