Constantino Brumidi’s “Apotheosis of Washington” in the eye of the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. An unprecedented view of the entire painting assembled from several photos mapped to a highly accurate 3D model of the concave mural. (S. Greene and R. Pierce, 2023)

Responsible for the documentation of the historical buildings and grounds of the Capitol complex, PTIB has been capturing the historic activities, events and moments within those spaces for 75 years.

"As part of the Curator Division, PTIB provides vital information for conservators and architects and is also an invaluable resource for researchers," reflects AOC Curator, Dr. Michele Cohen.

Today, PTIB provides a versatile range of high-quality multimedia products and services to help document, inform and archive the mission of the AOC, from the biggest lifts to the subtlest brushstrokes.

Early History

PTIB's origin story began in 1856 with Captain Montgomery C. Meigs, engineer in charge of the Capitol expansion, and photographer John Wood using cutting-edge technology for both efficiency and documentation. Wood's large-format glass-plate photographs and stereographs depicting the Capitol Extension and Dome are among the first in the early history of photography to memorialize a building construction project. PTIB holds a number of these original objects.

Photography operations continued after Wood's departure until 1881, when they paused for a generation. Revived by then-Architect of the Capitol Elliott Woods, the program resumed from 1900 to approximately 1923, with a new emphasis on documentation of building systems and management processes. A photography enthusiast himself, Woods corresponded with Thomas Edison during these years and ultimately acquired two of Edison's new movie cameras, adding motion pictures to still photography as part of the AOC's documentary mission. Woods' premature death and the ascent of his successor David Lynn during the Great Depression and World War II set photography aside once again, leaving almost no photographs in our record from this period in American history.

Post-World War II (WWII) Era

The AOC photography mission was restored by Lynn in 1949 and made permanent by Architect of the Capitol J. George Stewart to document the construction of the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Rayburn House Office Building and the East Front Extension of the Capitol. The enterprising photographer Harry Burnett, only 19 when he signed on, guided the success of photography at the AOC from the postwar period into the early 1980s.

This year, the AOC photography mission that John Wood started more than 160 years ago celebrates its 75th year of continuous operation. Since the end of WWII, the office has told in pictures a story of continuity and change. Enormous growth on Capitol Hill in the postwar period mirrored the expanding needs of a booming economy and population in the United States. During these years, the AOC added to its responsibilities approximately 15 million square feet of office space, through building acquisition or construction, as well as tens of acres of new land. Directing photographers Harry Burnett (1949- 1985), Mark Blair (1985-1990), Wayne Firth (1990-2005) and Michael Dunn (2005-present) have led the AOC's modern photography mission, supporting Architects of the Capitol from David Lynn through Thomas E. Austin in their service to Congress and the American people.

Delivery of heat recovery steam generator and combustion turbine generator, part of Capitol Power Plant East Refrigeration Plant upgrades. Susanne Bledsoe, 7.24.2017
Artist Robert Beckmann inpaints Citrus panel following exhibit installation at the U.S. Botanic Garden Conservatory.
From the biggest lifts... Delivery of a generator at the Capitol Power Plant. (S. Bledsoe, 2017); To the subtlest brushstrokes... an artist inpaints an exhibit panel of citrus at the U.S. Botanic Garden Conservatory. (M. Dunn, 2005)

Today's AOC photographers continue to embrace photographic innovation in the service of documentation, support the AOC's engineering and design efforts, facilitate institutional communications and document presidential inaugurations and other important national events at the U.S. Capitol.

Two major updates to John Wood's U.S. Capitol Dome construction photography of the 1850s bookend this modern period: Burnett's mid-century documentation of the East Front Extension to the U.S. Capitol, including a centennial renovation and repainting of the Dome; and photographer Chuck Badal's coverage of the Dome renovation in the mid-2010s (roughly the sesquicentennial of its construction).

The AOC has told a story in more than half a million pictures touching nearly two centuries of continuity and change on Capitol Hill.

