If you remember, I was supposed to take a tour of the US Capitol Building with my BFF in 2011, but because of extreme weather (DC Earthquake ring a bell?) and terrible traffic we didn't get to go. To be honest I wasn't much interested in capitol buildings at all other than that one (you know, THE Capitol Building) , but while I was planning my Rhode Island adventures, I ran into two distinct snags. The first was that I was having a hard time finding things to do that worked with my time schedule. Firewater wouldn't be firing, all the whale and lighthouse tours weren't cruising on the days I would be there, and being reliant on public transport, I couldn't easily figure out how to get into rural Rhode Island without spending hundreds of dollars on cabs. Speaking of cabs (I'm still feeling the sting of that
$45 cab ride to get some food), the second snag was that I had to seriously watch my budget while I was on this trip (I'm the goof that miscalculated my pay dates) so I needed whatever I did to be affordable.
Enter the FREE public tour of the
Rhode Island State House, conveniently a ten minute walk from the RISD and other Providence locations I was more excited about. And directly across from the Providence Amtrak station too!
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The RI State House. It was SOOOOO rainy and gloomy!
All the clothes in my suitcase were damp walking in that rain! |
I requested a tour via their online program- I wasn't sure if this was a hot spot or not, and I wanted to be sure I would get to see everything if it was. When I arrived I learned that the (only) tour guide had just started their vacation, so I would have to do a self tour on my own. Also, not sure if it was because of the weather or not, but I was one of only four people touring the building at that time.
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| Cannon in the entrance lobby |
First and foremost, please keep in mind that EVERYTHING in this place is made out of marble. Why does that matter? Well, on the very rainy day I was in Providence, that meant I was soaking wet, and wet shoes on marble floors are a good recipe for accidents.
I was handed my self guided tour brochure, and sent up a small set of stairs to a mini platform with the official seal of of Rhode Island (and its full proper name- the longest in the country) gilded into the floor directly beneath a beautifully painted and decorated dome.
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| Rhode Island...and the rest of its name |
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| The dome above the state seal |
The brochure was very informative (though slightly out of date- more on that later) and gave information about every public non-office room in the building. Highlights included the original Gilbert Stuart (a native Rhode Islander) portrait of George Washington in the State Reception Room, the ability to look at the chambers of both the House and Senate of Rhode Island (though you aren't allowed in those, I took pictures from doorways and balconies), and statues in mini alcoves painted (what I assume is) Rhode Island red dedicated to the different branches of the US military and for various people that have made an impact on the state.
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| This statue dedicated to the US Navy was one of my favorites |
But the absolute treat (to me) was the feature that has now rendered the tour guides obsolete- the mini museum dedicated to the founding of Rhode Island, that hold it's original charter signed by King Charles II in 1663 (more than 100 years before we won our independence). Originally, this document was kept in a steel vault located outside of the State Senate chambers. A helpful employee let me know that they only recently created the mini museum, and they hadn't yet updated the guides (or the gaping hole in the wall where the steel vault used to be). I loved the mini museum, which also has artifacts owned by RI founder Roger Williams, and other state-related memorabilia from the 1600s.
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| The Royal Charter of 1663 |
Make sure you check out the rest of my pictures from my time at the Rhode Island State House- an unexpected but worthwhile excursion if I say so myself!
Keep watch for (even more) updates for the rest of my time in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, and as always, thank you for joining me on my adventure!
