Pennsylvania State Capitol Tours

09/23/2020

#DYK the chandeliers hanging in the Pennsylvania Supreme Courtroom feature statues of the four founding fathers of law: Moses, Solomon, Aristotle, and Solon? #HistoryDemocracyBeauty #PalaceofArt

09/22/2020

#DYK the “Rising Sun Chair” is considered the most important chair in U.S. history? George Washington used the original chair as presiding officer of the 1787 Constitutional Convention. Violet Oakley included the chair in the mural of the Convention located in our Senate Chamber. #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

09/21/2020

#DYK our Treasure of a Capitol is larger than St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, England? #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

09/18/2020

#DYK every State Capitol has an official Stamp? Our stamp goes along with the Capitol Book you can purchase from our gift shop! Come in for a tour and get your official PA Capitol Stamp! #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

09/17/2020

Fall is right around the corner! Can you smell the pumpkin spiced lattes and pumpkin pies in the air? #DYK PA is one of the top producers of pumpkins in the country? #HistoryDemocracyBeauty #FallInPA #PAPumpkinFarms #VisitPA

09/16/2020

#DYK PA has 67 counties? #DYK there is a huge PA map made of quartz located on the concrete right in front of our State Museum? Visit Harrisburg and see if you can find your county. Don’t forget to tag us! #HistoryDemocracyBeauty #VisitPA

09/15/2020

#DYK the Susquehanna River, which is a short walk away from our Treasure of a Capitol, is 444 miles long? #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

09/14/2020

DYK our Welcome Center has a selfie station?! Once we reopen you can take a selfie with “Our Lady Commonwealth”! Keep checking our website at pacapitol.com and stay tuned for an official re-opening date! #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

09/11/2020

Today and Always, We Remember. #neverforget #911

09/10/2020

#DYK our very own Capitol Police has a mascot? Everyone meet Cappy! She serves the Commonwealth as a “community service dog,” and enjoys long walks through our Treasure of a Capitol and playing fetch with our officers. #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

09/09/2020

#OTD in 1776 the Continental Congress formally declared the name of our new nation to be the “United States” of America. #HistoryDemocracyBeauty #USA

09/08/2020

#DYK when our Treasure of a Capitol was completed it stood as the tallest structure between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh for 80 years? #HistoryDemocracyBeauty #PACapitol #PalaceofArt

09/07/2020

Pennsylvania State Capitol Tours wishes everyone a safe and Happy Labor Day! 😁

09/04/2020

Pennsylvania State Capitol - Official Site

#DYK our Treasure of a Capitol is surrounded by landmarks? From the Edison Tree to the Veterans’ Memorial Fountain there are 35 different points of historical interest throughout the Capitol grounds. Book your FREE tour today and we will gladly show you this “Palace of Art.” #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

Maintain at least 6 feet between your group members and others throughout the tour. Please feel free to use the hand sanitizing stations throughout the Capitol.

09/03/2020

#OnThisDay Sept 3rd 1783, the Unites States signed the Treaty of Paris, officially ending the Revolutionary War! #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

09/02/2020

#DKY our Mercer Tile Floor is a timeline of Pennsylvania history!? In the early 1900’s, Henry Chapman Mercer created over 360 picture tiles on the 1st floor of the Capitol Main Rotunda. #DYK the Capitol Gift Shop has a book dedicated to these famous tiles? #HistoryDemocracyBeauty #CapitolGiftShop #MercerTiles

09/01/2020

#OnThisDay September 1, 1752, the Liberty Bell arrived in Philadelphia. It shipped from England on the ship Hibernia, weighed about 1 ton and measured 12 feet around the bottom. The bell was installed 6 months after its arrival. #DYK we have a replica right next to our PA Capitol? #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

08/31/2020

There are so many #HiddenTreasures within our Treasure of a Capitol such as this mural by Edwin Abbey, depicting American troops conducting a drilling exercise while at Valley Forge in 1778. The mural hangs underneath the gallery of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Book a FREE tour at pacapitol.com and the Pennsylvania State Capitol Tours Guides will gladly show this work of art in person. #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

08/28/2020

Anyone remember the #JohnnyAppleseed nursery rhyme? Did you know his real name was actually John Chapman? In the 1790s, the famous folk hero wandered and established orchards of apple trees throughout Western, PA. Thanks to him we have delicious apple trees! #PAProud ##PAHistory

