Russell Senate Office Building
| Russell Senate Office Building | |
|---|---|
 Main entrance to the Russell Senate Office Building |
|
| Data | |
| place | Washington DC |
| architect | John Carrère |
| Architectural style | Beaux-Arts |
| Construction year | 1903-1908 |
| Coordinates | 38 ° 53 '34 " N , 77 ° 0' 25" W |
The Russell Senate Office Building is the oldest office building of the Senate of the United States and an important building of the Beaux-Arts -Stils. Constructed from 1903 to 1908, the building is located north of the Capitol in Washington, DC
There are both office and committee rooms in the building . The interrogations of several important committees of inquiry took place in it: the one on the sinking of the Titanic in 1912 or the sessions of the Senate Watergate Committee in 1974. The disputes about the nomination of Supreme Court judge Clarence Thomas also took place here in 1991 .
The building originally had 98 office suites and eight committee rooms, and since the addition of the side wing in 1933 a total of 126 office suites and ten committee rooms.
At the turn of the century, the Senate decided that the Capitol would no longer have enough space to accommodate the Senators and their offices. While senators had to rent additional office space privately at this time if they considered it necessary, in 1901 Congress commissioned the then Architect of the Capitol Edward Clark to plan fire-proof office buildings that connected to the Capitol. In 1903 the congress bought the necessary land and gave the green light for construction to begin.
In April 1904, the architects Carrère and Hastings from New York City received the building contract. John Carrère took care of the Senate office building, while Thomas Hastings designed the almost identical Cannon House Office Building of the House of Representatives , which was built at the same time .
Their Beaux Arts buildings followed the architecture of the Capitol, but were designed much more restrained. The colonnades facing the Capitol are framed by 34 Doric columns, with pilasters on the sides of the building . The facades are made of marble and limestone, the first floor of the Russel building has a front of gray granite. The buildings were extremely modern for the time with an air circulation system, individual toilets, hot and cold water, telephones and electricity. It is connected to the Capitol via tunnels and the Congressional Subway .
In 1909 the Senate moved into the building. In 1933 a side wing was built under the supervision of architects Nathan Wyeth and Francis P. Sullivan . Finally in 1972, Congress named the building after former Senator Richard Russell of Georgia .
Following the death of Republican Senator John McCain , Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer proposed that the building be named after McCain in August 2018.
Individual evidence
- ^ A b c d e Russell Senate Office Building. November 15, 2015, accessed November 11, 2017 .
- ↑ Lauren Fox: Schumer wants Senate building named for McCain. In: CNN.com , August 26, 2018.