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By Bobbi Martin SPECIAL TO THE ENTERPRISE North Carolinians have a chance to record their names in the state's history. In honor of the 150th anniversary of the N. C. Capitol, the public is being invited to endow or acquire classic reproductions of the original 1840 Senate and House chairs. The solid mahogany reproductions, upholstered in black horsehair, are being handcrafted by the Craftique Furniture Company of Mebane. The cost is $590 for Senate chairs and $450 for House chairs. The $140 difference in price is attributed to the fact that the Senate chair has a padded back and a slightly wider seat. Each endowed chair will have an engraved brass plate bearing the name of the person being honored or memorialized. The original desks and chairs in the House and Senate chambers were made by a Raleigh cabinetmaker, William Thompson. Although many still survive, the 1840s chairs are too fragile to remain in the chambers and will be retired to the N. C. Museum of History. During much of the colonial period North Carolina was without a permanent Capitol. Governors lived in their own homes, and legislators moved from place to place, first meeting in private homes, then in courhouses when available. The General Assembly of 1832-33 ordered that a new Capitol be built. It would be a cross-shaped building with a central domed rotunda - parts of it resembling ancient Greek temples. It was a style that was becoming popular in America. The ornamental ironwork, chandeliers, hardware and marble mantels came from Philadelphia, as did the men who shaped the ornamental plaster. By the late 1960s, the Capitol was badly in need of refurbishing. In 1976 The State Capitol Foundation Inc. was formed to take on the responsibility for planning and funding the program of refurnishing, and refitting the governor's office on the first floor, as well as the legislative and other public offices on the second and third floors. Private gifts of money and artifacts have made it possible to return much of the Capitol's interior to its
Capitols, capitals 1722 - Edenton was named the first state capital. 1766 - The capital was moved to New Bern. Tryon Palace was constructed as the governor's residence and Upper House chambers, but an enemy attack during the Revolutionary War changed that. There was no permanent government home until 1796. The palace was neglected, and in 1798 everything except one wing burned to the ground. 1792 - Raleigh became the state capital. 1792-1796 - The first State House was built on Union Square. 1831 - Capitol burned. 1840 - New Capitol completed at a total cost (including furnishings) of $532,682.34, more than three times the annual general income of the state at that time. 1963 - General Assembly moved to the N.C. Legislative Building, the nation's first building exclusively for legislative use. 1971-1976 - Capitol underwent extensive rehabilitation, and the State Capitol Foundation Inc., a nonprofit group, continues to assist the N.C. Division of Archives and History in refurnishing and restoring the Capitol to its original appearance during the 1840-1865 period, including replicating the furniture in the House and Senate chambers.
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government? Buy it
[left column] "This is a limited edition, and only 40 of the 240 chairs are expected to be available for personal purchase. All the replica chairs will eventually become treasured antiques, because no more will be produced." -Marian Dodd
original splendor. Some of furnishings (most noticeably in the governor's office) are more elegant than the originals. some say. Col. John D. Whitford, a state senator from Craven County, occupied one of the original chairs in 1865. His great-great granddaughter, N. C. Representative Mary Long Jarrell, sits in the present House chambers. Her family has already purchased a replica Senate chair. "It's with a great deal of pride that my family can participate and thereby historically preserve my great-great-grandfather's name." Jarrell said. " We have been to the Capitol and stood in the chambers where he served. My husband Harold and I enjoy knowing that our children's children can one day stand there too, fully aware of their North Carolina heritage." Foundation president John L. Sanders says several chairs have already been sponsored. They are on display in the historic legislative chambers, where they are expected to be in service for the next 150 years. Marian Dodd, foundation office manager, says reproductions can also be purchased for private use or as collector's items.
"This is a limited edition and only 40 of the 240 chairs are expected to be available for personal purchase." she said. "All of the replica 1840 chairs will eventually become treasured antiques, because no more will be produced."
To endow a chair, makes checks payable to State Capitol Foundation and mail them to: State Capitol Foundation, 109 E. Jones St., Raleigh, NC 27601-2807
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[photograph of Thad Eure with chairs] (Photo by Gary Jensen) Former Secretary of State Thad Eure with replica chairs Larger, more expensive Senate seat is on the right