Our visit in Sulphur, LA was over and we moved on to Livingston, LA. Our spot at Lakeside RV Resort was right on the lake and I really enjoyed the view.
The geese were not shy at all and interesting to watch.
With all the moisture in the south the mornings are frequently foggy but waking up to this sight was so beautiful as the fog swirled on the lake.
A nice way to start the day. We were on our way to Baton Rogue.
I had heard how fabulous the Old Louisiana State Capitol was. It has now been turned into a museum but none of the displays hide how outstanding it is.
Yes, it looks like a castle. On September 21, 1847, the city of Baton Rouge donated to the state of Louisiana a $20,000 parcel of land for a state capitol building. The land donated by the city for the capitol stands high atop a bluff facing the Mississippi River.
The amazing state house is one of the most distinguished examples of Gothic Revival architecture in the United States. Designed by architect James Harrison Dakin, its floorplan, towers, exterior stained glass windows and gables give it the appearance of a 15th-century Gothic Cathedral.
The artist of the white, marble lions that flank the steps is unknown. I thought they were magnificent.
The circular windows have inset foils. There are many different shaped and colored windows in the structure.
As you enter the interior the main circular staircase gives a hint of the grandeur of the building. It gives an impressive entrance to the rotunda above.
The majesty of the three story sky-lit rotunda is gradually revealed.
There are no words to describe this elaborate sight. At first I thought "this is like being in a cathedral" then I changed my mind..........."this is like being in the middle of Mardi Gras".
When the Capitol was originally built it did not have the stunning spiral staircase or the astonishing stained glass.
In 1862, during the Civil War, the Union Army took possession of the Capitol. At first it was used as a prison.
Then it was used to garrison the African-American troops under General Culver Grover. While being used as a garrison the building caught fire twice. (The volunteer's words were " I don't know what those hooligan's were doing but they were destructive". The Confederacy vs the Yankee's is still alive and well in Louisiana.) The fires transformed Louisiana's capitol into an empty gutted shell abandoned by the Union Army.
After the Civil War ended in 1865 the building was returned to Louisiana and the legislature appropriated money to rebuild in 1880. William A. Freret was placed in charge of the reconstruction. Under Freret, the capitol's famous spiral staircase and stained glass dome were added, as well as a fourth floor. The above room was the Senate Chambers. Who could think of politics in such an elegant room? Especially when the sun would stream through the windows.
The end walls of the Senate Chamber have these pretty windows.
This is in the House Chamber. It is being renovated and I am sure it will be every bit as attractive as the Senate.
If you visit the Old Capitol don't miss “The Ghost of the Castle.” It is a one-of-a-kind four-dimensional theatrical production, complete with storms, fires, war and you come face to face with the ghost of Sarah Morgan, a Civil War-era Baton Rouge resident who loved the capitol that was often called a castle from the day it was built and wrote about it in her published book, Sarah Morgan: The Civil War Diary of a Southern Woman. Sarah’s ghost conjures the building’s remarkable trials through history, showcasing the determination of everyday Louisianans who have saved the castle time and time again. With floating images from the past surrounding the room, this presentation entertains you and again reaffirms that the South still would like to present the "correct" version of history.
In one of the wings there are several busts displayed like this one of Napoleon.
But, the George Washington space is empty prompting Walt to ask the volunteer where he was. During the Civil War it was stolen by the Union Soldiers and taken up North. After the war is was shipped back to New Orleans and stored in a warehouse. The warehouse burned and the bust was gone leaving the pedestal empty.
There was a lot of Louisiana political information to review. Louisiana politics is a controversial yet interesting topic. Enough said. But, I do wonder if Huey Long cringes at the state of I10 through Louisiana. Pretty bad shape in 2016.
The refurbished statehouse remained in use until 1932, when it was abandoned for the new Louisiana State Capitol building. True to Louisiana politics this was controversial too.
The State Capitol is one of the foremost examples of the art deco design which was popular in the 1930s. The building stands 450 feet tall (34 floors,) making it the tallest capitol in the United States.
The Louisiana State Capitol is often thought of as "Huey Long's monument" due to the influence of the former Governor and U.S. Senator in getting the capitol built. On September 8, 1935, Huey Long was assassinated in a corridor in the Capitol. We did not visit the interior of the building. I was still processing the situation with the politics in Louisiana and Walt was trying to recover from a bad cold so we called it a day.
"One of these days the people of Louisiana are going to get good government - and they aren't going to like it."
Huey Long