Not all secrets are about people.  Sometimes, buildings hold secrets and only make themselves known to very few.  Our own state capitol holds such secrets, but not all of them need to remain undisclosed.

One such secret is the tour of the interior of the capitol dome.  It’s not a public tour, but for those of us who have had the privilege of working in leadership offices, and have been around since before term-limits were enacted, we had the rare opportunity to experience that harrowing tour to the top.

While the tour I was fortunate enough to experience was long ago, there are a few aspects of it that I’ll never forget.  First, the rickety, narrow staircase that was between the skin of the dome and the rotunda wall.  The one safety feature it had was a very old handrail. One of my colleagues that I was with was terrified of heights and given the shaky stairs, and the thought that you could fall under the handrail, he regretted taking that first step because there was no turning back.  There wasn’t any room for it.  But, before you could even access those stairs, we had to go through a sliding door that I only later learned was named “the guillotine.”  But, as is the case with most challenges, the frightening trek resulted in incredible rewards.

At the top of the stairs was a platform where you could stand and see the capitol ceiling, which seemed to float in place.  The blue sky and golden starred ceiling that you see when you’re standing on the glass rotunda floor and looking up into the dome is actually suspended from the top.  There was also a signature book located on the platform for all of those that were brave enough to get up there to sign. 

The capitol dome has since undergone renovations so some of the elements of the tour that I remember may no longer exist.  Additionally, it was determined in 2015 that tours of the interior would no longer be allowed due to safety concerns – I’m pretty sure those stairs had something to do with it! With the tour now being banned, I am even more grateful that I was able to see this one secret of many that the Capitol holds within her walls.

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