document_title: South Lawn (White House)

question_text: what kind of grass is at the white house

text: South Lawn (White House)

text: Description and use[edit]

text: The South Lawn presents a long north-south vista from the house. Open to the public until the Second World War, it is now a closed part of the White House grounds that provides a setting for official events like the State Arrival Ceremony as well as informal gatherings including the annual White House Egg Rolling Contest and staff barbecues. Marine One, the presidential helicopter, departs from and lands on the South Lawn.

text: Design and horticulture[edit]

text: When the White House was first occupied in 1800 the site of the South Lawn was an open meadow gradually descending to a large marsh, the Tiber Creek, and Potomac River beyond.[1] Thomas Jefferson completed grading of the South Lawn, building up mounds on either side of a central lawn. Jefferson, working with architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe located a triumphal arch as a main entry point to the grounds, just southeast of the White House.[2] Pierre-Charles L'Enfant's 1793 plan of the city of Washington, indicates a setting of terraced formal gardens descending to Tiber Creek. Later in 1850, landscape designer Andrew Jackson Davis attempted to soften the geometry of the L'Enfant plan, incorporating a semicircular southern boundary and meandering paths.[3] Andrew Jackson Davis's changes included enlarging the South Lawn, creating a large circular lawn he termed the "Parade or President's Park" and bordered by densely planted shrubs and trees.[4] During the administration of Ulysses S. Grant the marsh to the south was drained, and the South Lawn received additional grading and 8 to 10 feet of fill to make the descent to the Potomac more gradual.[5]

text: During the administrations of Rutherford B. Hayes and (the first of) Grover Cleveland the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers were engaged to reconfigure the South Lawn, reducing the size of Downing's circular parade, and creating the current boundaries much as they presently are.[6] Theodore Roosevelt who had engaged the architectural firm of McKim, Mead, and White to reconfigure and rebuild parts of the White House in 1902, was influenced to remove the complex of Victorian era glass houses built up the West Colonnade and the site of the present West Wing. In 1934, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt engaged Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. to evaluate the grounds and recommend changes. Olmsted understood the need to offer presidents and their families a modicum of privacy balancing with the requirement for public views of the White House.[5] The Olmsted plan presented the landscape largely as seen today: retaining or planting large specimen trees and shrubs on the perimeter to create boundaries for visual privacy, but punctuated with generous sight lines of the house from north and south.[7] The lawn is planted with a grass variety called tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea). [8]

text: Specimen trees[edit]

text: Trees on the South Lawn include the earliest remaining trees on the grounds to have been planted by a United States president – President Andrew Jackson's southern magnolias (Magnolia grandiflora) on either side of the South portico, Japanese threadleaf maple (Acer palmatum dissectum), American elm (Ulmus americana), white oak (Quercus alba), white saucer magnolia (Magnolia × soulangeana), Atlas cedar (Cedrus atlantica), sugar maple (Acer saccharum), and northern red oak (Quercus rubra).[9]

text: Seasonal plantings[edit]

text: The South Lawn pool and fountain is planted seasonally with borders of tulips edged by grape hyacinth (Muscari armeniacum) for spring, red geranium (Pelargonium) and Dusty Miller (Senecio cineraria) in summer, and chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum cinerariaefolium) in fall.[10]

text: Amenities[edit]

text: Ceremonial gardens[edit]

text: The two ceremonial gardens of the White House (the Rose Garden and the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden) face the South Lawn. The Rose Garden (sometimes referred to as "The Presidents Garden") is located south-west of the main residence along the west colonnade, just outside the Oval Office. The Jacqueline Kennedy Garden is located south-east of the main residence along the east colonnade. The garden was dedicated by Lady Bird Johnson as the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden on April 22, 1965, although it has been called the "First Lady's Garden" by some later administrations.

text: Tennis court/basketball court[edit]

text: A tennis court was first installed during the Theodore Roosevelt administration on the south lawn. Since then, the court has been moved several times, eventually landing in its current position in the south-west area. President Obama had basketball court lines and removable baskets installed so he could play full court basketball. Located just west of the tennis/basketball court is a half-court basketball area that also housed a horseshoe pit.

text: Swimming pool[edit]

text: The pool was installed in 1975 by President Gerald Ford. It is located directly south of the West Wing. The original pool at The White House was indoors, located in between the main residence and the West Wing, however President Nixon turned it into an area for the press.

text: Putting green[edit]

text: The putting green was first installed in 1954 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower who was an avid golfer. It was removed by President Nixon[11] and later reinstalled by President George H. W. Bush in 1991.[12] However President Clinton moved it to its current location just south of the Rose Garden, a short walk from the Oval Office.[13]

text: Children's garden[edit]

text: The children's garden is located between the tennis court and basketball court to the south-west area of the property. The garden was a gift to the White House in 1968 from President Johnson and his wife. The garden supplies a secluded location for children to play in private. The garden features a goldfish pond in the sitting area. Footprints and handprints of various President's children and grandchildren are embedded in various stones making up the walkway.

text: Helicopter landing area[edit]

text: The south lawn provides space for the Presidents helicopter, Marine One, to land directly on the White House grounds. The helicopter will take off and land in the grassy area directly south of the main residence. For aesthetic reasons, the lawn does not contain a full helipad, but rather three removable aluminum discs which accommodate the helicopter's individual landing gear.

text: 1974 White House helicopter incident[edit]

text: The climax of the 1974 White House helicopter incident occurred on the South Lawn.[14]

text: Running track[edit]

text: President Clinton had a quarter-mile long jogging track installed during his presidency in 1993. An avid runner, Clinton would regularly want to go on runs, but his doing so greatly disrupted Washington traffic; thus the track was built.

text: Playground[edit]

text: A playground was installed in 2009 under President Obama for his two children Sasha and Malia Obama. The playground is located just south of the Oval Office.

text: Vegetable garden[edit]

text: Michelle Obama installed a vegetable garden during her husband's Presidency on the far south area of the property. The vegetables grown are used at the White House for meals as well as donated to area shelters. The Obamas also installed a beehive on the south lawn.


document_title: List of The Magic School Bus characters

question_text: what is the name of the teacher in the magic school bus

root

text: List of The Magic School Bus characters

text: Main characters[edit]

text: The school is known as Walkerville Elementary, named for the fictional town of Walkerville, where it is located. The original book series had a larger number of students in Ms. Frizzle's class (19 instead of 8); 11 characters were omitted from the TV adaptation, the TV tie-in books, and the CD-ROM series.

tag: p

text: Ms. Frizzle[edit]

text: Valerie[1] Felicity[2] Frizzle is a third grade teacher at Walkerville Elementary. She is normally referred to as Ms. Frizzle, but her students often call her "The Friz". While she is eccentric and somewhat strange, The Friz is intelligent, kind, resourceful, happy, funny, supportive, loving and somewhat motherly. She loves making jokes revolving around the lesson she teaches, even if she is the only one laughing. She makes flamboyant entrances to start the class, causing some to remark "How does she do that?" A redhead, she wears wacky clothing that reflects the subject of each adventure and earrings that glow before a field trip begins. She usually winks before the earrings glow (in the original books, her dress on the last page usually hinted at the plot of the next book; the very last book sees it covered with question marks.) She enjoys singing, seems unafraid of danger, and often refers to her relatives or ancestors during trips. She can make a lot of jokes like Carlos, and she also admires Carlos' jokes. She appears to be very attached to the bus, almost as if having a nostalgic connection to it. She also loves to surprise the students and although she denies that she knows everything, she seems to never be in the dark about her students' activities. To Arnold, she is strange, but he and his friends still love and respect her. Some of Ms. Frizzle's ongoing catchphrases are, "Bus, do your stuff!", "Take chances, make mistakes, get messy!", "As I always say...", "Hit it Liz!" and most notably, "WAHOOOOO!"

text: She will appear in The Magic School Bus Rides Again as Professor Frizzle, with Tomlin once again providing her voice.

text: Liz[edit]

text: The class pet Jackson's Chameleon who goes on most of the field trips with Ms. Frizzle and the students, often getting herself into dangerous comedic situations. She appears to get jealous when the bus receives more attention than she does. In the episode "Gets Ants In Its Pants", she is visibly annoyed and disappointed when she does not get the recognition she deserves.

