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North Carolina State Capitol
2 reviews for North Carolina State Capitol
Not only is this a great building for its beauty, but it is home to the annual Old Fashioned Fourth Celebration every July 4th.
I go to this event annually, and I think it has to be one of the better ways to truly celebrate our country's birthday. There's patriotic music by the Raleigh City Band, and persons dressed in period outfits from the Revolutionary and Civil Wars. Displays hosted by veterans of WWII and Vietnam are informative and help you in appreciating the dedication and efforts that have gone into protecting our freedoms. Other exhibits usually include live birds from a wildlife preserve and information on Raleigh area public parks.
This event is held from 11 -3, and is free to all. Just remember to bring your own chair and find a nice shady spot.
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Another free attraction in central Raleigh that is worth 30-60 minutes of your time. This was surprisingly interesting.
This structure was erected in 1840 to replace the Capitol which burned down in1831 while roofers were installing zinc sheets to fireproof the building. Ha!
This is a handsome building in Greek Revival style, meaning (in part) that it is entirely symmetrical. In the central atrium stands a replica of a marble statue of George Washington by Antonio Canova. Who would have thought that the state of North Carolina owned such a treasure. Too bad that the original was destroyed in the fire. Canova depicted Washington in a Roman general's uniform, but composing his farewell address and with his sword on the ground to represent that he had held governmental power gained military but had given it up voluntarily, a rare and wonderful thing in ancient Rome and in 19th-century Europe when the sculpture was commissioned.
Besides enjoying the handsome interior, we learned a lot of interesting tidbits on the tour. For example, this was one of the last fully handcrafted public buildings before the Industrial Revolution. The gneiss granite was quarried 1.25 miles away, hand-carved and fitted, and transported to the site on an experimental wooden railway. There is no mortar in the structure; the blocks are fitted perfectly together. As a consequence of the quality materials and craftsmanship, the project cost $532,000--three times the gross revenue of the state at the time and equivalent to one BILLION dollars in 2008!
On the second floor are the Senate and House of Representatives chambers, and on the third floor are the chamber viewing galleries, state library and state geologist's office; all are restored to 1850's detail but do not seem plastic or fake.
Our tour guide seemed to have some sort of stage fright. She wasn't unintelligent or incompetent, but she stumbled and lost her train of thought several times. She simply seemed nervous; I wonder if we would have learned more from another guide. The brochure mentions a handful of Capitol building legends, such as secret tunnels and rooms and the whiskey barrel mystery.