Brian Harmon

A Plethora of Pictures: Capitol

Posted by Brian September 13, 2005

We waited in line for about 1.5 hours to get tickets to enter the Capitol building (we were there before they started handing out the tickets, and once we got the tickets, we pretty much went right in). The public is not allowed in except for with a guided tour.

We didn’t get to see the actual Senate or House galleries. But we saw the Rotunda (under the dome), the old House chamber, and the old Supreme Court chamber.

The tour guide was a little bit annoying. I would have appreciate more specific facts about the capitol instead of a lesson about the three branches of the federal government. However, she did show us the cool acoustic feature of the old House chamber: standing in a certain spot, you can hear what someone across the room is saying, even if they are whispering. It has to do with the curvature of the ceiling. Supposedly John Adams used to pretend to be asleep at his desk so that he could listen to his opponent’s conversations across the room.

Each state is supposed to have statues of two of their prominent residents in the Capitol building. One is missing, but I can’t remember which state it is. The statue below is one of Arkansas’. It is of Uriah M. Rose. I think he may have founded the Rose Law Firm of Whitewater scandal fame.