text: Liz is mute, but often does things that one would not expect from a chameleon in real life, such as driving the bus. When she goes to Herp Haven for a brief period her packing list includes claw polish, scale moisturizer and fang-paste. If Ms. Frizzle has to leave the students for a brief period for any reason, or if the class must split up, she leaves Liz in charge, acting as a sort of substitute teacher. In "In a Pickle", she is the supposed "Judge" in Ms. Frizzle's trial for stealing Keesha's 1st prize cucumber/turning it into a pickle (she wears the wig, and the outfit, and carries the gavel).

text: While Liz does not speak on the show, she speaks in the CD-ROMs (although it appears that only the player can hear her). She is also seen at the end of most episodes with the producers of The Magic School Bus.

text: Arnold Perlstein[edit]

text: Arnold is a bespectacled Jewish American boy. He is often seen as somewhat of a coward but is actually braver than he's given credit for (in "The Busasaurus," he scares off a T. Rex to save the class). Arnold also inspires the class with ideas and they call him a genius. In the episode "Shows and Tells," he mentions that his great-aunt is the famous archaeologist Arizona Joan, a parody of Indiana Jones. In spite of his dislike of Ms. Frizzle's wacky field trips, he is on several occasions fiercely loyal to the teacher herself, as in "Lost in Space" where he defends her against his cousin Janet. Another example of this is in "In a Pickle" where he acts as a lawyer for Ms. Frizzle, taking his job almost too seriously. He has an intense interest in and knowledge of rocks and minerals and an extensive rock collection. Because of this, he becomes the only child to be a member of GRANITE, the Great Rock Admirers' National Institute of Tectonics Experts ("Goes Cellular"). In "Cracks a Yolk," he and Dorothy Ann share the only kiss on the series when she kisses him on the cheek. It is implied in the episodes "For Lunch" and "Holiday Special" that he has a crush on Wanda and vice versa, but in "Wet All Over," he has a crush on a girl in another class named Tiffany. It's also hinted in "The Busasaurus" that Phoebe has a crush on him as well. In "Goes to Seed" he mentions he's allergic to pepper and pollen. In some of the books and on the TV series, Arnold has orange hair, but he has blond hair in the computer games and other books. His middle name is mentioned in Ms. Frizzle's Adventures: Medieval Castle. In most episodes, he usually says "I knew I should have stayed home today", or a variant of it. He has a bossy, rude, & know-it-all cousin named Janet. Also in "Gets Lost In Space" Arnold nearly dies in space because Janet is trying to fit stuff she collected into the bus that can't fit and Arnold removes his helmet to show her what would happen to her if she stayed on Pluto with her belongings, but due to this being a kids show, the producers instead had him catch a cold.

text: Carlos Ramon[edit]

text: Carlos is the Mexican American class clown, always making a pun or joke about whatever situation the class is in. He is a hands-on learner, preferring to invent unique devices, such as an instrument or rain catcher, rather than learn from a book like Dorothy Ann. Carlos tries to be funny by telling several jokes, but they often backfire and cause the kids to groan "Carlos!" in an aggravated manner. By contrast, Ms. Frizzle seems to enjoy his jokes, sometimes even complimenting him on being observant in the process of making them up. He is kind and outgoing, but he can have a bossy side as well. Despite this, Carlos is good-hearted and has a brotherly instinct about him. In "The Magic School Bus Going Batty", his father also makes puns, to which the other kids' parents would respond, "Mr. Ramon!" also in unison. In the episode called "Get Ready, Set, Dough," Carlos has the responsibility of making chocolate cake for Ms. Frizzle's birthday. In "Getting Energized" he entertains a crowd and can even do impressions of Arnold Schwarzenegger. In one of the producer segments, one of the kids points out that Carlos's bad puns must come from the producers as heard in one of the phone calls.

text: Dorothy Ann[edit]

text: Dorothy Ann is the Australian-American class bookworm, always looking for a fact in one of her many books and is the brains of the class. She is usually called "D.A." by the others. She always carries her pink messenger bag, which holds her books. In the episode "Blows its Top," Dorothy Ann loses her books, but realizes she does not need them to learn about facts. She appears to love astronomy, especially in "Out of This World" and "Sees Stars", where she is shown to have a telescope. In "Sees Stars", D.A. is celebrating her birthday, but she is sick and stays home that day, making her the second and last student after Ralphie to be sick in one episode. She appears to enjoy physics as well, as she is seen with a physics book in "Plays Ball." She usually wears her blond hair in pigtails tied in red hairbands, and in the episode "Goes On Air," she takes off her hair ties, her pigtails staying in place (as pointed out by Arnold). In the beginning of "Out of This World," she has a nightmare about an asteroid crashing into her school and in the climax, she is the captain of the ship and she has her own ideas to save our planet. Dorothy Ann's last name has never been mentioned in canon, the books or the TV show. It's also revealed that she has a little sister named Evan. She is one of three kids known to have siblings, the other two being Carlos and Wanda. When reading about different facts, D.A. usually begins by saying, "According to my research..."

text: Keesha Franklin[edit]

text: Keesha is an African American girl who is considered to be the most level-headed and realistic student in the class. She is usually the most sarcastic one as well. Because of her skepticism, she often argues with Ralphie, who tends to live in his imagination more than in real life. She is the only person to participate in every single field trip. When a situation went poorly, Keesha would often say, "Oh bad. Oh bad. Oh bad, bad, bad!" Her other catchphrase is, "Let's get the facts!" Keesha takes dance lessons.

text: Phoebe Terese[edit]

text: Phoebe is the new student in Ms. Frizzle's class, and she's also an Irish-American girl who often refers to how things were at her old school (which is actually called "Phoebe's Old School," as seen in "Goes to Seed"). The caring soul of the class, Phoebe is sweet, gentle, kind, and a little bit shy as her biggest fear is stage fright, shown in the episode "Gets Planted." Phoebe is an animal activist, as seen in "All Dried Up," "Cold Feet," "Spins a Web," "Goes Upstream," "Ups and Downs," and "Getting Energized." Her love of animals also includes bugs ("Butterfly and Bog Beast," "Spins a Web"). She has shown a poor ability in growing plants (not growing one herself in "Goes to Seed" and growing a pitiful bean plant in "Gets Planted"). Her father is blind as seen in "Going Batty," and like her, he makes references about her old school. Phoebe's mother is never seen or mentioned in the show. In the episode "The Busasaurus", it is hinted she has a crush on Arnold by quoting "Gee, what a guy!" when he tries to save Dr. Skeledon's dinosaur egg from an Ornithomimus. Phoebe is usually paired up with Arnold the most out of all the other classmates in various situations. In the original books, her parents are never mentioned or seen, and it's implied she's being raised by her grandparents (The Magic School Bus In the Time of the Dinosaurs and The Magic School Bus and the Electric Field Trip).

text: Ralphie Tennelli[edit]

text: Ralphie is the Italian American class athlete. While in class, he likes to daydream. He is the only field trip student to wear a baseball cap. He plays a lot of sports, including soccer, basketball, hockey, and baseball. Ralphie is Italian, mentioning in the episode "Ups and Downs" that his mother's calzones "go down like rocks". He has a distaste for anchovies, which, as he tells the class in "Gets Eaten," his dad puts on pizza to keep him from eating it. He often serves as the leader of the students, despite a tendency to jump to wrong conclusions (as seen in "Goes Batty") and ignore better judgment (as seen in "In the City"). He also occasionally rivals Carlos when it comes to jokes. His catchphrases are "Is it just me, or..." and "I think I'm gonna be sick".

text: Timothy "Tim"[edit]

text: Tim, like Keesha, is African American, and is the most observant and artistic student. He can usually be found documenting what the class is doing, either by drawing or filming them, such as Liz posing on a crater on Mercury, his Ralphie-inspired comic book The Adventures of Weatherman, and getting footage of the swamp for evidence to argue Carlos's case. His grandfather owns a honey bee farm outside of Walkerville, and as a small job, Tim delivers the honey at the start of winter. Like Dorothy Ann, his last name is never mentioned in canon (the books or the TV show). He is known to say "We've been Frizzled!"

