This week, an antique chandelier in the Missouri State Capitol received a modern upgrade.
The several-thousand-pound brass fixture, which hangs in the state house rotunda, was lowered to the ground Monday as workers set about replacing some of its current lights with new LED bulbs. The renovation is part of a broader effort to improve lighting throughout the Capitol, a project that began in September and is scheduled to wrap up before the end of the year.
The ornate chandelier, nearly a century old, is the largest of the more than two dozen that dot the Capitol’s various halls, chambers and lounges. It was built in 1918 by a St. Louis lighting company to adorn the recently-constructed seat of Missouri’s state government. The state house itself is only a bit older — after the previous structure burned down in 1911, a new Capitol was completed in the same location six years later.
Work on the chandelier finished Wednesday. Other Capitol lighting upgrades include:
- New LED lights in public areas, storage spaces, basement and the guard tower
- New LED lights in the Senate and House chambers, as well as each chamber’s viewing gallery and lounge
- Upgraded dimming systems in each chamber
- New LED lights for the dome, pathways and centaur fountain on the Capitol grounds
As always, the Missouri State Capitol, which features historic paintings and a museum of state history on the ground level, is open to the public. Stop by and enjoy a bit of Missouri history.