ILLINOIS STATE CAPITOL

Wednesday, April 6…continued – Our final stop for the day is the current Illinois State Capitol in Springfield, IL. This building was opened for business in 1877 and has been renovated several times. It was raining all day, hence the drab outside shots.

The Capitol is topped with a 405-foot dome. It is a combination of Renaissance Revival and Second Empire style.

Beautiful stairways.

There are four floors in the Capitol.

Marsha loves taking photos of the ceilings in any building. The Capitol had very colorful ceilings throughout the building and beautiful architecture.

And of course the dome.

Visitors can watch politics in action from balcony level seating and can explore three of the five floors freely. Pictures are permitted except in the Senate and House of Representatives when business is in session.

House of Representatives.

We were able to watch the Senate in action, but the real action was taking place in the Rotunda Hall. There was a fairly rowdy demonstration taking place by mostly school age children and parents in favor of funding for Public Charter Schools.

We stumbled on another demonstration outside where a group was marching on the Capitol in support of Private Gun Ownership. This group had police cars blocking intersections, and TV crews reporting on their progress. An area in front of the Capitol building was reserved so the demonstrators could voice their opinions to their representatives. We were the last truck to get past the blockade.

Being wet and cold, we called it a day and headed back to the State Fairgrounds campground.

NOTE: We remain very impressed with Springfield, IL. The people are very friendly, the city is neat and clean, and the majority of Lincoln sites of interest are free or at a very reasonable cost.

Yes, yes, yes we know that we are very far behind in our posting. Since we arrived in Canton, Ohio, our summer home, last Sunday, we have been so busy visiting with family and setting up the house for summer, blogging has come last. We hope to finish our post from our Springfield, IL, trip very soon, and maybe catch you up on what we are presently doing.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!

OLD STATE CAPITOL

Wednesday, April 6…continued – After the great tour of the Dana-Thomas house, in Springfield, IL, we then drove over to the Old State Capitol.

Beautiful wooden staircases.

The building served as the seat of state government from 1839-1876. President Lincoln delivered his “House Divided” speech, “A house divided against itself cannot stand...,” in the Representatives Hall. On May 3-4, 1865, Mr. Lincoln’s body lay in state in Representatives Hall as a crowd estimated at 75,000 filed past to pay their last respects.

House of Representatives.

The Senate.

President Lincoln used the governor's rooms as a headquarters during his 1860 presidential campaign.

He tried several hundred cases in the Supreme Court. During this time period, there were only four judges on the Supreme Court.

He borrowed books from the state library, and read and swapped stories with other lawyers and politicians in the law library.

Law Library.

State Library.

This flag was carried during the Civil War by the 95th Illinois Infantry Regiment Volunteers. Ignore all the glare in the picture from the glass….it’s the meaning that matters.

Ladies Occupy the Senate Chambers

Beautiful ceilings.

Visitors are free to roam throughout the building at their leisure. The rooms are full of displays and pictures are permitted at any time. You should allow about an hour to tour the building.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!

 

 

FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT’S DANA-THOMAS HOUSE

Wednesday, April 6 – Rain, Rain, Go-Away, but we toured anyway! Can't let rain showers stop us. With rain predicted to continue all day here in Springfield, IL, we headed out to do some sightseeing hoping to be indoors most of the day.

We started the day at the Dana-Thomas House State Historic Site.

Owned by the State of Illinois, this home is the best preserved and most complete of Frank Lloyd Wright's early “Prairie” houses. The structure has changed little since its construction in 1902-04 at a cost of $60,000.

The long row of windows form the conservatory.

The garden was beautiful. This is the only photo we were permitted to take.

The Dana-Thomas House is one of the largest and most elaborate residences designed by Frank Lloyd Wright during his 70 year-long career. Susan Lawrence Dana lived in the house until 1944 when it was sold with most of the contents to Charles Thomas. He used the home for 37 years as executive offices for his publishing firm. The house was then sold to the state of Illinois in 1981 and was totally restored to its original condition.

The Carriage house behind the wall. 

There is so much detail on the outside.

Two hundred original light fixtures and skylights illuminate the interior. Original sculptures in terra cotta by Richard W. Bock ornament the vestibule and reception hall, and the only surviving, original George Niedecken mural in any Wright house graces the four dining room walls. No photos were permitted inside the house…darn. It is spectacular! Marsha tried to find photos of the rooms online to share but could only find a few.

The front entrance.

The home, the 72nd building designed by Wright, contains more than 100 pieces of original Wright-designed furniture still in place along with 250 art glass doors, windows, and light panels.

Front door entrance.

Wright’s first “blank check” commission, the home has 35 rooms in the 12,000 square feet of living space which includes 3 main levels and 16 varying levels in all.

The fountain.

One of the sitting rooms.

The library is amazing!

The tour is a guided through the entire 12,000+ square foot home and gardens. The tour is free, but a donations of $10 per adult is recommended. The tour takes about 60 minutes. Our tour guide was excellent throwing in lots of fun facts as we walked the interior. There is also a movie about Frank Lloyd Wright, and the history of the house. This was a wonderful tour. One we would highly recommend.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!