text: Wanda Li[edit]

text: Wanda Li is the toughest and most boisterous Chinese American tomboy and the smallest member of the class. Always willing to jump into adventure and going where "no kid has gone before," she serves as a foil to Arnold. She wants to solve all problems that face her. Despite her tough exterior, she loves ballet, especially The Nutcracker ("Holiday Special"). Wanda's favorite singer is Molly Cule (a play on the word molecule), and, like Ralphie, she loves sports. Despite coming across as brash and bossy, she truly does care about her friends, such as in "Holiday Special," where she is disappointed that Arnold could not come along to see The Nutcracker due to his grandmother being ill. Wanda has black hair and fair skin. She wears a maroon vest, decorated with yellow flowers, over a pink t-shirt with matching maroon pants, white socks and black Mary Jane shoes. In some of the later books, her last name is Chen, as opposed to Li (which it is on the TV series), and she has an older brother named Henry, whereas on the TV series, she only has a younger brother, William. When the class is in a problematic situation, Wanda usually cries, "What are we gonna do? What are we gonna do? What are we gonna do?" Her other catch phrase is "Come on, you weasley wimps!"

text: The Bus[edit]

text: The bus is "very unusual" and sometimes seems to have a mind of its own. It is capable of shrinking and expanding, as well as transforming itself into many kinds of items, most commonly as robotic animals in order to blend in with the environment in safari-type field trips. When it shrinks, so do its passengers, and occasionally, when the bus returns to its normal size when something was left behind, the other item is set back to normal too ("Gets Eaten").

text: It is usually completely under Ms. Frizzle's or Liz's control, although in certain episodes the bus exhibits independent, even irrational, behavior: in "The Magic School Gets Ready, Set, Dough," the bus malfunctions and shrinks in size despite Ms. Frizzle trying to fix it. In "The Magic School Bus Holiday Special", the bus disassembles itself into raw materials (while scowling), after having done so to several other structures (though Wanda did angrily slam her fists in the bus's hood before it self-disassembled); and in "The Magic School Bus In The City", the bus, after becoming a bear, wanders off from the class into the city looking for food.

text: Its abilities are due to unspecified, magical additions, the origins of which are never fully explained, although it would appear that the new components are subtle enough to avoid attracting much attention from outsiders as the bus is often seen undergoing inspection without anyone commenting on its additions. The Bus is capable of transforming into multiple objects, ranging from a speck of pollen to a time machine to a small planet. It is interesting to note that some of the bus' technologies also have specific names. For example, the device that allows the bus to shapeshift is called the "Mesmerglober", and the device that allows it to change size is called the "Shrinkerscope", (a portable version is called the Porta-shrinker). Another device is called the Apidemonflemonjab, which is what caused the bus to malfunction in "Gets Ready, Set, Dough." Its exact function is never specified.

text: In some transformations, the bus itself comes in different colors, such as it turning green when it turned into an alligator. The dew-dinger is the device used to indicate whether the Shrinkerscope is wet, in which case it won't work. Some episodes have featured the class having to deal with problems in the Bus itself, such as a field trip to a bakery being jeopardized when the bus shrank unexpectedly, and another trip requiring the class to shrink down and travel through the bus itself after its engine was clogged by an inspector's peanut butter sandwich.

text: Janet[edit]

text: Janet is Arnold's know-it-all, conceited cousin. She is very unpopular among the class, though she did manage to manipulate them into siding with her (and turning on Phoebe) when it came to naming the school mascot ("Butterfly and the Bog Beast"). Janet is so self-seeking that she usually tries to digress the class in some way to gain something for herself. She at first didn't believe Arnold's stories about his field trips until she went with the class and realizes that it's all true. She initially appeared in the book The Magic School Bus Lost in the Solar System, where it was stated she went to another school, but on the TV series, she attends a different class instead of a different school. Janet seems to be an only child, as Arnold mentions that she is his only cousin in "Butterfly and the Bog Beast."

text: She made nine appearances in the series & video games:

text:
"Gets Lost In Space"
"Butterfly and the Bog Beast"
"Gets a Bright Idea"
"Goes Upstream"
"Works Out"
"Gets Swamped"
"Sees Stars"
"Makes a Stink"
"The Magic School Bus Rides Again"

tag: ul

text: Relatives[edit]

text: Dorothy Ann's family[edit]

text: The Li family[edit]

text: The Ramon family[edit]

text: The Franklins, Tennellis, Tereses, and Perlsteins[edit]

text: Tim's family[edit]

text: They appeared in "Going Batty", but in a non-speaking part (outside of joining the other parents in scolding Carlos' father).

text: He owns an apiary outside of Walkerville.

text: Others[edit]


document_title: United States Capitol

question_text: when did us capitol moved to washington dc

text: United States Capitol

text: History[edit]

text: Background[edit]

text: Prior to establishing the nation's capital in Washington, D.C., the United States Congress and its predecessors had met in Philadelphia (Independence Hall and Congress Hall), New York City (Federal Hall), and a number of other locations (York, Pennsylvania; Lancaster, Pennsylvania; Maryland State House in Annapolis, Maryland; and Nassau Hall in Princeton, New Jersey).[2] In September 1774, the First Continental Congress brought together delegates from the colonies in Philadelphia, followed by the Second Continental Congress, which met from May 1775 to March 1781.

text: After adopting the Articles of Confederation in York, Pennsylvania, the Congress of the Confederation was formed and convened in Philadelphia from March 1781 until June 1783, when a mob of angry soldiers converged upon Independence Hall, demanding payment for their service during the American Revolutionary War. Congress requested that John Dickinson, the Governor of Pennsylvania, call up the militia to defend Congress from attacks by the protesters. In what became known as the Pennsylvania Mutiny of 1783, Dickinson sympathized with the protesters and refused to remove them from Philadelphia. As a result, Congress was forced to flee to Princeton, New Jersey, on June 21, 1783,[3] and met in Annapolis, Maryland, and Trenton, New Jersey, before ending up in New York City.

text: The United States Congress was established upon ratification of the United States Constitution and formally began on March 4, 1789. New York City remained home to Congress until July 1790,[4] when the Residence Act was passed to pave the way for a permanent capital. The decision to locate the capital was contentious, but Alexander Hamilton helped broker a compromise in which the federal government would take on war debt incurred during the American Revolutionary War, in exchange for support from northern states for locating the capital along the Potomac River. As part of the legislation, Philadelphia was chosen as a temporary capital for ten years (until December 1800), until the nation's capital in Washington, D.C., would be ready.[5]

text: Pierre (Peter) Charles L'Enfant was given the task of creating the city plan for the new capital city.[6] L'Enfant chose Jenkin's Hill as the site for the "Congress House", with a "grand avenue" (now Pennsylvania Avenue, NW) connecting it with the President's House, and a public space containing a broader "grand avenue" (now the National Mall) stretching westward to the Potomac River (see: L'Enfant Plan).[7][8]

text: Name[edit]

text: In reviewing L'Enfant's plan, Thomas Jefferson insisted the legislative building be called the "Capitol" rather than "Congress House".[7] The word "Capitol" comes from Latin and is associated with the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus on Capitoline Hill, one of the seven hills of Rome.[9][10] The connection between the two is not, however, crystal clear.[11] In addition to coming up with a city plan, L'Enfant had been tasked with designing the Capitol and President's House; however, he was dismissed in February 1792 over disagreements with President George Washington and the commissioners, and there were no plans at that point for the Capitol.[12]

text: Design competition[edit]

text: In spring 1792, United States Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson proposed a design competition to solicit designs for the Capitol and the "President's House", and set a four-month deadline. The prize for the competition was $500 and a lot in the Federal City. At least ten individuals submitted designs for the Capitol; however the drawings were regarded as crude and amateurish, reflecting the level of architectural skill present in the United States at the time.[13] The most promising of the submissions was by Stephen Hallet, a trained French architect.[14] However, Hallet's designs were overly fancy, with too much French influence, and were deemed too costly.[15]

text: A late entry by amateur architect William Thornton was submitted on January 31, 1793, to much praise for its "Grandeur, Simplicity, and Beauty" by Washington, along with praise from Thomas Jefferson. Thornton was inspired by the east front of the Louvre, as well as the Paris Pantheon for the center portion of the design.[16][17] Thornton's design was officially approved in a letter dated April 5, 1793, from Washington, and Thornton served as the first Architect of the Capitol (and later first Superintendent of the United States Patent Office).[18] In an effort to console Hallet, the commissioners appointed him to review Thornton's plans, develop cost estimates, and serve as superintendent of construction. Hallet proceeded to pick apart and make drastic changes to Thornton's design, which he saw as costly to build and problematic.[19] In July 1793, Jefferson convened a five-member commission, bringing Hallet and Thornton together, along with James Hoban (winning architect of the "President's Palace") to address problems with and revise Thornton's plan. Hallet suggested changes to the floor plan, which could be fitted within the exterior design by Thornton.[20][21] The revised plan was accepted, except that Secretary Jefferson and President Washington insisted on an open recess in the center of the East front, which was part of Thornton's original plan.[22]

