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Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings

	OLD STATE HOUSE Connecticut
Hartford County, Main Street at Central Row, Hartford. Old State House

Ownership and Administration. City of Hartford.

Significance. Standing among modern office buildings in downtown Hartford, the Old State House is a link with history. The first of numerous public buildings designed by Charles Bulfinch, it is today one of the most carefully restored civic structures of the Federal period. While it served as State Capitol between 1796 and 1879, it was the meeting place of the Hartford Convention, at which some New England States expressed opposition to the War of 1812. From 1879, when a new State Capitol building was completed, until 1915, the Old State House was used as the Hartford City Hall.

Authorized in 1792 by the Connecticut General Assembly, the Old State House was not completed until 1796 because of financial difficulties. Although its excellent proportions and design are typical of the work of Bulfinch, his association with the building was not as intimate as with some of his other structures. It therefore reflects not only his genius, but the skills and talents of local artisans as well. The artist John Trumbull supervised construction. By 1918, when the city of Hartford began a major restoration of the building, the foundations and outer walls were discovered to be in excellent condition, but the wooden beams were replaced with steel ones and steel trusses were added in the roof and cupola.

Designed by Charles Bulfinch and completed in 1796, the Old State House, Connecticut, is an excellent example of Federal-style architecture. It was the meeting place of the Hartford Convention, which opposed U.S. policies during the War of 1812.

Between December 15, 1814, and January 5, 1815, the Hartford Convention met in the Old State House. Called by the Massachusetts Legislature, the immediate result of a dispute between the U.S. Secretary of War and New England Governors over control of New England State militia, the convention was an expression of New England Federalist opposition to the War of 1812 and to Democratic-Republican control of the National Government. Twenty-six delegates attended, sent by the legislatures of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island and scattered Vermont and New Hampshire counties. In the secret debates of the convention, a minority group favored New England's secession from the United States, but the less extreme majority prevailed. The convention adjourned in January 1815 and forwarded a number of resolutions to the New England legislatures urging them to assert themselves against Federal encroachments on the rights of the States. The convention also sent three representatives to Washington bearing proposed constitutional amendments to limit Southern political influence and restrict Federal Government controls. The proposed amendments came to nothing. New England's protests were forgotten with the news of Jackson's victory at New Orleans and the signing of the Treaty of Ghent.

Present Appearance. The Old State House, open to the public as a historic building, measures 120 by 50 feet. The first story is constructed of Portland (Connecticut) freestone, 3 feet thick; the upper story, 2 feet thick, is built of brick, in Flemish bond. The 40-foot wide porticoes on the east and west sides formerly opened into the central corridor, which has since been walled in and doors and windows added; the white-columned portico on the east is one of the building's major architectural features. The balustrade and cupola, though added in 1815 and 1822 respectively, were both probably specified in Bulfinch's original design. In the interior, the staircase that rises on either side of the central corridor, and which has been restored to its original design, has elaborately turned balusters. The Secretary of State's office is situated on the landing. On the first floor are located the Superior Court Chamber, now considerably altered, and executive offices. On the second floor, which best reveals the original design, are the Senate and House Chambers.

NHL Designation: 12/19/60