Kentucky State Capitol
Encyclopedia
The Kentucky State Capitol is located in Frankfort
and is the house of the three branches (executive, legislative, judicial) of the state government
of the Commonwealth
of Kentucky
. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
In 1830, a new capitol was built and was used until 1910. During a bitterly contested 1899 state governor election
, Democratic Party
claimant William Goebel
was assassinated at the capitol on his way to be inaugurated. The need for a larger building for a growing state government resulted in the replacement of the that capitol building, which is now a museum.
In 1904, the Kentucky General Assembly
chose Frankfort (rather than Lexington
or Louisville
) as the location for the state capital and appropriated $1 million for the construction of a permanent state capitol building, to be located in southern Frankfort.
The capitol was designed by Frank Mills Andrews, a distinguished and award-winning architect. He used the Beaux-Arts style and included many classical French
interior designs. The staircases, for example, are replicas of those of the Opéra Garnier in Paris
.
The main part of the Capitol has three floors. The first floor contains the offices of the governor (and his staff), secretary of state, and attorney general. It also features a rotunda with statues of famous Kentuckians and other exhibits.
The second floor contains the courtroom of the state Supreme Court
, as well as the chambers of the justices. The state law library is nearby.
The chambers of the House of Representatives and Senate face each other on opposite ends of the third floor. Some high-level legislative offices (such as for the Speaker of the House) are also located there.
The Capitol also has a partial fourth floor which houses the galleries of the House and Senate, as well as a few offices for legislative committee staffers.
In addition, there is a partially buried basement level with mostly offices for clerks and maintenance personnel. However, it also contains a small gift shop and an underground tunnel to the neighboring Capitol Annex building.
"). Nowadays, anyone without proper state credentials must go through a metal detector
. Security for the complex is provided by the Kentucky State Police
.
Frankfort, Kentucky
Frankfort is a city in Kentucky that serves as the state capital and the county seat of Franklin County. The population was 27,741 at the 2000 census; by population it is the 5th smallest state capital in the United States...
and is the house of the three branches (executive, legislative, judicial) of the state government
Politics of the United States
The United States is a federal constitutional republic, in which the President of the United States , Congress, and judiciary share powers reserved to the national government, and the federal government shares sovereignty with the state governments.The executive branch is headed by the President...
of the Commonwealth
Commonwealth (United States)
Four of the constituent states of the United States officially designate themselves Commonwealths: Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Virginia....
of Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
History
From 1792 to 1830, two buildings were used as the capitol, both of which burned completely.In 1830, a new capitol was built and was used until 1910. During a bitterly contested 1899 state governor election
Election
An election is a formal decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy operates since the 17th century. Elections may fill offices in the legislature, sometimes in the...
, Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
claimant William Goebel
William Goebel
William Justus Goebel was an American politician who served as the 34th Governor of Kentucky for a few days in 1900 after having been mortally wounded by an assassin the day before he was sworn in...
was assassinated at the capitol on his way to be inaugurated. The need for a larger building for a growing state government resulted in the replacement of the that capitol building, which is now a museum.
In 1904, the Kentucky General Assembly
Kentucky General Assembly
The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky.The General Assembly meets annually in the state capitol building in Frankfort, Kentucky, convening on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January...
chose Frankfort (rather than Lexington
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
or Louisville
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
) as the location for the state capital and appropriated $1 million for the construction of a permanent state capitol building, to be located in southern Frankfort.
The capitol was designed by Frank Mills Andrews, a distinguished and award-winning architect. He used the Beaux-Arts style and included many classical French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
interior designs. The staircases, for example, are replicas of those of the Opéra Garnier in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
.
Layout
The second floor contains the courtroom of the state Supreme Court
Kentucky Supreme Court
The Kentucky Supreme Court was created by a 1975 constitutional amendment and is the state supreme court of the commonwealth of Kentucky. Prior to that the Kentucky Court of Appeals was the only appellate court in Kentucky...
, as well as the chambers of the justices. The state law library is nearby.
The chambers of the House of Representatives and Senate face each other on opposite ends of the third floor. Some high-level legislative offices (such as for the Speaker of the House) are also located there.
The Capitol also has a partial fourth floor which houses the galleries of the House and Senate, as well as a few offices for legislative committee staffers.
In addition, there is a partially buried basement level with mostly offices for clerks and maintenance personnel. However, it also contains a small gift shop and an underground tunnel to the neighboring Capitol Annex building.
Security
The Capitol used to be completely open during normal business hours, and local residents often used the marble hallways for exercise (the Frankfort equivalent of "mall walkingMall walking
Mall walking is a form of exercise in which people walk or jog through the usually long corridors of shopping malls. Many malls open early so that people may mall walk, however stores and other such facilities generally do not open at this time...
"). Nowadays, anyone without proper state credentials must go through a metal detector
Metal detector
A metal detector is a device which responds to metal that may not be readily apparent.The simplest form of a metal detector consists of an oscillator producing an alternating current that passes through a coil producing an alternating magnetic field...
. Security for the complex is provided by the Kentucky State Police
Kentucky State Police
The Kentucky State Police is a department of the Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet. The department was founded in 1948 and replaced the Kentucky Highway Patrol...
.
External links
- Kentucky's State Capitols Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives
- Kentucky Historical Society page on the Old State Capitol
- Kentucky Secretary of State