U.S. Capitol Building, Washington, DC

It was recently discovered (2005) that slaves made up more than half of the workforce when the U.S. Congress authorized the construction a new national capital building in 1790. Records confirm that slaves did much of the brickmaking, hauling, foundation-digging, masonry, nail-making and carpentry involved in the contruction of the Capitol, the White House, the Treasury Department and the streets that surround them.

In fact, slaves worked not only as laborers but also as operators and managers of the quarry and lumber mill that provided the main construction materials. In the early 1860s, one slave, Philip Reid, ran the foundry and managed the slaves who cast the 19-foot, 7-ton bronze statue of Freedom atop the Capitol’s dome.

Statue of Freedom, U.S. Capitol Dome [Click on Image To Enlarge]

   

U.S. Capitol
441 4th Street NW
Washington, DC 20002
Phone: (202) 226-8000
Official Website: www.visitthecapitol.gov
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