National Nuggets: Cox Corridors Part 4 - Hall of Capitols

The first corridor painted by Allyn Cox was the Hall of Capitols located in the eastern north-south corridor of the House Wing.  He began in 1973 and completed this corridor in 1974.  This corridor has been termed the Hall of Capitols because it features paintings of the sixteen different buildings that housed the Continental and United States Congresses from 1754-1885.

Allyn Cox pictured in front of one of the historical scenes in the Hall of Capitols.

The corridor also contains the portraits of the nine men who served as Architect of the Capitol between 1793 and 1974.  These portraits decorate the groined vaults of the ceilings.

Painted in the barrel vaults of the ceilings are eight historic events that occurred during the first 65 years of the Capitol's existence.

Sculptures that had previously been removed from the Capitol or that are difficult to view because of their locations are painted in trompe l'oiel. in wall lunettes using shades of gray to simulate sculpture. 

a collage of some of the trompe l'oiel depicting the removed sculptures or sculptures that were difficult to see that were removed

Today's blog post will begin to focus on the sixteen buildings and feature a little of the historic events/legislation that took place in each.


Albany 1754

At the old Stadt Huys in Albany, New York, colonial representatives devised a plan for a union of the colonies.  The plan was ultimately rejected, but it became a guide for the later federal government.  As I provide more detail for you, I bet you will turn your head and think to yourself that the plan sounds familiar!

On May 28, 1754, the first battle of the Seven Years War, better known as the French and Indian War, began over control of the Ohio River Valley.   The Albany Congress or the Albany Convention of 1754 was the first time in the 1700s that American colonial representatives would meet to discuss some manner of formal union.  The purpose of this Congress was to establish better relations with the American Indian tribes and to establish common defense measure against the French threat from Canada in the opening stages of the Seven Years War.

It is interesting to note that in the 1600s, some New England colonies had formed a loose association called the New England Confederation.  This confederation was formed for the purpose of defense against raiding French and Indian tribes supporting the French; however, this congress in 1754 was open to all colonies.

In Albany, seven of the colonies sent representatives, but none were further south than Maryland.  Representatives met from June 19 to July 11 of that year.  They pursued a treaty with the Mohawks and other major Iroquois tribes.

Most of the time was spent in debating Benjamin Franklin's Albany Plan which would create a unified level of colonial government.

On May 9, 1754, this cartoon by Benjamin Franklin would appear in the Pennsylvania Gazette.  You might only know it with the addition of Georgia on the tip of the tail associated with the American Revolution.

His plan called for a union of eleven colonies with a president general who would be appointed by the British Crown.  Each colonial assembly would send two to seven representatives dependent upon the amount of taxes paid by each colony to serve as a "grand council."  The council would have legislative powers over Indian affairs, military preparedness, and execution of laws regulating various trade and financial activities.

The plan was rejected by seven of the eleven colonies as well as the British Board of Trade.  However, many of the elements of this plan would become the basis of the Articles of Confederation and eventually the Constitution!  Not many people realize that the seeds of government for America began as early as it actually did.

I found it interesting that Franklin would say in 1789 that if the Albany Plan had been accepted the American Revolution would not have occurred as soon as it did.



New York 1765

The Old City Hall in New York was the meeting place for delegates from nine colonies who drew up a Declaration of Rights and Grievances.  This document was written by the Stamp Act Congress and was passed on October 14, 1765.

If you remember your history, you will recall that the Britain had accrued a severe debt during the Seven Years War.  The British Parliament felt that the colonies should bear a goodly portion of that burden since the debt was a result of protecting the colonists against the French and sympathetic Indian tribes to the French.  A series of taxes were passed by Parliament.  Keep in mind that the 1733 Molasses Act and the 1751 Currency Act had already raised tensions; however, when the 1764 Sugar Act and the 1765 Stamp Act were passed, the colonies had reached their breaking point.

The Stamp Act was passed by the British Parliament in 1765.

During the first congress of the American colonies, delegates of the Stamp Act Congress drew up a declaration in which they stated that colonists had the same rights as British subjects living in Britain.  The declaration went on the say that only colonial assemblies had a right to tax the colonies without representation and that colonists had a right to trial by jury.   The British Parliament did repeal the Stamp Act but a series of other acts took its place including the 1774 Coercive Acts or Intolerable Acts.


Philadelphia 1774

This led to the first Continental Congress which met at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. On September 5, 1774, delegates from twelve of the thirteen colonies met.  Georgia did not send delegates as it was fighting a Native American uprising and was dependent on the British for military supplies.  The Congress emphasized the equality of each delegate and promoted free debate. 

After much debate, the Congress issued a Declaration of Rights affirming the loyalty of the colonies to the British Crown but disputing the British Parliament's right to tax them.  The Articles of Association was also passed which called on colonies to stop importing goods from the British isles beginning on December 1, 1774 if the Coercive Acts were not repealed.

The delegates agreed to reconvene on May 10, 1775 if Britain failed to redress the colonists' grievances in a timely manner.  They also agreed to cease export of goods to Britain on September 10, 1775.  The Congress disbanded on October 26, 1774, but as we know, ti had to reconvene.


Philadelphia 1775

On July 4, 1776, delegates to the second Continental Congress issued the Declaration of Independence at Philadelphia's State House now known as Independence Hall.  Delegates began their work when the Congress convened on May 10, 1775 with twelve of the colonies represented.

This Congress would serve as a de facto national government.  It would raise armies, direct strategy, write treatises such as the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms and the Olive Branch Petition.

By the time that Richard Henry Lee presented his resolution declaring independence, all thirteen colonies would be represented, and the resolution was adopted followed by the adoption and signing of the Declaration of Independence. 


Baltimore 1776

The Congress moved to Baltimore, Maryland, a safer haven during the war than Philadelphia after the signing of the Declaration of Independence.  Congress met in the inn and tavern of Henry Fite.  This was the largest building in Baltimore Town at that time.  The inn became known as the Old Congress House and succumbed to the Great Baltimore Fire in 1904.

To avoid capture by the British forces who were advancing on Philadelphia, the Second Continental Congress was forced to move from Philadelphia to Baltimore.  For a two month period, Baltimore would serve as our nation's capital.

During this time period, the Congress would confer upon General George Washington extraordinary powers for the conduct of the Revolutionary War.


York 1777

After leaving Baltimore, the Congress met briefly in Philadelphia but soon moved to York, Pennsylvania where it met for nine months in the Old Court House.  York served as the home of the Congress from September 30, 1777 to June 28, 1778.  A replica of the demolished courthouse was built in the 1950s.

While in York, the Congress passed the Articles of Confederation on November 15, 1777 after more than a year of debate.  It was sent to the states for ratification.


Annapolis 1783

The next congressional meeting place was the State House in Annapolis, Maryland.  It was formally referred to as the United States in Congress Assembled or the Congress of Confederation and served as the governing body of the United States from March 1, 1781 to March 4, 1789.  This Congress continued to refer to itself as the Continental Congress during its history since the delegates were carryovers from the Second Continental Congress.

The Congress opened in the last stages of the American Revolution and passed the Bank of North American, the Land Ordinances of 1784 and 1785, and the Northwest Ordinance of 1787.

It was here that George Washington resigned his commission as commander in chief of the Continental Army.  President Thomas Mifflin of Pennsylvania lauded how Washington "conducted the great military contest with wisdom and fortitude ... regarding the rights of the civil power of Congress through all disasters and changes."

I will finish the sites of the capitols in the next installment of my blog.