Maryland State House
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| Maryland State House | |
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| (U.S. National Historic Landmark) | |
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| Location: | Annapolis, Maryland |
| Built/Founded: | 1772 |
| Architectural style(s): | Georgian |
| Added to NRHP: | October 15, 1966 |
| NRHP Reference#: | 66000385[1] |
| Governing body: | State of Maryland |
The Maryland State House is the state capitol of Maryland, and is located in Annapolis. It houses the Maryland General Assembly and is the oldest state capitol in continuous legislative use, dating to 1772. It also has the distinction of being topped by the largest wooden dome built without nails in the nation. The current building, which was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1968, is the third statehouse to stand on the site. The building is administered by the State House Trust, which was created in 1969.
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[edit] United States Capital
From November 26, 1783 to June 3, 1784, Annapolis served as the United States capital. The Congress of the Confederation (United States in Congress Assembled) met in the Maryland State House, and Annapolis was a candidate to become the new permanent national capital before Washington, D.C. was built.
It was in the Old Senate Chamber that George Washington famously resigned his commission as commander in chief of the Continental Army on December 23, 1783.
It was also there that the 1783 Treaty of Paris, which ended the Revolutionary War, was ratified by Congress on January 14, 1784. [2]
[edit] Historical event
Less well known but important is the historic event that took place in the Old Senate Chamber on February 2, 1781 when the Governor in the presence of the members of both Houses of the State Legislature signed and sealed the "act to empower the delegates of this state in Congress to subscribe and ratify the articles of confederation"[3]. The decision established the requisite unanimous consent of all thirteen states for the formation of a Perpetual Union. In other words, this was the final step in the formation of the United States of America as a nation. The passing of the much awaited law also served to remove any doubt by the British about the resolve of the states to unite during the Revolutionary War. In 1861, this fact that "the faith of all the then thirteen States was expressly plighted and engaged that [the Union] should be perpetual" was considered of major importance by President Abraham Lincoln when declaring illegal the secession of the southern states from the Union.
[edit] Construction
Though construction began in 1772 the structure was not completed until 1779 due to the Revolutionary War. The statehouse was designed by Joseph Horatio Anderson, a noted architect of the time, and the large dome is topped by a lightning rod that was constructed and grounded to the specifications of the lightning rod's original inventor, Benjamin Franklin[4]. The dome of the statehouse is depicted on the Maryland state quarter.
[edit] Photo Gallery
 Chamber of the Maryland State Senate |
 Chamber of the Maryland House of Delegates |
 The dome of the statehouse is depicted on the Maryland state quarter. |
 Maryland State House (back) |
[edit] References
- ^ National Register Information System. National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service (2006-03-15).
- ^ The Old Senate Chamber, Maryland State House
- ^ Friday, February 2, 1781, Laws of Maryland, 1781. An ACT to empower the delegates
- ^ State House Lightning Rod
[edit] External links
- Information from the Maryland Archives
- The Maryland State House Trust
- Information and short history of the state house
- Maryland State House is at coordinates Coordinates:
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