text: The original design by Thornton was later modified by the famous British-American architects Benjamin Henry Latrobe, Sr., and then Charles Bulfinch.[23] The current cast-iron dome and the House's new southern extension and Senate new northern wing were designed by Thomas U. Walter and August Schoenborn, a German immigrant, in the 1850s,[24] and were completed under the supervision of Edward Clark.[25]

text: Construction[edit]

text: L'Enfant secured the lease of quarries at Wigginton Island and along Aquia Creek in Virginia for use in the foundations and outer walls of the Capitol in November 1791.[26] Surveying was under way soon after the Jefferson conference plan for the Capitol was accepted.[20] On September 18, 1793, President George Washington, along with eight other Freemasons dressed in masonic regalia, laid the cornerstone, which was made by silversmith Caleb Bentley.[27][28]

text: Construction proceeded with Hallet working under supervision of James Hoban, who was also busy working on construction of the "President's House" (also later known as the "Executive Mansion"). Despite the wishes of Jefferson and the President, Hallet went ahead anyway and modified Thornton's design for the East Front and created a square central court that projected from the center, with flanking wings which would house the legislative bodies. Hallet was dismissed by Secretary Jefferson on November 15, 1794.[29] George Hadfield was hired on October 15, 1795, as Superintendent of Construction, but resigned three years later in May 1798, because of his dissatisfaction with Thornton's plan and quality of work done thus far.[30]

text: The Senate (north) wing was completed in 1800. The Senate and House shared quarters in the north wing until a temporary wooden pavilion was erected on the future site of the House wing which served for a few years for the Representatives to meet in, until the House of Representatives (south) wing was finally completed in 1811, with a covered wooden temporary walkway connecting the two wings with the Congressional chambers where the future center section with rotunda and dome would eventually be. However, the House of Representatives moved early into their House wing in 1807. Though the Senate wing building was incomplete, the Capitol held its first session of the United States Congress with both chambers in session on November 17, 1800. The National Legislature was moved to Washington prematurely, at the urging of President John Adams, in hopes of securing enough Southern votes in the Electoral College to be re-elected for a second term as President.[31]

text: Early religious use[edit]

text: For several decades, beginning when the federal government moved to Washington in the fall of 1800, the Capitol building was used for Sunday religious services as well as for governmental functions. The first services were conducted in the "hall" of the House in the north wing of the building. In 1801 the House moved to temporary quarters in the south wing, called the "Oven", which it vacated in 1804, returning to the north wing for three years. Then, from 1807 to 1857, they were held in the then-House Chamber (now called Statuary Hall). When held in the House chamber, the Speaker's podium was used as the preacher's pulpit. According to the U.S. Library of Congress exhibit Religion and the Founding of the American Republic:

text: It is no exaggeration to say that on Sundays in Washington during the administrations of Thomas Jefferson (1801–1809) and of James Madison (1809–1817) the state became the church. Within a year of his inauguration, Jefferson began attending church services in the chamber of the House of Representatives. Madison followed Jefferson's example, although unlike Jefferson, who rode on horseback to church in the Capitol, Madison came in a coach and four. Worship services in the House—a practice that continued until after the Civil War—were acceptable to Jefferson because they were nondiscriminatory and voluntary. Preachers of every Protestant denomination appeared. (Catholic priests began officiating in 1826.) As early as January 1806 a female evangelist, Dorothy Ripley, delivered a camp meeting-style exhortation in the House to Jefferson, Vice President Aaron Burr, and a "crowded audience".[32]

text: War of 1812[edit]

text: Not long after the completion of both wings, the Capitol was partially burned by the British on August 24, 1814, during the War of 1812. George Bomford and Joseph Gardner Swift, both military engineers, were called upon to help rebuild the Capitol. Reconstruction began in 1815 and included redesigned chambers for both Senate and House wings (now sides), which were completed by 1819. During the reconstruction, Congress met in the Old Brick Capitol, a temporary structure financed by local investors. Construction continued through to 1826, with the addition of the center section with front steps and columned portico and an interior Rotunda, rising above the first low dome of the Capitol. Latrobe is principally connected with the original construction and many innovative interior features; his successor, Bulfinch, also played a major role, such as the design of the first low dome covered in copper.

text: The House and Senate Wings[edit]

text: By 1850, it became clear that the Capitol could not accommodate the growing number of legislators arriving from newly admitted states. A new design competition was held, and President Millard Fillmore appointed Philadelphia architect Thomas U. Walter to carry out the expansion. Two new wings were added – a new chamber for the House of Representatives on the south side, and a new chamber for the Senate on the north.[33]

text: When the Capitol was expanded in the 1850s, some of the construction labor was carried out by slaves "who cut the logs, laid the stones and baked the bricks".[34] The original plan was to use workers brought in from Europe; however, there was a poor response to recruitment efforts, and African Americans, some free and some enslaved, composed the majority of the work force.[35]

text: Capitol dome[edit]

text: The 1850 expansion more than doubled the length of the Capitol, dwarfing the original, timber-framed, copper-sheeted, low dome of 1818, designed by Charles Bulfinch and no longer in proportion with the increased size of the building. In 1855, the decision was made to tear it down and replace it with the "wedding-cake style" cast-iron dome that stands today. Also designed by Thomas U. Walter, the new dome would stand three times the height of the original dome and 100 feet (30 m) in diameter, yet had to be supported on the existing masonry piers. Like Mansart's dome at "Les Invalides" (which he had visited in 1838), Walter's dome is double, with a large oculus in the inner dome, through which is seen "The Apotheosis of Washington" painted on a shell suspended from the supporting ribs, which also support the visible exterior structure and the tholos that supports The "Statue of Freedom", a colossal statue that was raised to the top of the dome in 1863. This statue was cast by a slave named Philip Reid. The weight of the cast iron for the dome has been published as 8,909,200 pounds (4,041,100 kg).[36]

text: Later expansion[edit]

text: When the Capitol's new dome was finally completed, its massive visual weight, in turn, overpowered the proportions of the columns of the East Portico, built in 1828. The East Front of the Capitol building was rebuilt in 1904, following a design of the architects Carrère and Hastings, who also designed the Russell Senate and Cannon House office buildings.

text: The next major expansion to the Capitol started in 1958, with a 33.5 feet (10.2 m) extension of the East Portico.[citation needed] During this project, in 1960 the dome underwent a restoration.[37] A marble duplicate of the sandstone East Front was built 33.5 feet (10.2 m) from the old Front. (In 1962, a connecting extension incorporated what had been an outside wall as an inside wall.) In the process, the Corinthian columns were removed. It was not until 1984 that landscape designer Russell Page created a suitable setting for them in a large meadow at the U.S. National Arboretum in northeast Washington as the National Capitol Columns, where they are combined with a reflecting pool in an ensemble that reminds some visitors of the ruins of Persepolis, in Persia. Besides the columns, hundreds of blocks of the original stone were removed and are stored behind a National Park Service maintenance yard in Rock Creek Park.[38][39]

text: On December 19, 1960, the Capitol was declared a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service.[40] The building was ranked #6 in a 2007 survey conducted for the American Institute of Architects' "America's Favorite Architecture" list.[41] The Capitol draws heavily from other notable buildings, especially churches and landmarks in Europe, including the dome of St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican and St. Paul's Cathedral in London.[42] On the roofs of the Senate and House Chambers are flagpoles that fly the U.S. flag when either is in session. On September 18, 1993, to commemorate the Capitol's bicentennial, the Masonic ritual cornerstone laying with George Washington was reenacted. U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond was one of the Freemason politicians who took part in the ceremony.

text: On June 20, 2000, ground was broken for the Capitol Visitor Center, which opened on December 2, 2008.[43] From 2001 through 2008, the East Front of the Capitol (site of most presidential inaugurations until Ronald Reagan began a new tradition in 1981) was the site of construction for this massive underground complex, designed to facilitate a more orderly entrance for visitors to the Capitol. Prior to the center being built, visitors to the Capitol had to line up in the basement of the Cannon House Office Building or the Russell Senate Office Building. The new underground facility provides a grand entrance hall, a visitors theater, room for exhibits, and dining and restroom facilities, in addition to space for building necessities such as an underground service tunnel.

