Pennsylvania State Capitol

The Pennsylvania State Capitol is the seat of government for the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and is located in downtown Harrisburg. Designed by architect Joseph Miller Huston in 1902 and finished in 1906, the building shows off a grand Beaux-Arts style with beautiful Renaissance designs. Inside, it holds important rooms for the Pennsylvania General Assembly, which includes the House of Representatives and the Senate, as well as spaces for the Supreme and Superior Courts, and offices for the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor. It is the main building of the Pennsylvania State Capitol Complex.

Originally, Pennsylvania’s government was based in Philadelphia, then moved to Lancaster in 1799 before settling in Harrisburg in 1812. The current building, called the Huston Capitol, is the third state capitol built in Harrisburg. The first one, known as the Hills Capitol, was destroyed by a fire in 1897. The second, the Cobb Capitol, was never finished because money ran out in 1899.

When the Capitol was finished, President Theodore Roosevelt came to its opening ceremony in 1906. Sadly, the project later faced trouble when it was found that the building cost three times more than what was planned, leading to a graft issue and legal trouble for the architect and others.

The Pennsylvania State Capitol is famous for its many sculptures, murals, and stained-glass windows, most showing scenes from Pennsylvania or made by people from the state. In 1977, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places, and in 2006, it became a National Historic Landmark. In 2013, the landmark status was expanded to include the whole Capitol Complex, with the capitol as a key part of it.

History

17th century

William Penn formed the first government of the Province of Pennsylvania on October 28, 1682, in Chester, Pennsylvania. The government did not have a regular meeting place and often met in Quaker meeting houses or at private residences in Philadelphia. Andrew Hamilton and William Allen were authorized to acquire land in Philadelphia for the Pennsylvania State House, which is now known as Independence Hall. Construction on it began in 1732 and was completed in 1753.

18th century

With the Pennsylvania General Assembly and the First and Second Continental Congresses, and the Confederation Congress occupying Independence Hall from 1774 to 1789, the state legislature considered proposals for moving the seat of the state government. John Harris Jr. offered to give 4 acres of land near the banks of the Susquehanna River in central Pennsylvania to the state, provided that it be eventually used as the site of the capital. Harris also laid out a city in 1785, near his plot of land, and named it in honor of his father.

In 1799, the legislature voted to relocate the capital to Lancaster instead of Harrisburg, because of Lancaster's greater population. From 1799 to 1812, the legislature resided in Lancaster at the Old City Hall.

Hills Capitol

The legislature voted in 1810 to relocate the capital again and moved the seat of government to Harrisburg in October 1812 onto the land originally given by Harris a decade earlier. The legislature met in the old Dauphin County courthouse for the next decade until a new capitol was constructed. Construction began on the Hills Capitol in 1819, and it was completed in 1822. The Hills Capitol was visited by prominent people of the 19th century, including the French nobleman and Revolutionary War general, the Marquis de Lafayette in 1825 and the then-Prince of Wales Albert Edward (later King Edward VII) in 1860. Abraham Lincoln visited the capitol in February 1861 as president-elect while traveling from Illinois to his inauguration in Washington, D.C.

Cobb Capitol

After the destruction of the Hills Capitol, the legislature moved to a nearby Methodist Church. There were soon demands that the capital be relocated to Pittsburgh or Philadelphia; the legislature quickly appropriated money to build a new capitol in Harrisburg. Governor Daniel H. Hastings opted for a pay-as-you-go policy to allow the construction costs to be spread over multiple annual budgets. After building designs were submitted by various architects in another competition, Henry Ives Cobb was chosen in 1897 to design the new capitol. Construction of the Cobb Capitol began on May 2, 1898. The legislature met in the finished building, which they had deemed complete, even though it was an unadorned, unfinished, several-story brown brick structure that looked like a factory on January 3, 1899.

Huston Capitol

Governor William A. Stone appointed a new Capitol Building Commission in 1901. The commission then held another design competition for Pennsylvania architects only, which prevented Cobb, a Chicagoan, from submitting a design or finishing his capitol. The General Assembly had appropriated $4 million for the construction of the capitol. Joseph Miller Huston's design was chosen from nine entries in the competition in January 1902.

The ground was broken for the Huston Capitol on November 2, 1902, but the cornerstone was not laid until May 5, 1904. Ownership of the capitol was handed over to the state government on August 15, 1906, and the Capitol Building Commission was dissolved.

Governor Samuel W. Pennypacker dedicated the new capitol on October 4, 1906. President Theodore Roosevelt, who had arrived earlier that morning by a special train to deliver a speech and tour the new capitol, declared it "the handsomest building I ever saw." The Pennsylvania, Northern Central, Reading, and Cumberland Valley railroads each ran special trains to accommodate the crowds traveling to and from Harrisburg for the dedication.

