The Tidal Basin is a man-made reservoir located between the Potomac River and Washington Channel in Washington DC, located within the West Potomac Park near the National Mall. The Tidal Basin was conceived in the 1870s to serve as both a visual centerpiece and as a means for flushing the Washington Channel. The US Army Corps of Engineers under Colonel Peter Conover Hains oversaw the basin's design and construction, and a bathing beach opened in 1918 with strict rules for women's bathing suits; in 1922, a beach official banned the beach's beauty contests for being too risqué. The beach was intended to be whites-only, and, when Southern senators blocked the US Congress' plans to open a separate beach for African-Americans nearby, Congress dismantled the beach in 1925 rather than integrate it. Today, the 107-acre basin is popular for paddle-boating from March to October and is a popular venue for tourists during the National Cherry Blossom Festival each spring. The Jefferson Memorial, Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, and George Mason Memorial are all situated adjacent to the basin.
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