The Army and Navy Club

Seven military officers, all veterans of the Civil War, met in 1885 in Washington, D.C. to form a Club.  Together the seven represented the Army, Navy and Marine Corps.  Two were on active duty, three were retired officers and two were members of the Loyal Legion, a society composed of individuals who had served as officers of the Union Army and Navy. The Club they formed, then called the United Service Club, rented a room at Klotz’s Hofbrauhaus at 1708-1710 G Street, N.W.  The Club soon outgrew the small rented room and by 1891 had obtained a new Clubhouse on the southwest corner of Connecticut Avenue and I Streets, N.W.  By 1892, the Club changed its name to The Army and Navy Club and moved into its new Clubhouse, which was dedicated by President Harrison. Membership continued to increase and the Club soon outgrew its new Clubhouse. The Club commissioned an architectural firm to design a new Clubhouse and in 1912 the new Clubhouse was opened with the members marching across the street from the old Clubhouse.  The formal opening and dedication took place in the fall with President Taft participating. In 1983 the Clubhouse was closed for renovation and was reopened in 1987, ready with all of the modern conveniences which the members have come to enjoy.  The Clubhouse has hotel rooms, a large library, a bar and grill, a main dining room, a cocktail lounge (known as the Daiquiri Lounge because the first daiquiri served in the United States was served at the Club), a ballroom, four banquet rooms suitable for private parties, meetings, receptions, etc., and an impressive athletic facility which includes a workout room, racquetball, and squash courts. The roster of the Club’s membership, past and present, contains many of the most illustrious names in our military and political history, many of whom have been instrumental in history-making accomplishments.  One member made the first solo flight across the Atlantic, another participated in the first around-the-world flight, another was one of the first men to land on the moon, and a number have served as President and Vice-President of the United States.  Eight Club members were featured on the cover of TIME Magazine, four of them several times each.