Public Notice
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The Architect of the Capitol (AOC) is now a League of American Bicyclists recognized Bronze level Bicycle Friendly Business!
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History & Discoveries
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The U.S. Capitol's rotunda is closed this month to prepare for restoration, but there are six other rotunda areas visitors should be sure to see.
Public Notice
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Knowing that the U.S. Capitol Rotunda would be closed to visitors between July 27 and September 7 to prepare for restoration, the Capitol Visitor Center began in January to develop a Rotunda app that allows visitors to: Take a virtual tour of the Rotunda with the help of 360-degree imaging Learn
History & Discoveries
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Accessibility was a key component of the design of the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center, and we are proud to welcome visitors from all over the world. The AOC works to continually improve access to all, while maintaining and preserving the historic fabric and character of the campus.
History & Discoveries
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The Architect of the Capitol (AOC) works to continually improve physical access across the U.S. Capitol campus, using creative solutions to ensure the grounds and buildings provide access to all, while maintaining and preserving the historic fabric and character of Capitol Hill. While we have made
History & Discoveries
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The Architect of the Capitol (AOC) works to continually improve physical access across the U.S. Capitol campus, using creative solutions to ensure the grounds and buildings provide access to all, while maintaining and preserving the historic fabric and character of Capitol Hill. While we have made
Programs & Events
Article
When Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) Guide John Claya encountered a guest with a visual disability near the Old Supreme Court Chamber, he used a creative tool to help her "see" the room. On Thursday, July 9, John was passing through the Small Senate Rotunda toward the Crypt when he noticed a family of
History & Discoveries
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An accessible ramp at Senate Parks near the Senate Underground Garage. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law on July 26, 1990, and represents one of the country's most comprehensive pieces of civil rights legislation as it prohibits discrimination and guarantees people with
Programs & Events
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The U.S. Botanic Garden is committed to welcoming every visitor by providing accessible facilities and inclusive programming. Several efforts ensure that all can explore the USBG, including accessible routes, hand rails, all-terrain wheelchairs for loan, guides available in Braille and more.
Programs & Events
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Two years ago when I needed the accessibility operations provided by the Architect of the Capitol (AOC) on the Capitol campus, they were there for me. Functioning escalators and elevators were invaluable to me as I recovered from knee replacement surgery. Thanks to modern science, I have a new
Projects
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Architect of the Capitol's R.C. "Skip" Vaughn, Capital Projects Administrator, gives a quick project update from the building utilities phase of the Cannon Renewal. As part of the Cannon Renewal Project, the team is using ground penetrating radar (GPR) to plan and execute its work. GPR drawings
Projects
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The restoration of the U.S. Capitol Rotunda will ensure this hallowed space will be enjoyed by generations for years to come. Work includes removing hazardous materials, restoring ironwork, upgrading electrical and mechanical systems, installing new lighting and repainting.
Public Notice
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Sustainable landscaping program SITES, developed by United States Botanic Garden (USBG) and partners, was launched today by Green Business Certification Inc (GBCI). SITES is the most comprehensive program and toolkit for developing sustainable landscapes. Its rating system can be applied to
History & Discoveries
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The benches currently in the Capitol Rotunda were used in the chapel at Saint Elizabeths Hospital for many years. The photo above shows the benches in the chapel, which was decorated for Christmas circa 1896. History The AOC cares for the benches in the Capitol Rotunda whose cast-iron supports and
Doing Good
Article
What do you want to achieve in your lifetime? How will your achievements improve the world and define your legacy when you are gone? While these are hard questions for even the most mature adults, they are questions Emmanuel Akinjide poses to every high school student he mentors. "I want to help
Behind the Scenes
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Hands-on Attention Helps Blend Vintage and New into Cohesive Collection Upon the recent retirement of a long-time senator, the Senate Office Buildings Painting and Refinishing Branch is set to work on one of the oldest desks in the Senate office buildings. Perched on a large dolly like an elephant
Projects
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Because weather and time have not been kind to the Grant Memorial, AOC staff developed a preservation strategy to restore the Grant Memorial to its original condition.
Projects
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High in the sky, about 50 feet above the roof, a crane is peeking out of the Cannon House Office Building. This tower crane is part of the AOC's renewal project to improve and preserve the building, making it more efficient, comfortable and safer, while retaining its historic grandeur.
History & Discoveries
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To commemorate the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s death, AOC Curator Barbara Wolanin details the days he lay in state at the U.S. Capitol.
Projects
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Restoring the U.S. Capitol Dome is a massive project. It's exciting to uncover the artistry of a long-gone era and to see elements of the Dome that have not been seen for decades. More than 1,300 cracks in the nearly nine million pound cast iron Dome are being repaired by experts working day and
Behind the Scenes
Article
By Ted Bechtol, Superintendent of the Capitol Grounds For two beautiful summer days in late July, I traveled around Chippewa National Forest in Cass Lake, Minnesota, to search for the perfect U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree. It is my job, as Superintendent of the Capitol Grounds, to evaluate and select
Programs & Events
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For two beautiful summer days in late July, I traveled around Chippewa National Forest in Cass Lake, Minnesota, to search for the perfect U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree. It is my job, as Superintendent of the Capitol Grounds, to evaluate and select the Capitol Christmas Tree from a different national
Doing Good
Article
In today's world there is no shortage of articles, news segments and seminars on couponing, but few, if any, offer the return and success that Richard Edmonds and his church have found through their food pantry. As a member of Riva Trace Baptist Church and volunteer for their community projects
Behind the Scenes
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While the Architect of the Capitol's (AOC) core mission is to preserve the buildings in our care, we realize that to be successful, preserving knowledge is just as important as preserving the buildings.
History & Discoveries
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On a weekly basis, Library Buildings and Grounds Electrician Eugene (Geno) Blowe winds the magnificent clock above the west door in the Main Reading Room of the Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building, known as Mr. Flanagan's clock for the man who created it. First thing on Monday mornings, he
Behind the Scenes
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While commuting to work in Washington, D.C., will always be a challenge, few modes of transportation leave the commuter with this feeling: invigoration. In fact, that's how Shaun Abell, Horticulturist with the U.S. Botanic Garden, describes his daily commute by bike every morning. And he's in good
Projects
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Addressing the stone pandemic across the Capitol campus takes a team of historic preservationists, structural engineers and stonemasons, among others.
History & Discoveries
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Although I read Anne Frank's diary years ago, it wasn't until May of this year that I had the opportunity to visit the secret annex in Amsterdam where Anne, along with family members and friends, hid from the Nazis for two years. While I was in Holland, a tree was planted in Anne's honor on the
Behind the Scenes
Article
Historic preservation tricks using "windows" and "columns" in the U.S. Capitol.
Behind the Scenes
Article
As Congress meets in the halls of the U.S. Capitol, a small group of AOC employees toil in the heat a few hundred yards away to help a living national treasure thrive in an urban center. This is the National Garden at the U.S. Botanic Garden. Conceived as an outdoor laboratory for gardening in