text: A large-scale Capitol dome restoration project, the first extensive such work since 1959–1960, began in 2014, with completion scheduled before the 2017 presidential inauguration.[44] As of 2012, $20 million in work around the skirt of the dome had been completed, but other deterioration, including at least 1,300 cracks in the brittle iron that have led to rusting and seepage inside, needed to be addressed. Before the August 2012 recess, the Senate Appropriations Committee voted to spend $61 million to repair the exterior of the dome. The House wanted to spend less on government operations,[37] but in late 2013, it was announced that renovations would take place over two years, starting in spring 2014.[45] Extensive scaffolding was erected in 2014, enclosing and obscuring the dome.[44] All exterior scaffolding was removed by mid-September 2016.[46]

text: Interior[edit]

text: The Capitol building is marked by its central dome above a rotunda in the central section of the structure (which also includes, the older original smaller center flanked by the two original (designed 1793, occupied 1800) smaller two wings (inner north) and inner south) containing the two original smaller meeting chambers for the Senate and the House of Representatives (between 1800 and late 1850s) and then flanked by two further extended (newer) wings, one also for each chamber of the larger, more populous Congress: the new north wing is the Senate chamber and the new south wing is the House of Representatives chamber. Above these newer chambers are galleries where visitors can watch the Senate and House of Representatives. It is an example of the neoclassical architecture style.

text: Underground tunnels and internal subways connect the Capitol building with the Congressional office buildings in the Capitol Complex. All rooms in the Capitol are designated as either S (for Senate) or H (for House), depending on whether they are in the Senate or House wing of the Capitol.

text: Art[edit]

text: The Capitol has a long history in art of the United States, beginning in 1856 with Italian/Greek American artist Constantino Brumidi and his murals in the hallways of the first floor of the Senate side of the Capitol. The murals, known as the Brumidi Corridors,[47] reflect great moments and people in United States history. Among the original works are those depicting Benjamin Franklin, John Fitch, Robert Fulton, and events such as the Cession of Louisiana. Also decorating the walls are animals, insects and natural flora indigenous to the United States. Brumidi's design left many spaces open so that future events in United States history could be added. Among those added are the Spirit of St. Louis, the Moon landing, and the Space Shuttle Challenger shuttle crew.

text: Brumidi also worked within the Rotunda. He is responsible for the painting of The Apotheosis of Washington beneath the top of the dome, and also the famous Frieze of American History.[48] The Apotheosis of Washington was completed in 11 months and painted by Brumidi while suspended nearly 180 feet (55 m) in the air. It is said to be the first attempt by the United States to deify a founding father. Washington is depicted surrounded by 13 maidens in an inner ring with many Greek and Roman gods and goddesses below him in a second ring. The frieze is located around the inside of the base of the dome and is a chronological, pictorial history of the United States from the landing of Christopher Columbus to the Wright Brothers's flight in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The frieze was started in 1878 and was not completed until 1953. The frieze was therefore painted by four different artists: Brumidi, Filippo Costaggini, Charles Ayer Whipple, and Allyn Cox. The final scenes depicted in the fresco had not yet occurred when Brumidi began his Frieze of the United States History.

text: Within the Rotunda there are eight large paintings about the development of the United States as a nation. On the east side are four paintings depicting major events in the discovery of America. On the west are four paintings depicting the founding of the United States. The east side paintings include The Baptism of Pocahontas by John Gadsby Chapman, The Embarkation of the Pilgrims by Robert Walter Weir, The Discovery of the Mississippi by William Henry Powell, and The Landing of Columbus by John Vanderlyn. The paintings on the west side are by John Trumbull: Declaration of Independence, Surrender of General Burgoyne, Surrender of Lord Cornwallis, and General George Washington Resigning His Commission. Trumbull was a contemporary of the United States' founding fathers and a participant in the American Revolutionary War; he painted a self-portrait into Surrender of Lord Cornwallis.

text: First Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation of President Lincoln hangs over the west staircase in the Senate wing.[49]

text: The Capitol also houses the National Statuary Hall Collection, comprising two statues donated by each of the fifty states to honor persons notable in their histories. One of the most notable statues in the National Statuary Hall is a bronze statue of King Kamehameha donated by the state of Hawaii upon its accession to the union in 1959. The statue's extraordinary weight of 15,000 pounds (6,800 kg) raised concerns that it might come crashing through the floor, so it was moved to Emancipation Hall of the new Capitol Visitor Center. The 100th, and last statue for the collection, that of Po'pay from the state of New Mexico, was added on September 22, 2005. It was the first statue moved into the Emancipation Hall.

text: Crypt[edit]

text: On the ground floor is an area known as the Crypt. It was intended to be the burial place of George Washington, with a ringed balustrade at the center of the Rotunda above looking down to his tomb. However, under the stipulations of his last will, Washington was buried at Mount Vernon. The Crypt houses exhibits on the history of the Capitol. A compass star inlaid in the floor marks the point at which Washington, D.C. is divided into its four quadrants and is the basis for how addresses in Washington, D.C., are designated (NE, NW, SE, or SW). However, due to the retrocession of the Virginia portions of the District, the geographic center of the city lies near the White House.

text: Within the Crypt is Gutzon Borglum's massive Abraham Lincoln Bust. The sculptor had a fascination with large-scale art and themes of heroic nationalism, and carved the piece from a six-ton block of marble. Borglum carved the bust in 1908, and it was donated to the Congress by Eugene Meyer, Jr., and accepted by the Joint Committee on the Library, in the same year. The pedestal was specially designed by the sculptor and installed in 1911. The bust and pedestal were on display in the Rotunda for many years until 1979 when, after a rearrangement of all sculpture in the Rotunda, they were placed in the Crypt.[50] Borglum was a patriot; believing that the "monuments we have built are not our own," he looked to create art that was "American, drawn from American sources, memorializing American achievement", according to a 1908 interview article. Borglum's depiction of Lincoln was so accurate, that Robert Todd Lincoln, the president's son, praised the bust as "the most extraordinarily good portrait of my father I have ever seen."[50] Supposedly, according to legend, the marble head remains unfinished (missing a left ear) to symbolize Lincoln's unfinished life.

text: Features[edit]

text: At one end of the room near the Old Supreme Court Chamber is a statue of John C. Calhoun. On the right leg of the statue, a mark from a bullet fired during the 1998 shooting incident is clearly visible. The bullet also left a mark on the cape, located on the back right side of the statue.

text: Eleven presidents have lain in state in the Rotunda for public viewing, most recently Gerald Ford. The tomb meant for Washington stored the catafalque which is used to support coffins lying in state or honor in the Capitol. The catafalque is now on display in the Capitol Visitors Center for the general public to see when not in use.

text: The Hall of Columns is located on the House side of the Capitol, home to twenty-eight fluted columns and statues from the National Statuary Hall Collection. In the basement of the Capitol building in a utility room are two marble bathtubs, which are all that remain of the once elaborate Senate baths. These baths were a spa-like facility designed for members of Congress and their guests before many buildings in the city had modern plumbing. The facilities included several bathtubs, a barbershop, and a massage parlor.

text: A steep, metal staircase, totaling 365 steps, leads from the basement to an outdoor walkway on top of the Capitol's dome.[51] The number of steps represents each day of the year.[52] Also in the basement, the weekly Jummah prayer is held on Fridays by Muslim staffers.[53]

text: Height[edit]

text: Contrary to a popular myth, D.C. building height laws have never referred to the height of the Capitol building, which rises to 289 feet (88 m).[54] Indeed, the Capitol is only the fifth-tallest structure in Washington.

text: House Chamber[edit]

text: The House of Representatives Chamber has 448 permanent seats. Unlike Senators, Representatives do not have assigned seats.[55] The chamber is large enough to accommodate members of all three branches of the federal government and invited guests for joint sessions of Congress such as the State of the Union speech and other events. It is adorned with relief portraits of famous lawmakers and lawgivers throughout history. The United States national motto "In God We Trust" is written over the tribune below the clock and above the United States flag. Of the twenty-three relief portraits only Moses is sculpted from a full front view and is located across from the dais where the Speaker of the House ceremonially sits.