08/27/2020

#DYK Pennsylvania’s oil industry is featured in one of the four Lunette Murals in our Rotunda? The Spirit of Light by Philadelphia artist Edwin Abby was dedicated to oil and its role in Pennsylvania’s history! #HistoryDemocracyBeauty #EdwinAbbey #PACapitolTours

08/26/2020

#FYI when our Treasure of a Capitol was dedicated in October 1906 the only artwork in the building was The Moravian Tile Floor by Henry Chapman Mercer, which shows a timeline of our history, and the breathtaking William Van Ingen Stained Glass Chamber windows. The rest of the artwork would be installed between 1906 and 1927! #HistoryDemocracyBeauty #PaCapitol

08/25/2020

Pennsylvania State Capitol - Official Site

#HappyTravelTuesdayPA! The PA Capitol is OPEN and guided tours are back with a limit of 10 guests per tour. Please book your FREE tour online. Additional guidelines are available on our website www.PACapitol.com. We look forward to seeing you! #PaCapitol #HistoryDemocracyBeauty #GildedGuides

Maintain at least 6 feet between your group members and others throughout the tour. Please feel free to use the hand sanitizing stations throughout the Capitol.

08/24/2020

#DYK that hidden behind the marble walls in our beautiful Capitol Rotunda are giant brick and iron pillars designed to support the structure? Book a FREE tour at pacapitol.com to learn more fascinating facts about our beloved Capitol’s architecture. #HistoryDemocracyBeauty #HiddenTreasures

08/21/2020

Did you know the building design for our beloved Capitol was selected by a competition? Competing against 9 other submissions, and with little experience, Joseph Miller Huston from Philadelphia was chosen for the commission. This was the first time in U.S. history a building design was selected via competition! #BuildingtheDream #PACapitol #DYK #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

08/20/2020

Our beloved Capitol is a “Palace of Art” with priceless works of art throughout the complex. The Hours by Edwin Austin Abbey shows 24 maidens dancing in unison surrounded by constellations, the Milky Way, the sun, moon and Halley’s Comet. #HiddenHistory #TheHours #PalaceofArt #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

08/19/2020

Our very own Pennsylvania Senate Library is open to the public! Ask your Pennsylvania State Capitol Tours Guide for directions and take the opportunity to visit with the friendly staff and see a magical room filled with history and #HiddenTreasures #CapitolHistory.

08/18/2020

100 years ago today, the 19th amendment was officially ratified, giving women the right to vote! Pennsylvania State Capitol Tours honors #WomensSuffrage.

08/17/2020

Today is the anniversary the Great Dane became the Pennsylvania State Dog! William Penn’s family loved Great Danes and included his gentle giant in a family painting that hangs in the Governor’s Reception Room today. #FunFactMonday #GreatDane #StateDog

08/14/2020

#DYK our main entrance bronze doors were modeled after bronze doors sculpted by Italian Renaissance sculptor Lorenzo Ghiberti? Each door is 17 feet tall and weighs a full ton, but they can swing open at the touch of a hand. #HistoryDemocracyBeauty #RenaissanceArtInPA #PalaceofArt

08/13/2020

#DYK in addition to designing our beloved Capitol building, Joseph Huston also designed the Speaker's chair in 1906? The hand carved wooden "throne" was made of pollard oak and was originally covered in Spanish tooled leather upholstery and featured elaborate patterns. #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

08/12/2020

Dinosaurs in Pennsylvania? Like a scene from Jurassic Park, fossilized footprints, two teeth and other fossilized bones of these ancient creatures have been discovered throughout the Commonwealth. To learn more about these discoveries, located in the East Wing of the Capitol, you will find this #DinosaursInPA fossil from the #StateMuseumofPA.

08/11/2020

Happy Travel Tuesday PA! Our Treasure of a Capitol has many hidden treasures to uncover during your visit. For example, you can find these figures “Legislative and Finance” and “Truth and Justice” watching over you during your visit with the Pennsylvania State Capitol Tours. #HistoryDemocracyBeauty

08/10/2020

The Pennsylvania Capitol Shop is the perfect place to find all of your Capitol related gifts and souvenirs! We are open Monday through Friday from 9:30am to 3:30pm! Here is a sneak peek at what we have to offer! Come visit the Pennsylvania State Capitol Tours and happy shopping! 😎#PAProud

08/08/2020

It's a beautiful thing when National Happiness Day falls on a Saturday! Even more so now that "pursue your happiness" is on our Welcome to PA sign! How will you pursue your happiness? How about visiting Pennsylvania State Capitol Tours and explore our Treasure of a Capitol? 😁