Senate Reception Room
(Third Floor)
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Located in the Bulfinch Front, the Senate Reception Room originally served as the Senate Chamber. Following the completion of the Brigham addition of 1895, the Senate moved across the hall to the former House of Representatives chamber, and the House relocated to its present chamber.
Most of the elegant Bulfinch features may still be seen here. The four Ionic columns supporting the barrel-vaulted ceiling are the only original columns standing in the Bulfinch Front today. Each was carved from a single pine tree.
The paintings lining the walls of the Reception Room portray some former Senate presidents, including Calvin Coolidge and Horace Mann. This room is now used for conferences and occasional receptions.
Notable facts
- Some of the engaged columns in the Senate Reception Room (those embedded in the wall) filled in the spaces left when fireplaces were removed following the installation of central heating in the 1860s.
- The face of the State House has changed with fashion. The original red brick was painted white in 1825, yellow in the mid-1800's to match a new addition, and white again in 1917. When most of the other historic buildings in Boston had been restored to their natural brick hue, the State House finally followed suit in 1927.