text: In order clockwise around the chamber:

text:
George Mason
Robert Joseph Pothier
Jean Baptiste Colbert
Edward I of England
Alfonso X of Castile
Pope Gregory IX
Louis IX of France
Justinian I
Tribonian
Lycurgus of Sparta
Hammurabi
Moses
Solon
Aemilius Papinianus
Gaius
Maimonides
Suleiman the Magnificent
Pope Innocent III
Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester
Hugo Grotius
William Blackstone
Napoleon[56]
Thomas Jefferson

text: There is also a quote etched in the marble of the chamber, as stated by venerable statesman Daniel Webster: "Let us develop the resources of our land, call forth its powers, build up its institutions, promote all its great interests, and see whether we also, in our day and generation, may not perform something worthy to be remembered."[57]

text: Old Supreme Court Chamber[edit]

text: From 1800 to 1806, this room served as the Senate Chamber and from 1806 until 1860, the room was used as the Supreme Court Chamber. In 1860, the Supreme Court began using the newly vacated Old Senate Chamber. Since 1935, the Supreme Court has met in the United States Supreme Court Building.

text: Senate Chamber[edit]

text: The current Senate Chamber opened in 1859[58] and is adorned with white marble busts of the former Presidents of the Senate (Vice Presidents).[59]

text: Floor plans[edit]

text: Exterior[edit]

text: Grounds[edit]

text: The Capitol Grounds cover approximately 274 acres (1.11 km²), with the grounds proper consisting mostly of lawns, walkways, streets, drives, and planting areas. Several monumental sculptures used to be located on the east facade and lawn of the Capitol including The Rescue and George Washington. The current grounds were designed by noted American landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, who planned the expansion and landscaping performed from 1874 to 1892. In 1875, as one of his first recommendations, Olmsted proposed the construction of the marble terraces on the north, west, and south sides of the building that exist today.

text: Olmsted also designed the Summer House, the open-air brick building that sits just north of the Capitol. Three arches open into the hexagonal structure, which encloses a fountain and twenty-two brick chairs. A fourth wall holds a small window that looks onto an artificial grotto. Built between 1879 and 1881, the Summer House was intended to answer complaints that visitors to the Capitol had no place to sit and no place to obtain water for their horses and themselves. Modern drinking fountains have since replaced Olmsted's fountain for the latter purpose. Olmsted intended to build a second, matching Summer House on the southern side of the Capitol, but congressional objections led to the project's cancellation.

text: Flags[edit]

text: Up to four U.S. flags can be seen flying over the Capitol. Two flagpoles are located at the base of the dome on the East and West sides. These flagpoles have flown the flag day and night since World War I. The other two flagpoles are above the North (Senate) and South (House of Representatives) wings of the building, and fly only when the chamber below is in session. The flag above the House of Representatives is raised and lowered by House pages. The flag above the United States Senate is raised and lowered by Senate Doorkeepers. To raise the flag, Doorkeepers access the roof of the Capitol from the Senate Sergeant at Arms's office. Several auxiliary flagpoles, to the west of the dome and not visible from the ground, are used to meet congressional requests for flags flown over the Capitol.[citation needed] Constituents pay for U.S. flags flown over the Capitol to commemorate a variety of events such as the death of a veteran family member.

text: Major events[edit]

text: The Capitol, as well as the grounds of Capitol Hill, have played host to major events, including presidential inaugurations held every four years. During an inauguration, the front of the Capitol is outfitted with a platform and a grand staircase. Annual events at the Capitol include Independence Day celebrations, and the National Memorial Day Concert.

text: The general public has paid respect to a number of individuals lying in state at the Capitol, including numerous former presidents, senators, and other officials. Other Americans lying in honor include Officers Jacob Chestnut and John Gibson, the two officers killed in the 1998 shooting incident. Chestnut was the first African American ever to lie in honor in the Capitol. The public also paid respect to Rosa Parks, an icon of the civil rights movement, at the Capitol in 2005. She was the first woman and second African American to lie in honor in the Capitol. In February 2018, the evangelical Rev. Billy Graham became the fourth private citizen to lie in honor in the Rotunda.[60]

text: On September 24, 2015, Pope Francis gave a joint address to Congress, the first Pope to do so.[61]

text: Security[edit]

text: On January 30, 1835, what is believed to be the first attempt to kill a sitting President of the United States occurred just outside the United States Capitol. When President Andrew Jackson was leaving the Capitol out of the East Portico after the funeral of South Carolina Representative Warren R. Davis, Richard Lawrence, an unemployed and deranged housepainter from England, either burst from a crowd or stepped out from hiding behind a column and aimed a pistol at Jackson which misfired. Lawrence then pulled out a second pistol which also misfired. It has since been postulated that the moisture from the humid weather of the day contributed to the double misfiring.[62] Lawrence was then restrained, with legend saying that Jackson attacked Lawrence with his cane, prompting his aides to restrain him. Others present, including Davy Crockett, restrained and disarmed Lawrence.

text: On July 2, 1915, prior to the United States' entry into World War I, Eric Muenter (aka Frank Holt), a German professor who wanted to stop American support of the Allies of World War I, exploded a bomb in the reception room of the U.S. Senate. The next morning he tried to assassinate J. P. Morgan, Jr., son of the financier, at his home on Long Island, New York. In a letter to the Washington Evening Star published after the explosion, Muenter, writing under an assumed name, said he hoped that the detonation would "make enough noise to be heard above the voices that clamor for war." J.P. Morgan's company served as Great Britain's principal U.S. purchasing agent for munitions and other war supplies.

text: In 1954, Puerto Rican nationalists opened fire on members of Congress from the visitors' gallery, injuring five representatives. On March 1, 1971, a bomb exploded on the ground floor of the Capitol, placed by the radical left domestic terrorist group, the Weather Underground. They placed the bomb as a demonstration against U.S. involvement in Laos. On November 7, 1983, a group called the Armed Resistance Unit claimed responsibility for a bomb that detonated in the lobby outside the office of Senate Minority Leader Robert Byrd.[63] Six people associated with the John Brown Anti-Klan Committee were later found in contempt of court for refusing to testify about the bombing.[64] In 1990, three members of the Armed Resistance Unit were convicted of the bombing, which they claimed was in response to the invasion of Grenada.[65] On July 24, 1998, Russell Eugene Weston Jr. burst into the Capitol and opened fire, killing two Capitol Police officers. The Capitol is believed to have been the intended target of the hijacked United Airlines Flight 93 on September 11, 2001, before it crashed near Shanksville in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, after passengers tried to take over control of the plane from hijackers.[66][67]

text: Since the September 11 attacks, the roads and grounds around the Capitol have undergone dramatic changes. The United States Capitol Police have also installed checkpoints to inspect vehicles at specific locations around Capitol Hill,[68][69] and have closed a section of one street indefinitely.[69] The level of screening employed varies. On the main east-west thoroughfares of Constitution and Independence Avenues, barricades are implanted in the roads that can be raised in the event of an emergency. Trucks larger than pickups are interdicted by the Capitol Police and are instructed to use other routes. On the checkpoints at the shorter cross streets, the barriers are typically kept in a permanent "emergency" position, and only vehicles with special permits are allowed to pass. All Capitol visitors are screened by a magnetometer, and all items that visitors may bring inside the building are screened by an x-ray device. In both chambers, gas masks are located underneath the chairs in each chamber for members to use in case of emergency.[citation needed] Structures ranging from scores of Jersey barriers to hundreds of ornamental bollards have been erected to obstruct the path of any vehicles that might stray from the designated roadways.[70]

text: In 2004 the capitol was briefly evacuated after a plane carrying the then governor of Kentucky strayed into restricted airspace over the district. A shooting incident occurred in March 2016. One female bystander was wounded by police but not seriously injured; a man pointing a gun was shot and arrested, in critical but stable condition.[71] The city police of Washington D.C. described the shooting incident as "isolated".[72]

text: Capitol Visitor Center[edit]

text: The United States Capitol Visitor Center (CVC), located below the East Front of the Capitol and its plaza, between the Capitol building and 1st Street East, opened on December 2, 2008. The CVC provides a single security checkpoint for all visitors, including those with disabilities, and an expansion space[clarification needed] for the US Congress.[73][74] The complex contains 580,000 square feet (54,000 m2) of space below ground on three floors,[75] and offers visitors a food court, restrooms, and educational exhibits, including an 11-foot scale model of the Capitol dome.[76] It also features skylights affording views of the actual dome. Long in the planning stages, construction began in the fall of 2001, following the killing of two Capitol police officers in 1998. The estimated final cost of constructing the CVC was $621 million.[77]


document_title: List of Malcolm in the Middle characters

question_text: what is malcolm's last name in malcolm in the middle

question_tokens: what is malcolm 's last name in malcolm in the middle

text: Characters[edit]

text: This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (March 2014)

tag: table

text: In the fictional town of Star City, California, originally there were four brothers (although Malcolm's oldest brother attended a military school away from home, so Malcolm was still the middle sibling left at home). A fifth son was introduced in the show's fourth season, a boy named Jamie. The boys are, from eldest to youngest: Francis, Reese, Malcolm, Dewey, and Jamie. In the final episode, Lois discovered she was pregnant with a sixth child. In the third season, Francis travels home (to celebrate his father's birthday) with an Alaskan girl named Piama, and reveals that they are married.

