FBI Tour Desk Sign
This sign was displayed at the 1975 opening of the new FBI tour—at the then-new FBI Headquarters at the J. Edgar Hoover Building—and in use for some time after that.
In 1937, the FBI Tour became the public face of the FBI when Headquarters was located in the Department of Justice building at 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D.C.
At the time, visitors didn't need advance reservations to enter the building. Trained guides offered scheduled tours that took visitors through the FBI’s offices and firing range.
In 1975, a new FBI Headquarters, the J. Edgar Hoover Building, opened at 935 Pennsylvania Ave NW across the street from the former location. The tour moved, too—and quickly became a highlight for visitors to the nation’s capital. This "FBI Tour Desk" sign was displayed on the greeters’ desk at the opening of the tour and was used thereafter for an unknown period of time.
The sign is made of a molded plastic base and a white plastic faceplate with individual plastic letters affixed to it. It was likely made by the FBI’s Special Projects Section of the Laboratory Division. This group primarily built models for displaying evidence and presenting information in court and for FBI training purposes, but they also constructed exhibits for the FBI Tour throughout much of its history.
For decades, the FBI Tour was the second most popular tour in Washington, D.C., after the White House tour. However, due to security concerns following the events of September 11, 2001, the tour was closed to public visitors. It re-opened in 2017 as The FBI Experience, a tour featuring interactive multimedia exhibits and FBI artifacts. Visits to The FBI Experience can be booked through your congressional representative’s office.