The last 75 years have seen the design and building of the Dirksen, Rayburn, Madison and Hart Buildings, as well as the Thurgood Marshall Federal Judiciary Building, the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center, the House Underground Garage and Parks and the Library of Congress (LOC) book storage modules in Fort Meade, Maryland. Major restorations were executed on the Thomas Jefferson Building, the U.S. Capitol West Front, the Supreme Court, Cannon House Office Building, O'Neill House Office Building, Senate Underground Garage and Park, Capitol Power Plant and the LOC Packard Campus for Audio-Visual Conservation in Culpeper, Virginia. There were conservation treatments of most major paintings in the U.S. Capitol and the Jefferson Building, including Constantino Brumidi's enormous "Apotheosis of Washington" fresco 200 feet above the Capitol Rotunda floor. The bronze Statue of Freedom was lifted to the East Plaza by helicopter crane for conservation and then replaced without incident. In addition to these major projects, there are scores of maintenance, repair and small-scale construction projects completed by the AOC at the direction of Congress each year, as well as maintenance of living collections at the Botanic Garden Conservatory and under the care of the Capitol Grounds and Arboretum. The AOC's photographic record has documented all of this and more.

Photographic Timeline

The pictures you see here are drawn from the AOC's well-organized photographic database, which is surely one of our quietest but most significant and enduring collective achievements as an agency — a heritage asset in its own right, one that provides enduring value to the agency in the course of its business, and to a congressional community that rightly prizes its institutional history.

This photographic timeline represents the history of the AOC's work and features more than three dozen gems from the photography archives. The photographs offer only a taste of the immense range and depth of work undertaken by the AOC in the last 75 years, working with generations of leaders in Congress to shape, build and preserve Capitol Hill as the American people and our guests from around the world see it today.

You may notice that some activities in these historic photos do not comply with our current safety standards. It is important to note how far we have come to ensure safety for our workforce.