text: During the first season, the writers decided to keep the family's last name a mystery. In the fifth season episode "Reese Joins the Army (1)", Reese uses a fake ID by the name of "Jetson" to lie about his age. In the series finale, "Graduation", Francis' employee ID reads "Nolastname" (or "No Last Name", a joke referring to the fact that the family name was never spoken aloud). In the same episode when Malcolm was introduced to give the graduation speech, the speaker announces Malcolm's name, but microphone feedback makes his surname inaudible, even though he does appear to mouth the phrase "No last name".[1]

text: In the pilot episode, the name Wilkerson can be seen on the name badge of the uniform Francis is wearing at Marlin Academy. In the sleeve notes for the season 5 DVD released in Europe, the family is referred to as the Wilkersons in the description for the episode "Block Party". British television advertisements and some Fox promotional material also occasionally referred to the family as the Wilkersons, although this name was never spoken aloud in the series. In an early version of the pilot, Malcolm had an exchange of dialogue with a classmate, who claims to have overheard his parents talking about Malcolm's family and asks him what his last name is. When Malcolm responds, "Wilkerson, why?" the friend replied with the punchline, "Oh...who are the 'Pariahs'?"

text: Out of the show's six leads, Cranston, Berfield and Sullivan were the only ones to appear in all 151 .

text: Character appearances[edit]

text:
Actor
Character
Season

1
2
3
4
5
6
7

Main characters

Jane Kaczmarek
Lois
Main

Bryan Cranston
Hal
Main

Christopher Masterson
Francis
Main
Recurring

Justin Berfield
Reese
Main

Erik Per Sullivan
Dewey
Main

Frankie Muniz
Malcolm
Main

Catherine Lloyd Burns
Caroline Miller
Main
Recurring

James and Lukas Rodriguez
Jamie

Recurring
Main

Recurring characters

Craig Lamar Traylor
Stevie Kenarban
Recurring

David Anthony Higgins
Craig Feldspar
Recurring

Gary Anthony Williams
Abe Kenarban
Recurring

Evan Matthew Cohen
Lloyd
Recurring

Kyle Sullivan
Dabney
Recurring

Daniel Von Bargen
Edwin Spangler
Recurring
Flashback

Will Jennings
Kyle
Recurring

Flashback

Drew Powell
Drew Horton
Recurring

Flashback

Arjay Smith
Ken Finley
Recurring

Flashback

Karim Prince
Stanley Winn
Recurring

Eric Nenninger
Eric Hansen
Guest
Recurring
Flashback

Merrin Dungey
Kitty Kenarban
Guest
Recurring
Guest

Guest

Kasan Butcher
Joe
Guest
Recurring

Flashback

Tania Raymonde
Cynthia

Recurring
Guest

Cloris Leachman
Ida

Guest
Recurring

Emy Coligado
Piama Tananahaakna

Recurring

Chris Eigeman
Lionel Herkabe

Recurring
Guest
Recurring

Victor Z. Isaac
Kevin

Recurring

Brenda Wehle
Lavernia

Recurring

Sandy Ward
Pete

Recurring

John Ennis
Artie

Recurring

Kenneth Mars
Otto Mannkusser

Recurring

Meagen Fay
Gretchen Mannkusser

Recurring

text: The Wilkerson Family[edit]

text: Malcolm[edit]

text: Malcolm, portrayed by Frankie Muniz (150 episodes), is the protagonist of the series. He is five years younger than his oldest brother Francis, one year younger than his older brother Reese, four years older than his younger brother Dewey, and about 15 years older than his youngest brother Jamie. In the first episode of the series, he is discovered to be a child prodigy and immediately moved from his regular class into the 'Krelboynes', a class for gifted students. Despite his high intelligence, he still gets into mischief either alongside or working against his brothers (in particular, Reese), although he becomes more self-absorbed and egotistical in the later seasons as he goes through puberty. Malcolm, like Reese, is not very popular. However, he has had a number of girlfriends during the series run. Even though he is very intelligent, Malcolm has a short temper, can be easily manipulated and also has problems containing his opinion about himself. Malcolm also occasionally serves as the voice of reason, and does have a conscience, (for instance, despite emotionally manipulating a grieving Hal to buy him a car in the episode "Hal Grieves," when the time comes to make the purchase he finds he can't go through with it). In the series finale, it is revealed that Lois intended him to have a hard life, knowing that he is destined to assume the role of President of the United States; she wants him to remember where he came from to get there and try to help families like his own when he assumes the office. Malcolm eventually comes to terms with his future, after being unable to tell Lois he can't do it. In the series finale, Malcolm begins taking classes at Harvard University. It is unknown if he will become President of the United States in the future. Throughout the series, Malcolm frequently breaks the fourth wall and talks to the viewer about either the current situation or giving exposition about past events.

text: Hal[edit]

text: Hal, played by Bryan Cranston (all 151 episodes), is the father of the family. Though relaxed in his parenting when compared to Lois, Hal has shown that he can slide into a disciplinarian when confronted by the boys' bad behavior. He used to be like his sons himself and mostly he used to be like Francis. Until he married Lois and she nurtured him. He comes from a wealthy family who resent his choice to marry Lois over Susan (an action also shared by Victor and Ida). Hal has a hard time making good decisions, which he often deferred to Lois. Despite the fact many of the neighbors hate his family but mostly they hate Lois, Hal blends in well with them. He loves Lois more than she loves him, never even thinking about other women. He is also very scared of her, even more than the boys are, which is why he often bribes their sons to take the fall for his wrongdoings. He is very devoted to Lois and willing to give the kids punishment they deserve that Lois gives them. Lois is usually head of the household and Hal is second-in-command. He is very neurotic and has a slight obsessive-compulsive disorder, and also enjoys unusual hobbies. Hal is also a sex addict, this was revealed in the episode "Forbidden Girlfriend" when Lois is taking medication and is unable to have sex for an entire week, it is mentioned again in the episode "Poker 2" when Hal tells his friends he has sex 14 times per week. It was also revealed that Hal was a chain smoker before quitting the habit. Hal's best friend is Abe Kenarban. He works in a lower management job in a corporation that he always hated, he used to be an executive and got demoted when he mouths off to his boss season 2 finale.

text: Francis[edit]

text: Francis, played by Christopher Kennedy Masterson (118 episodes), is the oldest of the brothers, whom Malcolm often looks up to. It is revealed in the episodes "Sleepover" and "The Bots and the Bees" in season one that Francis was a breech birth, and in "Flashback" in season 2, that Lois was in labor with him during her and Hal's wedding. A rebel from birth, showing signs of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Conduct Disorder, he was exiled to Marlin Academy by Lois for his behavior before eventually emancipating himself to run away from the Academy to work in Alaska, incurring his mother's wrath. Upon moving to Alaska, he marries a local woman named Piama, who is about one year older than him, and had previously been married briefly, and whom Lois doesn't like. In the series finale, Hal discovers that Francis has taken a job with Amerysis, and Francis admits he likes sitting at a desk sorting computer data. However, he also admits that he has no intentions of telling Lois about the job and enjoys torturing her by telling her that he's still unemployed.

text: Lois[edit]

text: Lois, played by Jane Kaczmarek (146 episodes), is Francis, Reese, Malcolm, Dewey, and Jamie's angry and temperamental mother. She is an overbearing control freak despised by the neighbors to the point that they refuse to invite her to their gatherings, revealed in "Mono". Unlike Malcolm, Lois isn't bothered by it and tries her best to blend in with it. She was revealed to be a charming and a nurturing mother while Francis was little, but toughened up. Lois was like who she was when she was a teenager. When she became overbearing and a tough bully, it didn't help Francis or the other kids to behave, but she made it worse. She is also always stubbornly right, to the point of being unable to say that she was wrong. It was also shown that she is overbearing and mad as a result of her children's bad behavior, and not her pure hate. At the series finale, Lois is revealed to be pregnant with a sixth child (actually twins). Her unfairness and behavior also come from her miserable childhood, living with a tough mother and an uncaring father (both of whom favored her younger sister, Susan). She is a pushy academic mother and in the series finale, she trying to groom Malcolm become President of the United States.

