welcome to the Michigan State Capital in beautiful downtown Lancing my name is Valerie Marvin i have the honor of serving as the capital historian and curator and I'm happy to have you join me today to learn a little bit more about our beautiful building when you visit the capital you'll have a chance to see some beautiful architecture learn some of Michigan history take in some beautiful artwork and if you're here on a session day you can watch the legislature in session so if you remember your Michigan history you will know Lancing is not the first capital the building we are standing in now is our third capital and officially opened on January 1st of 1879 this building was intended to be the heart of state government and also intended to be very convenient so people who needed to come interact with government could do everything within the same building very easily when you enter Heritage Hall the first thing you will do hopefully is take a look up heritage Hall is connected to the capital and was designed with skylights so you can always see the capital while you are in it we also have a ramp of historical exhibits that serve as a sort of orientation to capital history those exhibits start with the very first capital in Detroit those cases are filled with artifacts that tell the story of the construction of this our third building and its evolution over time the last case on the ramp reminds us that this building belongs to us it is our capital so it is full of souvenirs from the last hundred or so years tour guide booklets silver spoons postcards China plates we also have political memorabilia from governors and from legislators who have served in the office over time they of course also become a part of the capital story our capital basically breaks down into five areas there's the ground floor that connects to Heritage Hall then there's the first second third and fourth floors the first floor historically was home to the different state departments for example the state treasurer was just inside the front door this is also where the secretary of state was located the board of state health the railroad commission the agitant general the attorney general then if you go up to the second floor you will find the official governor's office that office was used by every governor historically since the building opened you'll also find the entrances to the House and Senate chambers the Senate Chamber is a very beautiful space as you walk in your eye is instantly drawn to the rostroom at the front that's where the Lieutenant Governor presides over Senate session you will also see 38 desks throughout the room one for each senator now most of these desks are original so today senators are sitting at the same desks that were used when the building first opened the House Chamber is home to six beautiful chandeliers that are among the capital's original gas lights if you look above that you'll see a beautiful skylight overhead there are 126 glass tiles on 50 of those tiles you will see etched in red the coat of arms for each state in America as much as this is Michigan's capital we wanted to acknowledge the fact that we are only one state of many the House and the Senate chambers are two stories tall so members enter those chambers on the second floor level members of the public can go up to the third floor this is where you can go and watch the Senate while they are in session you do not need to make any appointment or reservation to do this you are always welcome to go in and take a seat as long as seating is available also on the third floor you'll find the old Supreme Court chamber today their former chamber is used as an appropriations committee room so that's where we tangle over things like the budget right now I'm standing in the capital's rotunda which is the very heart and center of the building it is meant to be a natural gathering space where people come together now in the center of that dome what we call the eye or the oculus of the dome you'll see what looks like a night sky a dark blue field with gold and silver stars those stars are said to represent the future of Michigan they are there to inspire us to remind us that just as there is no limit to the stars in the sky so there is no limit to the potential of our state and as much as I'm the historian the future is what we do in this building this is where decisions are made every day that shape the future of the state and those stars are an excellent reminder of that today when people come to the capital they are always impressed by all of the color in the building it is one of the most colorful capitals in America everything is all hand painted all the way up to the stars in the dome60 ft above us and we are very very proud of our decorative art in fact it is considered to be one of the best examples of surviving decorative art in the entire country and it's one of the reasons this building was named a national historic landmark in 1992 that's the highest honor you can get for a historic building in America the second and third floors of the rotunda are what we today call the gallery of governors this is where we display portraits of the 14 most recent governors to serve our state now if you're looking for a portrait of the current governor you'll not be in luck we actually make the governors wait until they are done serving their term before they can have a portrait displayed in the building and then it is the responsibility of each governor to donate his or her own portrait to the collection as a result each one is very different and a lot of them give some insights into what was important to each governor and what the priorities were for their administrations thank you for joining me today for this virtual visit to Michigan State Capital we hope you'll come see us in person soon visit capital.mman.gov to learn more thanks for watching for more videos and lessons be sure to click the subscribe button and be sure to 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