March means the start of spring—our busiest season when both the Capitol and Heritage Hall are abuzz with session, events, and increasing numbers of school tours. Next time you find yourself in Heritage Hall, I’d invite you to stop our period office exhibit case in Heritage Hall. Thanks to the generosity of a former Capitol staffer and Lansing area collector, we now have two original chamber laylight tiles on display!
We think that these two tiles are probably from the House. They were removed in the mid 1960s and discarded during the 1964 chamber gutting remodel. Thankfully, members of the Capitol community recognized their value and saved several, which have since passed from person to person throughout the years. This pair eventually ended up in the possession of Don Cooper, who recently placed them on loan to the Capitol.
The tiles are beautiful—and very big! It’s been hard for many of us to wrap our minds around their size compared to what we think we see in the chambers. As you view them, keep two things in mind. First, most of us are used to seeing the chamber laylight tiles from nearly twenty feet away in the gallery. Second, our modern tiles are a few inches smaller, due to the introduction of some perimeter air venting during the 1987-1992 restoration.
If you like pairs of beautiful antiques, please visit the west wing of the fourth floor! This area is now home to two more beautifully reconstructed walnut bookcases. You can learn their stories by reading the exhibit panels tucked inside, or by visiting our Special Exhibits website. And if you like old state documents, be sure to peruse both sides of the shelves. We have some publications from as early as the 1860s tucked inside. These are exactly the types of documents that the old west wing state library collected.
We would be remiss if we also didn’t take the opportunity to acknowledge and thank the talented men behind both of these projects—the Senate Carpentry Shop! Their talented team of woodworkers and finishers designed the custom frames holding the antique skylights, and the beautiful fourth floor bookcases. We literally could not have done either project without them!