State Capitols – Indianapolis, Indiana

Indiana Capitol in Indianapolis (15 June 2009)

Constructed: 1878-1888

Architect: Edwin May & Adolf Scherrer

State Admitted to Union: December 11, 1816 (19th)

State Population (2010): 6,483,802 (15th)

As I thought about how to resume presenting the State Capitol Odyssey, it seemed right to begin with my home state of Maryland and follow with the three states that were home before now. After that, unless some interesting format materialized, I imagined that some noteworthy event could prompt the presentation of the seat of government in that state.

Voila! The college basketball Final Four just happened in Indianapolis...inside a football stadium. How so many people paid so much to be so far away from the action on the court baffles me but kudos to the NCAA marketing team. On top of that, the state has made headlines and drawn attention with its new law to restore religious freedom…whatever that means. It seems that Big Business and other leaders agree with me that these measures are springing up to allow Christians to keep discriminating against gays. I propose that the poor, put-upon followers of the ‘Prince of Peace’ who insist that bigotry is a religious right consider that great question that is not asked of them often enough – What would Jesus do?

Under the Rotunda, Indiana Capitol, Indianapolis (15 June 2009)

Anyway…in 2009, a road trip to Wisconsin took us through the capitols in Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. In the middle of Indiana’s largest city, the state house is surrounded by downtown high-rise buildings.

Statue of Oliver P. Morton, Indiana Capitol, Indianapolis (15 June 2009)

In front of the main entrance is a monument to the state’s Civil War governor, Oliver Hazard Perry Throck Morton…a staunch Unionist and Lincoln supporter. The first picture of the capitol was taken from the city’s Soldiers and Sailors Memorial a few blocks away. The state’s view of the conflict is evident on the inscription of another statue of the governor at the Memorial. While most of us call it the ‘Civil War’ and some, more delicately, prefer ‘The War Between the States’, there are still some in the South who prefer the ‘War of Northern Aggression.’ The creators of the Indiana Memorial had another term for it - the ‘War of the Rebellion.’

The current capitol followed a familiar course toward its creation. When the Indiana Territory was carved out of the Northwest Territories in 1800, the first capitol, Vincennes, was selected because it was one of the few settlements of substance at the time, having been founded by French fur traders in 1732. Then, with commerce spreading west on the waterways, Corydon, near the Ohio River, was the capital when statehood was granted in 1816. As the state grew, the need for a centrally-located capital moved government to Indianapolis.

Under the Rotunda, Indiana Capitol, Indianapolis (15 June 2009)

Instead of statues of famous sons, this space has figures 

representing the eight values of civilization. Funny how women 

weren’t allowed to hold office, vote, become professionals or 

do much of anything yet their decorative and aesthetic qualities 

were just right to depict Law, Oratory, History, Commerce, 

Justice, Agriculture, Art and (especially) Liberty.

Completed in 1888, this is the second capitol at this location. Elected and appointed members of all three branches of government are located here. In addition to the legislature, the building has the office of the governor and the Supreme Court. Once again, the timing of this adventure was fortuitous since Indiana’s was one of the capitols that underwent recent major renovations. For many capitols, after years of alterations and expansions to accommodate modernization and growing government, the actions of the last 20 years were more about restoring these grand public spaces to their former glory.

Atrium, Indiana Capitol, Indianapolis (15 June 2009)

In 1988, for the building’s 100th anniversary, significant improvements were made to refurbish its Victorian elegance. Layers of paint and dirt were removed and original designs reapplied. As was done in the Springfield, Illinois capitol, the soot from years of gas light use hid fine materials and workmanship. The full-ceiling skylights now make the place shine.

Indiana House of Representatives (15 June 2009)

The House has 100 members and meets in a chamber that is dominated by a mural painted by Eugene Savage in 1963. The chandelier has 100 lights…one for each member. The Senate has 50 members and the chamber was modernized to add offices on three floors surrounding the space.

Indiana Senate (15 June 2009)

It was a short but pleasant visit to Indianapolis, the second most populous of the state capitals (after Phoenix, Arizona). Three years earlier, when I was in town to visit the grave of the only Hoosier president, Benjamin Harrison, I thought I might get into the capitol for a quick walk-and-shoot. However, the Colts were playing that day and downtown was way too crowded and busy for that to happen. Now that the Final Four is over and religious freedom is restored, I wish the state and her residents well.