Although the building was completed, most of the artwork in and around the capitol would not be completed for another two decades. The murals in the rotunda were not installed until 1908, and the sculptures outside the entrance to the capitol were dedicated on October 4, 1911. The collection of Civil War flags were removed from the Executive, Library, and Museum Building. After a parade and a ceremony, they were installed in glass display cases in the capitol rotunda on June 14, 1914.

Graft scandal

William H. Berry was elected in 1906, shortly after the dedication, to the office of State Treasurer on a reform fusion ticket. Berry began investigating the costs of the capitol project and brought its $13 million pricetag to the attention of the public. After an investigation, a total of five people, including Huston, were convicted on December 18, 1908, and sentenced to two years in prison for conspiring with State officials.

Brunner plan

From 1912 to 1917, the state acquired all of the 541 separate properties that comprise the Eighth Ward east of the capitol. Arnold Brunner was hired in 1916 to develop new accommodations for state government, which had already outgrown the capitol. He introduced his plan in 1920, which called, first, for the demolition of the Eighth Ward. Brunner planned two office buildings behind the capitol, the North and South Office Buildings, and these were separated by a courtyard he named the People's Court. The South Office Building was completed in 1921.

Restoration and preservation

The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission erected two historical markers on August 11, 1953—one commemorating the Hills Capitol and another for the current capitol. The capitol was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 14, 1977. Beginning in 1981, highly regarded historic preservation architect, Hyman Myers, of the Philadelphia architecture firm, Vitetta Group, oversaw the restoration of the capitol building. In 1982, the Capitol Preservation Committee (CPC) was created to supervise and coordinate the historic preservation of the State Capitol Building. The capitol was declared a National Historic Landmark on September 20, 2006, during its centennial. On February 27, 2013, the boundaries of the designation were revised to encompass the grounds and surrounding buildings.

Exterior

The Pennsylvania State Capitol is a grand building that stands 520 feet long and 272 feet tall. Its wide center wing measures 254 feet, with shorter side wings. The building's front is made from strong granite taken from Vermont. At the top of the tall dome is a shiny brass statue called Commonwealth, which represents the state itself. The dome, inspired by a famous building in Vatican City, is covered in green tiles and is very heavy.

The large bronze doors at the main entrance show important moments from Pennsylvania's history. They were designed by a sculptor and cast in one piece. The doors are decorated with images of famous people and events, such as William Penn's arrival and his peaceful agreement with the Lenape people. Above the doors are sculptures made of white marble, showing ideas about love and hard work.

Interior

The Pennsylvania State Capitol has many important rooms for government work. It has 475 rooms and four floors, plus a small space between the first and second floors. When you walk in through the big bronze doors, you enter a round room called the rotunda. In the center of this room is a grand staircase that leads up to the other floors.

Artists painted special pictures on the walls and ceilings to show important ideas like art, justice, science, and religion. These pictures help tell the story of Pennsylvania’s history and its contributions to the world. The floors of the rotunda have beautiful tiles made by hand, showing many scenes from Pennsylvania’s past.

House Chamber

The House of Representatives is one part of the state’s government, with 203 members. Their meeting room, called the House Chamber, is the largest room in the Capitol. It has big windows with colorful glass and walls with paintings showing famous people from Pennsylvania’s history.

Senate Chamber

The Senate is another part of the state’s government, with 50 members. Their meeting room, the Senate Chamber, is the second-largest room. It also has beautiful windows and wall paintings that match its French Renaissance style.

Supreme Court Chamber

The Supreme Court and the Superior Court use the Supreme Court Chamber for their meetings. This room is smaller than the others and has paintings that show the history of laws from around the world. The paintings tell stories from ancient Greece and Rome, as well as from England and America.

Pennsylvania State Capitol Complex

The Pennsylvania State Capitol Complex includes important buildings owned by the state, all managed by the Pennsylvania Department of General Services. The complex, centered around the beautiful Capitol building in Harrisburg, became a special National Historic Landmark in 2013. It is protected by the Pennsylvania Capitol Police and the Harrisburg Bureau of Police.

The oldest building in the complex is the Executive, Library, and Museum Building, built in 1894. It was renamed the Matthew J. Ryan Legislative Office Building in 1999 to honor a former leader. Originally, it held the state library, museum, and the Governor's office. Today, it contains offices for members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.

Behind the main Capitol are two tall office buildings, called the North and South Office Buildings. The South Office Building was renamed the K. Leroy Irvis Office Building in 2002 to remember another important leader. Nearby, the State Museum and State Archives buildings were built in 1964. In 1987, a large addition called the East Wing was completed, replacing an old parking lot. This wing was built partly underground so it would not block the view of the beautiful Capitol building.