Massachusetts State House
The Massachusetts State House, also known as the Massachusetts Statehouse or the New State House, is the state capitol and seat of government for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, located in the Beacon Hill neighborhood of Boston. The building houses the Massachusetts General Court and the offices of the Governor of Massachusetts. The building, designed by architect Charles Bulfinch, was completed in January 1798 at a cost of $133,333, and has repeatedly been enlarged since. It is one of the oldest state capitols in current use. It is considered a masterpiece of Federal architecture and among Bulfinch's finest works, and was designated a National Historic Landmark for its architectural significance.
History
The Masonic cornerstone ceremony took place on July 4, 1795, with Paul Revere, then Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, presiding. Before the current State House was completed in 1798, Massachusetts's government house was the Old State House on what is now Washington Street. For the building's design, architect Charles Bulfinch made use of two existing buildings in London: William Chambers's Somerset House, and James Wyatt's Pantheon.After Maine separated from Massachusetts and became an independent state in 1820, Charles Bulfinch designed Maine's capitol building with architectural influence of the Massachusetts Capitol building with a simplified Greek Revival influence.
The Commonwealth completed a major expansion of the original building in 1895. The architect for the annex was Charles Brigham of Boston. In 1917, the east and west wings, designed by architects Sturgis, Bryant, Chapman & Andrews, were completed.
In July 2016, Governor Charlie Baker proposed to the state legislature to sell of permanent easement on the west side of the State House lawn to a neighboring condominium development. The land in question was once pasture owned by John Hancock, Massachusetts's first elected governor, and the easement would allow for the addition of au pair units. Through legislation passed by the legislature the land surrounding the state house is considered "open space".
Building and grounds
The building is situated on of land on top of Beacon Hill in Boston, opposite the Boston Common on Beacon Street. It was built on land once owned by John Hancock. Today the building officially functions and is maintained under the auspices of the Superintendent of the Bureau of the State House.Dome
The original wood dome, which leaked, was covered with copper in 1802 by Paul Revere's Revere Copper Company.The dome was first painted gray and then light yellow before being gilded with gold leaf in 1874. During World War II, the dome was painted gray once again, to prevent reflection during blackouts and to protect the city and building from bombing attacks. The dome was re-gilded in 1969, at a cost of $36,000. Then, in July 1997, the dome was once again re-gilded, in 23k gold. The estimated cost this time was $1.5 million.
The dome is topped with a gilded, wooden pine cone, symbolizing both the importance of Boston's lumber industry during early colonial times and of the state of Maine, which was a district of the Commonwealth when the Bulfinch section of the building was completed.
Statuary
In front of the building is an equestrian statue of General Joseph Hooker. Other statues in front of the building include Daniel Webster, educator Horace Mann, and former U.S. President John F. Kennedy. The statues of Anne Hutchinson and Mary Dyer are located on the lawns below the east and west wings. Inside the building is a statue of William Francis Bartlett, an officer in the Civil War.Building interior
The original red-brick Bulfinch building contains the Governor's offices with the Massachusetts Senate occupying the former House of Representatives Chamber under the dome. The Massachusetts House of Representatives occupies a chamber on the west side of the Brigham addition. Hanging over this chamber is the "Sacred Cod", which was given to the House of Representatives in 1784 by a Boston merchant. The Sacred Cod symbolizes the importance of the fishing industry to the early Massachusetts economy.The House Chamber is decorated with murals by Albert Herter, father of Massachusetts Gov. Christian Herter. Murals on the second floor under the dome were painted by artist Edward Brodney. Brodney won a competition to paint the first mural in a contest sponsored by the Works Progress Administration in 1936. It is entitled "Columbia Knighting Her World War Disabled". Brodney could not afford to pay models, and friends and family posed. The model for Columbia was Brodney's sister Norma Brodney Cohen, and the model for the soldier on one knee in the foreground was his brother Fred Brodney. In 1938, he painted a second mural under the dome called "World War Mothers". The models were again primarily friends and family members, with sister Norma sitting beside their mother Sarah Brodney.
Above the murals, the names of 53 Massachusetts citizens honored in 1895 were inscribed: Carver, Bradford, Endecott, Winthrop, Vane, Pickering, Knox, Lincoln, John Adams, Dane, Quincy, J. Q. Adams, Webster, Sumner, Wilson, Andrew, Choate, Parsons, Shaw, Story, Everett, Phillips, Garrison, Mann, Howe, Allen, Devens, Bartlett, Putnam, Franklin, Bowditch, Peirce, Agassiz, Bulfinch, Morse, Morton, Bell, Bancroft, Prescott, Motley, Parkman, Emerson, Hawthorne, Holmes, Bryant, Longfellow, Lowell, Whittier, Copley, Hunt, Edwards, Channing, Brooks.
A staircase in front of the Bulfinch building leads from Beacon Street to Doric Hall inside the building. The large main doors inside Doric Hall are only opened on three occasions:
- When the President of the United States or a foreign head of state visits.
- When the Governor exits the building on his or her last day in office. The Governor descends the staircase, crosses Beacon Street, and enters Boston Common, symbolically rejoining the people of Massachusetts as a private citizen.
- When a regimental flag is returned from battle. Since the regimental flags now return to Washington, D.C., this has not been done since the Vietnam War.
The Samuel Adams and Paul Revere time capsule is a metal box located in a cornerstone of the State House, placed there in the late 18th century and rediscovered in 2014. The contents include coins, newspaper clippings, and other historical artifacts.
Offices
Constitutional officers
- Governor and Lieutenant Governor
- Governor's Council
- Secretary of the Commonwealth
- Treasurer and Receiver-General
- Auditor
Legislature
Press
One corridor of the building's fourth floor is a sort of Newspaper Row, anchored by the large Press Gallery suite where reporters from a range of publications maintain desks. The central Press Gallery room was given to use of reporters by the Legislature in 1909. The Massachusetts State House Press Association, established in 1909, governs these shared workspaces. Some individual news outlets have separate offices.- Press Gallery—Headquarters of State House reporters for Associated Press, WWLP-TV, the Eagle-Tribune papers, Lowell Sun, WGBH-FM, Springfield Republican/Masslive, and Politico
- State House News Service newsroom
- WBUR-FM State House bureau
- Boston Globe State House bureau
- Kevin McNicholas Room, a shared space for broadcast stations
Veterans' organizations