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U.S. Geological Survey National Center
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Location	12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, VA, 20192
Coordinates	38°57′40″N 77°13′20″W
Built	1974 (1974)
NRHP reference No.	100005414
Added to NRHP	August 10, 2020

The U.S. Geological Survey National Center, officially the John Wesley Powell Federal Building, is a historic building and the headquarters of the United States Geological Survey (USGS)—an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI)—located in Reston, Virginia.

U.S. Geological Survey National Center visitor entrance in 2011

History

Previous USGS office buildings

Prior to the current headquarters of the USGS, the agency had been located in several other buildings in Washington. At its 1879 establishment, the USGS was located at the corner of 8th and G Streets Northwest, adjacent to the then-current United States Patent and Trademark Office building. In 1882, the office relocated to inside the Arts and Industries Building (then known as the National Museum of the Smithsonian) located beside the National Mall. In 1917, the USGS headquarters was relocated to the Hooe Iron Building at the corner of 10th and G Streets Northwest. The last building the agency moved to before its current headquarters was the newly-built Main Interior Building in 1937, in which the USGS shared its offices with other DOI agencies.

Construction of the U.S. Geological Survey National Center

On July 31, 1971, construction began immediately after a groundbreaking ceremony. Construction was completed in 1974 and an opening ceremony for the building was held on July 12. The building would be officially named the John Wesley Powell Federal Building in dedication of the second director of the United States Geological Survey from 1881 to 1894.