1949 to 1975
(Photograph by H. Burnett, 1949)
(Photograph by H. Burnett, 1949)
(Photographs by H. Burnett, 1949)
  • June 27, 1949.
    View from the top of apartment house on the north side of C Street, NE showing start of demolition of row of houses to make room for Additional Senate Office Building, later named the Dirksen Senate Office Building. Large format black and white film — geometry, detail, archival durability.
  • November 1, 1949.
    One of the earliest views from PTIB's 75-year modern era. This aerial photograph shows the House and Senate wings of the Capitol under renovation prior to the East Front Extension project. This period re-established the core elements of PTIB's current mission, including documentation of new construction, renovation of existing structures, historic preservation, fine art and conservation, major congressional events and Capitol Grounds.
(Photograph by H. Burnett, 1953)
(Photograph by H. Burnett, 1957)
(Photograph by G. Holmes, 1958)
(Photographs by H. Burnett, 1953 and 1957, and G. Holmes, 1958)
  • January 20, 1953.
    In the 19th century, Capitol photographer John Wood took the first known photograph of a presidential inauguration (James Buchanan), and the only extant photographs of the Lincoln inaugurations. Here, Harry Burnett continues PTIB's coverage of presidential inaugurations with this picture from Dwight D. Eisenhower's speech, while outgoing President Truman and Vice President Nixon listen. He had covered the setup for the inauguration of Harry S. Truman in 1949.
  • May 22, 1957.
    The period between 1949 and 1975 saw the construction or beginning of construction for four new buildings: the Dirksen Senate Office Building, the Rayburn House Office Building, the Library of Congress Madison Building, and the Hart Senate Office Building. Here the "Additional Senate Office Building" (later the Dirksen) nears completion.
  • May 28, 1958.
    A pair of horse drawn caissons bear the coffins of the Unknown Soldier on the East Plaza of the U.S. Capitol. The Capitol has always provided a stage for nationally significant events, and PTIB has photographed major congressional events, including lyings-in-state and -honor, since its earliest days.
(Photograph by M. Blair, 1958)
  • August 28, 1958.
    AOC photographer Harry Burnett, with his 4x5 camera, gets a lift from D.C. Fire Truck Company No. 3's Pirsch aerial ladder truck. PTIB photographers have always taken pride in doing what it takes to get the picture, in this case a condition photo of the sculptural grouping in the House pediment.
(Photograph by H. Burnett, 1958)
(Photograph by H. Burnett, 1958)
(Photographs by H. Burnett, 1958)
  • October 14, 1958.
    As a branch of the AOC Curator Division, PTIB has from its earliest days a record in pictures of art in and around the Capitol. In this photograph, an AOC painter carefully adheres one of several new portrait paintings on canvas in its ornamental gilt setting in the Senate Reception Room off the floor of the Senate Chamber.
  • Unknown, 1958.
    When context is everything, sometimes only an aerial view will do. This is one of PTIB's earliest aerials, showing most of Capitol Square and surrounding neighborhoods. Note the Rayburn construction site, the Dirksen under construction, and residential blocks where the Madison and Hart will eventually be built. WWII-era temporary buildings cover blocks on the Mall nearest the Capitol.
(Photograph by H. Burnett, 1959)
  • November 30, 1959.
    Photographs made on large negatives like this 4x5 progress view of the East Front Extension Project from the roof of the Senate are prized for their high level of detail. Black and white silver-based film was preferred for documentation meant to last, given its superior archival keeping compared with color films of the era. These were used later in planning the recent Dome renovation.
(Photographs by H Burnett and G. Holmes, 1960)
  • March 24, 1960.
    U.S. Capitol East Front Extension and Dome Renovation Project. The mid-19th century portico under which Abraham Lincoln was twice inaugurated president has been removed (the columns are now displayed at the National Arboretum). The Dome sports a dark red prime coat to prevent rust before painting, which coincided with Russian Premiere Nikita Kruschev's visit to the United States. The temporary color of the Dome may have inspired this rare use of color film.
  • April 1, 1960.
    Iron workers positioning an unpainted rib on the Capitol Dome. This is a rare use of color film for construction documentation.
(Photographs by H. Burnett, 1962, and G. Holmes, 1965)
  • May 24, 1962.
    President John F. Kennedy makes remarks at the cornerstone laying for the new Rayburn House Office Building.
  • January 6, 1965.
    Sam Rayburn statue dedication in the Rayburn House Office Building – a big day for Texas! First Lady Lady Bird Johnson offers dedicatory remarks as President Lyndon B. Johnson and the statue itself look on. A more journalistic subject called for medium format photography in a smaller camera from photographer George Holmes.
(Photograph by H. Burnett, 1966)
  • January 31, 1966.
    Dramatic weather, like this blanket of snow from 1966, has always been a temptation to photographers. This is one of PTIB's first, hence the use of color film, showing the Capitol Grounds setting off the Capitol to good advantage near the Olmsted Summerhouse. The Capitol Grounds remain one of PTIB's major areas of interest.
(Photograph by H. Burnett, 1971)
(Photograph by H. Burnett, 1968)
(Photographs by H. Burnett, 1968 and 1971)
  • December 16, 1968.
    House Republican Leader (later President) Gerald Ford lights the Christmas tree on the West Front Lawn of the U.S. Capitol, accompanied by Architect of the Capitol J. George Stewart. In later years, this ceremony would move closer to the tree, a gift from a different state each year.
  • April 30, 1971.
    Site for Madison Building, Library of Congress – view from Adams Building roof. The block had been cleared of residential housing and used for an interim period as a parking lot prior to construction.
1975 to 2000
(Photograph by H. Burnett, 1978)
(Photograph by H. Burnett, 1977)
(Photograph by H. Burnett, 1979)
(Photographs by H. Burnett, 1977, 1978 and 1979)
  • January 20, 1977.
