Fortified by our shared scotcheroo at the Heritage Museum, Ted and I crossed the street from the museum to the State Capitol. This is one of four State Capitols that does not have a dome. Can you name the other three? The answer is at the end of this post.
Look, Ma–no dome! The building houses all state offices and the state supreme court. Dome-free capitols provide a far more efficient use of space than domed buildings. In my opinion, it’s not that North Dakota is short of space–it’s that Scandinavians tend to be frugal.
We were in time for the guided tour. Our guide was passionate about architecture and made the tour very interesting.
The Capitol elevator doors (four sets) present a pictorial history of North Dakota.
Not much was being done in either house of the legislature; their work for 2017 is long finished. ND’s legislature meets biennially–and efficiently–in odd years.
The Monkey Room in the Capitol is named for the appearance of its California walnut wall panels. The California walnut tree is now listed as seriously endangered, so it is very rare. What do you see in this section of the wood? (My apologies for the reflection–the wood was highly varnished.)
The tour took us to the top floor and this view of the front grounds. An outdoor deck circles the top floor and used to be open to the public. Sometimes kids would throw snowballs from the top. When someone spoiled the fun and changed to dropping rocks, the deck was closed.
Here’s another view from the top floor. The building with the white tower (right center) is the Catholic church we saw from Fort Lincoln. The haze in the sky is from the Montana wildfires. The Missouri River flows through Bismarck. Lewis and Clark were here.
The ground floor of the Capitol has a North Dakota hall of fame. It’s a given that Lawrence Welk is included. My dad used to say, “People laugh at Lawrence, and Lawrence laughs all the way to the bank.”
This picture is in memory of Ted’s dad, who I think owned and read every book written by Louis L’Amour, a North Dakota native.
Could you name the dome-free State Capitols? They are: Bismarck, ND; Lincoln, NE; Baton Rouge, LA; and Tallahassee, FL.