The "New" Illinois State Capitol in Springfield

The moment we arrived in Springfield Illinois, we went right to the "new" Capitol.  New as in, it was built right after the Civil War.  It is the current Capitol building too!  Barack Obama spent a lot of time here!

Also, this was one of the main things we wanted to see that we missed on our previous visits.  This was priority #1 this time.

Well, we arrived.  I think for a bucks worth of quarters we were able to park for two hours close by.  We went on in.

There is a small help desk and we asked about tours.  A very friendly fellow (and I did not catch his name) let us know that the building was open for self guided tours, BUT, formal tours had been cancelled as of a couple of hours earlier!

AND, that was fine with us.  Sometimes exploring on your own is the way to see a building like this....  moving at your own pace.

PLUS, the man at the front desk ended up telling us several stories about the building, Abraham Lincoln, and Springfield in general  THAT was more interesting than a tour to us!


We circled each of the buildings four floors, checking out the great paintings, noticing references to Lincoln and Grant.  The nice man at the front desk talked to me some time about a great painting of US Grant in Cairo- in the southern part of the state.  I have actually been through there in my travels.

This is one ornate capitol.  My wife declared it her favorite of the ones we have visited.  I MIGHT agree with her, though I am very fond of Vermont and South Carolina.

Check out my photos!