    President James E. Carter shakes hands with outgoing President Gerald R. Ford at Carter's inauguration. Carter's was the last inauguration to date on the East Front of the U.S. Capitol. Beginning with the inauguration of Ronald Reagan, the event has taken place on the West Front.
  • January 14, 1978.
    Senator Hubert H. Humphrey's casket borne up the east steps of the U.S. Capitol. Humphrey lay in state in the Capitol Rotunda. The former vice president and presidential nominee had returned to serve in the Senate from the State of Minnesota at the time of his death.
  • July 27, 1979.
    Hart Building under construction, steel superstructure near completion. Site addresses the Dirksen Senate Office Building and leaves space for the historic Sewell House.
(Unknown photographer, 1987)
(Photograph by W. Firth, 1987)
(Photographs by Unknown and W. Firth, 1987)
  • June 9, 1987.
    PTIB photographers in the field. Wayne Firth and C. Stephen Payne utilize the nearly completed floor to ceiling scaffolding in the Capitol Rotunda to photograph the "Apotheosis of George Washington" mural before conservation. They would have had to climb the scaffolding from the floor, then pulled up their large format 4x5 camera kit by rope. The challenge has always been to take a single edge-to-edge photograph of the "Apotheosis" mural, which is impossible from the Rotunda floor given the obstruction of the visitor gallery.
  • July 13, 1987.
    Conservator Larry Keck cleans the surface of the Constantino Brumidi mural "Apotheosis of George Washington." Conservator Bernard Rabin is on the lower scaffold of the enormous painting.
(Photograph by W. Firth, 1989)
(Photograph by L. Beasley, 1993)
(Photographs by W. Firth, 1989 and 1993, and L. Beasley, 1993)
  • January 18, 1989.
    Aerial view of the West Front of the U.S. Capitol set up for the inauguration of President George H.W. Bush. The Architect of the Capitol is responsible every four years for building the stage for the nation's peaceful transition of power.
  • January 20, 1993.
    AOC glory shot of the presidential inauguration. Beginning with the inauguration of President Ronald Reagan, ceremonies were moved from the East Front to the West Front of the U.S. Capitol. AOC photographer Mark Blair established this overall view of the ceremony as the new capstone of PTIB inauguration coverage with the Reagan swearing in. This image shows Firth's use of Blair's composition from the inauguration of President William J. Clinton.
  • July 7, 1993.
    View of Bartholdi Fountain and Gardens through the second story windows of the Botanic Garden Administrative Office Building. One of the pleasantest challenges of photographing on Capitol Hill is making the most of the juxtapositions between architecture and the grounds.
(AOC Photography, 1993)
  • October 23, 1993.
    A sky crane helicopter replaces the conserved bronze Statue of Freedom atop the U.S. Capitol. This photograph was taken by a remote camera. PTIB uses remotely triggered cameras for many tasks.
(Photograph by C. Badal, 1999)
(Photograph by C. Badal, 1997)
(Photographs by C. Badal, 1997 and 1999)
  • June 23, 1997.
    Reinstallation of the gilt copper flame atop the Library of Congress' Thomas Jefferson Building, part of a holistic renovation of the building that included the conservation of dozens of fine art murals decorating the inside of the building.
  • July 6, 1999.
    U.S. Botanic Garden Conservatory renovation. The project was among the last documented using silver process film. PTIB converted to digital by 2004.
2000–2024
(Photograph by C. Badal, 2001)
  • September 11, 2001.
    Smoke billows from the Pentagon following the airliner attack on September 11, 2001, as seen from the West Terrace of the Capitol. The Capitol was evacuated moments later, but spared attack when passengers on Flight 93 overcame hijackers, crashing in a field in Pennsylvania. The first quarter of the 21st century was marked by a number of attacks and emergencies (anthrax attack, 2011 earthquake, 2020 pandemic), which the AOC responded to and PTIB helped to document.
(Photographs by C. Badal, 2001 and 2003)
  • December 19, 2001.
    The construction of the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) began as PTIB was making its transition from wet chemistry to digital photography. This photograph on film shows a step in the process of moving the Liberty Tree (a tulip poplar), roots and all, for safekeeping prior to excavation for the CVC. Although PTIB has always documented the evolution of the Capitol Grounds, this picture in some ways marks an increased commitment to the subject, as digital photography met major changes to Frederick Law Olmsted's design for the grounds, and the grounds were re-classified as an arboretum, or urban forest.
  • October 1, 2003.
    Taken on 8x10 black and white sheet film with a large format camera, this view of the nearly completed excavation on the East Front of the Capitol for the CVC provides a window onto a scene no longer available to us. Photography as time travel.
(Photographs by C. Badal, 2009, 2015 and 2016)
  • January 20, 2009.
    Michael Dunn, middle, covers the 2009 presidential inauguration from the center media platform. PTIB first used digital cameras at an inauguration in 2005, and first used 4K digital video at the 2009 inauguration.
  • November 19, 2015.
    PTIB has composed and operated time-lapse photo views of the Capitol from surrounding building roofs, including this view from a camera on the roof of the Jefferson Building. Taken following a storm during the Dome renovation, this image is one of a series reminding us how changes in light and atmosphere convey an everchanging mood to a building associated with unchanging permanence. Both aspects are true, to the delight of photographers.
  • April 12, 2016.
    One of the major renovation projects of the early 21st century was the renovation of the U.S. Capitol Dome. The inner and outer domes are constructed from interlocking pieces of cast iron, with Constantino Brumidi's "Apotheosis of George Washington" and a staircase leading from the base to a balcony below the tholos and Statue of Freedom in between the two domes. This wide-angle photograph shows painters in protective gear repainting the cast iron and starts at the oculus level of the inner dome.
(Photographs by J. Rosenthal, 2016 and 2017)

