Massachusetts State House - Boston, MA - Wikipedia Entries on Waymarking.com

Wikipedia (visit link) informs us:

"The Massachusetts State House, also known as the Massachusetts Statehouse or the "New" State House, is the state capitol and house of government of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, located in the Beacon Hill/Downtown neighborhood of Boston. The building houses the Massachusetts General Court (state legislature) and the offices of the Governor of Massachusetts.

Building

The building is situated on 6.7 acres (27,000 m²) of land on top of Beacon Hill in Boston, adjacent to the Boston Common on Beacon Street. It was built on land once owned by John Hancock, Massachusetts's first elected governor.

Before the current State House was completed in 1798, Massachusetts's government house was the Old State House on Court 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.

A major expansion of the original building was completed in 1895. The architect for the annex was Bostonian Charles Brigham.

In 1917 the east and west wings, designed by architects Sturgis, Chapman & Andrews, were completed.

Dome

The original wood dome, which leaked, was covered with copper in 1802 by Paul Revere's Revere Copper Company. Revere was the first American to roll copper successfully into sheets (for copper sheathing) in a commercially viable manner.

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 once again, this time black or gray (depending on the source), to prevent reflection during blackouts and to protect the city and building from bombing attacks. In 1997, at a cost of more than $300,000, the dome was re-gilded, in 23k gold.

The dome is topped with a 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 of Massachusetts 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 US President John F. Kennedy. The statues of Anne Hutchinson and Mary Dyer are located on the lawns below the east and west wings."

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