Queen Elizabeth visits the Smithsonian "Castle" In July of 1976 Queen Elizabeth II came to the US to commemorate the Bicentennial of the American Revolution. One of her stops while in Washington, DC, was the <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/52">Smithsonian Institution Building</a>, or the “Castle,” and the National Mall. The night before, her Majesty had been an honored guest at a state dinner in the Rose Garden within <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/20">President’s Park</a>, hosted by President Gerald Ford. At the Castle, she was greeted by the Smithsonian's Vice President, Nelson Rockefeller, and Secretary <a href="http://mallhistory.org/items/show/134">S. Dillon Ripley.</a> Smithsonian Institution Archives. <a href="http://siarchives.si.edu/collections/siris_sic_8561?back=%2Fcollections%2Fsearch%3Fquery%3D1976%2520queen%2520elizabeth%26page%3D1%26perpage%3D10%26sort%3Drelevancy%26view%3Dlist">View original</a>. 07/08/1976 <a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=38&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1950-1979">1950-1979</a>