  • May 3, 2016.
    The first of six replacements for weather damaged Capitol exterior stone rosettes is shaped in marble by a water-cooled computer-guided drill bit.

  • May 26, 2017.
    PTIB takes well-crafted architectural photographs, in addition to documenting trade craft, construction, events and other subjects. The evolution of portable lighting into the 21st century has allowed photographers greater flexibility to light complex architectural spaces, such as this Capitol interior.

(Photograph by T. Hatzenbuhler, 2018)

  • December 3, 2018.
    U.S. Military Honor Guard pall bearers position President George H.W. Bush's coffin on Lincoln's black-draped ceremonial catafalque to lie in state in 2018. This photograph is noteworthy for a technical reason: it was the first to show a presidential lying-in-state from a camera positioned exactly in the center of the Rotunda oculus. The position was made possible by a custom-built cable trolley designed for the Dome renovation and has since been replaced by an off-center cantilevered camera mount.

(Photographs by S. Greene, 2021; L. Walter, 2022; and T. Hatzenbuhler, 2023)

  • January 20, 2021.
    PTIB's inauguration glory shot from the center media stand. President Joseph R. Biden, having just been sworn in as the 46th U.S. President, addresses a masked audience spaced widely apart from one another to help discourage the spread of COVID-19, a virus that had reached pandemic levels across the global population by the time of the speech.

  • October 21, 2022.
    Fluted Corinthian columns at the entrance of the Supreme Court of the United States, with James Earle Fraser's statue Contemplation of Justice. The gilt flame on the copper cupola roof of the Thomas Jefferson Building, Library of Congress, is visible in the background. The AOC assumed responsibility for the operation, maintenance and preservation of the Library of Congress and the Supreme Court in the 20th century.

  • October 12, 2023.
    Water flows in the recently restored Olmsted Summerhouse on the Capitol Grounds. Built for visitors as a place of rest and shelter from the weather in an era before air conditioning, it exemplifies how the best landscape architecture creates an enchanted portal between architecture and nature.

(Photograph by R. Norman, 2024)
(Photograph by T. Hatzenbuhler, 2023)
(Photographs by T. Hatzenbuhler, 2023, and R. Norman, 2024)

  • November 6, 2023.
    In this compact aerial view, the Cannon House Office Building renovation (foreground), the Capitol, and northwest Washington, D.C., are shown in relationship to one another. Photography's ability to record novel perspectives on Capitol Hill help the AOC analyze and plan its past, present and future.

  • April 11, 2024.
    A sweeping view of the House Chamber during a recent Joint Session of Congress. Japanese Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, addresses Members of Congress. Events that take place on the nation's stage are a significant part of the history of the stage itself.

(Photograph by S. Greene, 2024)

  • May 8, 2024.
    Cannon House Office Building renewal. The most recent 25-year period has seen many large-scale building renovations on the Hill. Most are phased to allow continued occupation during construction.

Comments

William S Wood JrDecember 5, 2024 - 12:37pm

The AOC photographers are amazing in their dedication and skill in documentation of the history of these historic structures, great article!

Randall Bright December 5, 2024 - 12:46pm

Michael, what a great read and fantastic piece on PTIB. Happy Anniversary to all PTIB staff!

Thank you so much,

Randall

Malogica SoftwareDecember 18, 2024 - 12:47am

Congratulations to the AOC Photography and Technical Imaging Branch on celebrating 75 years of preserving the history and development of the Capitol! From capturing iconic buildings to documenting significant events, their dedication to both still photography and motion pictures provides invaluable records for future generations. A true legacy of documentation!

Wayne FirthMarch 1, 2025 - 1:10am

Michael,
Congratulations on this excellent history of the branch. I found it online while looking for something else. I might note that unlike your other predecessors, I'm still alive. I once looked up Harry Burnett's earliest photos and they were made the week I was born. He was cutting war surplus aerial film in a darkroom under the stairway of his mother's house. He truly started with nothing. He couldn't tell anyone what he did because paying for a photographer would be a waste. So in the beginning he was just a clerk. Harry hired me in 1984 shortly before his retirement The strict adherence to honest documentary photography comes from Harry I think that the conversion from film to digital was as significant as John Woods' early photographs in the 1850's. You were a major player in that conversion as well as in the preservation of those first documentary construction photographs ever made. You are now also the longest serving branch leader. Best wishes for another 75 years. Wayne

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