# Outside DC: What is the giant castle-like building near 495 in Silver Spring? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 6, 2009, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518 "2009-08-06T11:43:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![gitfiddle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/898d66/32.png) [@gitfiddle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gitfiddle)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/1 "2009-08-06T11:43:19Z")
On a couple of occassions, I’ve been driving back to DC on 495, and I notice this GIANT castle looking building on the right before the Connecticut Ave exit. Anyone know what is? ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/2 "2009-08-06T11:59:28Z")
If it’s white it’s a Mormon temple. [Washington D.C. Temple - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_D.C._Temple) ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/3 "2009-08-06T12:10:38Z")
Damn! I was too late with my answer. There used to be grafitti painted on the nearby overpass that read “Surrender Dorothy.” ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/4 "2009-08-06T12:19:17Z")
It does look like the castle in Oz. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/5 "2009-08-06T12:19:45Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > Damn! I was too late with my answer. There used to be grafitti painted on the nearby overpass that read “Surrender Dorothy.” It shows up once in a while, but is promptly painted over. You can see the painted-over blocks quite clearly. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/6 "2009-08-06T12:27:36Z")
This thread has made me oddly homesick. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/7 "2009-08-06T12:31:13Z")
Mormons can only marry in a temple, not a local church. It used to be they had to travel a long way to find a temple in some areas. About 10 years ago the Mormons started building a lot of smaller temples around the US and world. They built one about 1/2 mile from my house. Before that people here mostly went to that DC temple which is about 250 miles away. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/8 "2009-08-06T14:56:17Z")
The only piece of grafitti (that I know of) with its own Wikipedia entry: > **[Surrender Dorothy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surrender_Dorothy)** > > "Surrender Dorothy" is a famous special effect used in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, where the Wicked Witch of the West flies on her broomstick to write the two-word phrase across the sky. The phrase later attained local fame as graffiti in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area. > The first appearance of the phrase is in the 1939 version of The Wizard of Oz (it is not in the novel or any previous adaptations). In the scene, Dorothy Gale (Judy Garland) has reached the Emerald City with her comp... ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/9 "2009-08-06T15:01:36Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > It does look like the castle in Oz. Actually it reminds me more of Cinderella Castle in Disney World. ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/10 "2009-08-06T15:06:41Z")
Thank you for posting this question. I saw that thing a little over a month ago on the way to a company picnic, and never did figure it out. ---
**Author:** ![gitfiddle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/898d66/32.png) [@gitfiddle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gitfiddle)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/11 "2009-08-06T15:10:11Z")
That’s it! Thank you. What a strange building. I love learning little details like that, especially the graffiti. ---
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/12 "2009-08-06T15:11:29Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > Damn! I was too late with my answer. There used to be grafitti painted on the nearby overpass that read “Surrender Dorothy.” That’s hysterically funny. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/13 "2009-08-06T15:33:11Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > The only piece of grafitti (that I know of) with its own Wikipedia entry: > > [Surrender Dorothy - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surrender_Dorothy) Not a single piece of graffiti, but [Cool “Disco” Dan](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cool_%22Disco%22_Dan) has his own entry…you used to see that everywhere back in the 90s. ---
**Author:** ![BurnMeUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@BurnMeUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BurnMeUp)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/14 "2009-08-06T18:33:31Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > Mormons can only marry in a temple, not a local church. It used to be they had to travel a long way to find a temple in some areas. About 10 years ago the Mormons started building a lot of smaller temples around the US and world. They built one about 1/2 mile from my house. Before that people here mostly went to that DC temple which is about 250 miles away. Actually that’s not correct, Mormons can marry in church buildings or even civil locations just like anyone else, however to be eligable for the most heavenly rewards in their belief system you must be married in a temple (along with following a number of other rules). ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/15 "2009-08-06T18:46:20Z")
There’s also [this monstrosity](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=mormon&sll=32.850775,-117.22253&sspn=0.041821,0.073814&gl=us&ie=UTF8&radius=2.15&rq=1&ev=zo&ll=32.862286,-117.230301&spn=0,359.926186&z=14&layer=c&cbll=32.866781,-117.229838&panoid=B3ezE45qbE8O5W1cYKYfvg&cbp=12,119.49,,0,-7.87) outside San Diego. ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2009, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/16 "2009-08-06T18:51:59Z")
And one [looming over Oakland](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=mormon&sll=37.813022,-122.199082&sspn=0.009832,0.018454&gl=us&ie=UTF8&rq=1&ev=p&radius=0.5&ll=37.810157,-122.198932&spn=0,359.981546&z=16&layer=c&cbll=37.810149,-122.198942&panoid=TBocl-eR8ZUvw1N3NgGBBA&cbp=12,180.55,,0,-2.01). ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2009, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/17 "2009-08-07T00:16:36Z")
An Arky, I once got an honorable mention in the Style Invitational in The Washington Post where the contest was to come up with a conspiracy theory. My theory was that Cool “Disco” Dan was actually Dan Quayle. The time that Cool “Disco” Dan was most prolific in his grafitti writing fits very well with the period of the Vice-Presidency of Dan Quayle. (Cool “Disco” Dan did most of his work in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s.) Unfortunately, there’s no online archive of all the winning entries of the Style Invitational, but there’s a website correlating names of the winners to the weeks they won, so I know it was either week 85 or 102. ---
**Author:** ![UncleFred](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f0a364/32.png) [@UncleFred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleFred)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2009, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/18 "2009-08-07T01:38:49Z")
> [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](#): > > And one [looming over Oakland](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=mormon&sll=37.813022,-122.199082&sspn=0.009832,0.018454&gl=us&ie=UTF8&rq=1&ev=p&radius=0.5&ll=37.810157,-122.198932&spn=0,359.981546&z=16&layer=c&cbll=37.810149,-122.198942&panoid=TBocl-eR8ZUvw1N3NgGBBA&cbp=12,180.55,,0,-2.01). I don’t have a picture but there is a fairly new one in Belmont, MA. Sited on the highest land elevation in the metro Boston area, I believe. Also, only temple on the Northeast Coast, IIRC. As a point of interest - is it the proper term that Mormons get ‘married’? I believe I heard they don’t have a ‘marriage ceremony’ but a "sealing’ or something like that. Pardon my ingnorance…just curious. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2009, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/19 "2009-08-07T02:35:39Z")
Parts of the Mormon Temple are open as a tourist attraction, at least around Christmas time. They have decorated trees and dioramas with Christmas and Mormon themes. ---
**Author:** ![FatBaldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2009, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518/20 "2009-08-07T04:33:20Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Parts of the Mormon Temple are open as a tourist attraction, at least around Christmas time. They have decorated trees and dioramas with Christmas and Mormon themes. You’re probably talking about Temple Square in Salt Lake City. They do very elaborate lighting and decoration at Christmas time, but the temple grounds of all the temples are open to the public at any time. Many of them even have Visitor Centers to explain LDS beliefs to visitors. Whenever a new temple is built, there is always a public open house for several weeks before it is dedicated, to allow people to see what the inside of our temples are like, and the purpose of the various rooms and other things. After the temple is dedicated, only members in good standing are allowed inside. We feel that the temples are literally “The House of the Lord” and feel that it is a very sacred place. It was the same with the Temple in Old Testament times. The outer court, or Court of the Gentiles was open to all, but only the priests could go into the temple and perform the sacrifices and other offerings. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outside-dc-what-is-the-giant-castle-like-building-near-495-in-silver-spring/505518.md?page=2)