Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
INDIANAPOLIS - Indiana's Statehouse will be 115 years old this summer, a testimony to the solid construction of the building.
Journalists were given a whirlwind tour of the building Wednesday during a GOP-sponsored media day.
The Statehouse tour office director conducted the tour.
The tours are free and include a discussion of the three branches of government, the building's architecture and its restoration.
In 1877, the General Assembly created a commission to supervise the erection of a new capitol building, the present Statehouse, at 200 W. Washington St., Indianapolis, out of necessity. Never admired, the old Capitol was falling in on its soft blue limestone foundation.
One year later, in 1878, the Board of Statehouse Commissioners selected Edwin May, an Indianapolis architect, to design the new Capitol. The Legislature mandated that construction costs could not exceed $2 million, based on May's estimates of $1.7 million.
May called for construction materials found in Indiana. Workers laid a 10-ton block of limestone from Spencer on Sept. 28, 1880, as the cornerstone. May further incorporated the state's hardwoods - maple, oak and walnut - for wainscoting, doors and trim.
Shaped like a Greek cross, the main floor is 14 feet above ground level. On the second floor is the chamber for the House of Representatives on the east, with the Senate chamber on the west. The Indiana Supreme Court room is on the north end. Indiana is one of the last states to house all three branches of government under one roof.
High on pedestals in the rotunda are eight marble statues carved by Alexander Doyle. The Italian marble depicting each larger-than-life figure was one of the few things imported from outside the state.
Capping the rotunda is a massive art glass interior dome. Long hidden under the grime of a century, the dome came to sparkling life after a cleaning during the 1988 restoration project.
A garrison-sized American flag was set in the atrium after Sept. 11, 2001. It was moved to the rotunda and hangs there as a tribute.
The woodwork glows from acres of natural light and the soft lighting of numerous chandeliers.
To schedule a tour, call 317-233-5293. On the Net: www.state.in.us/statehouse