text: Reese[edit]

text: Reese, played by Justin Berfield (all 151 episodes), is the second oldest of the sons. He is two years younger than his older brother Francis, one year older than his younger brother Malcolm, six years older than his younger brother Dewey, and about 16 years older than his youngest brother Jamie. It was revealed in the episode "Flashback", in season 2, that Reese has been vicious from the womb, so vicious in fact that when he kept kicking Lois during labor, she pushed him out by force. A complete moron from birth, Reese is the worst-behaved of the brothers. Reese is inclined to beat up the Krelboynes. He is intimidated by certain students, including Ira, a dumb jock at school. Despite his violent, idiotic nature, Reese is a culinary prodigy, after finding that he has a talent and genuine love for cooking and baking. He is also the favorite grandson of his grandmother Ida, who taught him the importance of having patsies. In the series finale, Reese moves in with Craig Feldspar and is a janitor at his alma mater North High.

text: Dewey[edit]

text: Dewey, played by Erik Per Sullivan (all 151 episodes), is portrayed as being quieter and more inclined to the arts than his brothers. He soon finds he is a musical prodigy, and as the series goes on he becomes more caring and thoughtful especially in regards to his younger brother Jamie, whom he decides not to bully like he was by Malcolm and Reese. Lois remarks at one point that unlike Malcolm, who would have to work hard to achieve success, Dewey would have success handed to him. Dewey joins the Buseys, a class for the emotionally disturbed, by mistake and ends up becoming their unofficial teacher. He ended up caring for his fellow students so much that, when the mistake was uncovered, he feigned severe emotional problems so he could remain. In the final few seasons, Dewey becomes increasingly bitter towards his parents due to them overlooking him throughout his childhood and neglecting his interests. Because of this, he forces them to give Jamie the childhood he never had. In the last episode, he and Jamie (the only other remaining brother living at home) continued the tradition of causing havoc all over the house.

text: Jamie[edit]

text: Jamie was played by identical twin brothers James and Lukas Rodriguez (35 episodes). The youngest brother born who is the only brother to have beaten Lois in her own game, bordering to attacking her (though Reese was mostly responsible for feeding him soda). Like Malcolm and Dewey, Jamie is revealed to be intelligent, evident when he tricked Reese into taking a marker after he colored part of the wall.

text: Recurring characters[edit]

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text:
Stevie Kenarban, played by Craig Lamar Traylor (56 episodes), is Malcolm's best friend and classmate. He is wheelchair-bound and is missing a lung, requiring him to speak slowly and take deep breaths after saying a word. Though Malcolm is initially upset when Lois arranges a "playdate" for him and Stevie in the pilot episode, the boys immediately find common ground, particularly their love of comic books, and become friends. His parents are very overprotective of him, although Stevie displays in many episodes that he lives very comfortably with his disability and even has a dark sense of humor about it.
Craig Feldspar, portrayed by David Anthony Higgins (39 episodes), is Lois' co-worker at the Lucky Aide. He is a hopeless romantic, and has unrequited feelings for Lois. He is very childish and is a coward. He plays the ukulele and the banjo, and he sings in a countertenor voice. By the end of the series, Craig becomes Reese's roommate.
Piama Tananahaakna, played by Emy Coligado (29 episodes), is Francis' wife whom he met and married off-screen during his year in Alaska. Piama is about a year older than Francis, and before him, Piama had previously been married briefly. Primarily due to her being brought home under volatile circumstances, in which Francis (while still a minor, although emancipated) shocked the family with news of the marriage and thus disrupting Hal's birthday party, Lois disliked Piama from her introduction in the third season and into the fourth. However, after an embarrassing encounter with her wealthy in-law's, Lois has been much more respectful of Piama. She originally started off against having children, but by Graduation, Piama got over it after Reese's prank went awry ("We may as well go ahead and have kids now, I'm not afraid of changing diapers any more.")
Victor Welker and Ida Kenzel-Welker, played by Robert Loggia (1 episode) and Cloris Leachman (11 episodes) respectively, are Lois' parents of a German-Croatian background. Victor dies some time before the events of the season two episode "Christmas", in which Ida is widowed. Ida harbors a strong dislike for both Francis and Lois, evident for the way she has been treated by them. She favors Reese, which allows him to love her. Ida belittles Malcolm for being weak in not standing up against his mother and largely ignores Dewey (although she did, on one occasion, save him from being hit by a car, causing her to lose a leg). Ida harbored resentment towards Victor's secret other family for stealing what was rightfully hers, until Lois discovered that she isn't blood related to Victor (and possibly Susan as well) and abandoned Ida. Ida acknowledged that her life growing up in Croatia under the Ustaše was difficult, possibly due to the Ustaše's policies.
Abraham "Abe" Kenarban, played by Gary Anthony Williams (19 episodes), is Stevie's father and Kitty's husband, and a close family friend of both Lois and particularly Hal. Abe is initially depicted as cowardly and dependent on Kitty's guidance (which he attributes to his upbringing, having been raised by his grandmother and four spinster aunts). However he ultimately becomes more self-reliant after Kitty's departure. Despite this, Abe is more than willing to take Kitty back after her return, going as far as to harbor resentment towards Lois after she criticized Kitty's decision to leave.
Kitty Kenarban, played by Merrin Dungey (5 episodes), is Stevie's mother and Abe's wife. Because of actress Merrin Dungey's commitment to the ABC series Alias, Kitty remains unseen for much of the series before it is revealed that she abandoned her husband and son, briefly throwing Stevie into a deep depression. She returns briefly in the season six episode "Kitty's Back".
Caroline Miller, played by Catherine Lloyd Burns (15 episodes), is the primary teacher of Malcolm's "Krelboyne" class in the first two seasons. She is shown to be overly-earnest as well as to adore Malcolm, who might possibly have been her favorite student. In season 1, she is included as part of the main cast, but in season 2, is a recurring character. In season 2, she is shown to be pregnant until she gives birth to her baby in the parking lot. After her baby was born, she quit teaching. She was never seen or mentioned again after season 2.
Cynthia Sanders, played by Tania Raymonde (4 episodes), is one of Malcolm's classmates. She has a very extensive vocabulary, but has a difficult time making friends. Depicted as relatively cheerful, Cynthia becomes one of Malcolm's earliest crushes on the show, although a relationship never develops. Cynthia is last seen claiming to never have sex with Malcolm again (which never happened in the first place) to snap him out of a recent funk and keep him from pulling a prank meant to get him sent away like Francis.
Lloyd Jensen, played by Evan Matthew Cohen (25 episodes) is one of Malcolm's "Krelboyne" classmates who recurs throughout the series. He frequently worries about random small things, gets hurt, and falls victim to bullies. He also has an effeminate personality.
Dabney Hooper, played by Kyle Sullivan (24 episodes) is one of Malcolm's "Krelboyne" classmates who recurs throughout the series. Often depicted as the weakest and most cowardly of the group, Dabney's life is almost completely controlled by his overbearing mother, although in his last appearance his ability to release his anger towards his mom results in him immediately developing a tougher persona.
Flora Mayesh, played by Kristin Quick (15 episodes), is one of Malcolm's other "Krelboyne" classmates. Flora was mostly just a background character and rarely had dialogue and was therefore not in the credits for 12 of her episodes.
Eraserhead, played by Will Jennings (12 episodes), is one of Malcolm's "Krelboyne" classmates who recurs throughout early episodes of the series.
Kevin, played by Victor Z. Isaac (5 episodes)
Jessica, played by Hayden Panettiere (4 episodes), is a classmate of Malcolm and Reese's. In one instance, she babysat Malcolm and Reese despite being younger than them, embarrassing the brothers.
Mr. Herkabe (first name Lionel), played by Chris Eigeman (8 episodes), is introduced in Season 3 as the Krelboynes' teacher after Caroline leaves. A Krelboyne himself in middle school, he was forced into a teaching career after losing his millions in a failed dot-com company. He is portrayed as an evil and conniving man who thrives on psychological warfare and making children suffer. He is especially threatened by Malcolm and quickly becomes his nemesis at school, even blackmailing North High's principal, Block (before Hodges took over), into hiring him as vice principal when Malcolm enrolls there. For some reason Mr. Herkabe also intensely enjoys humiliating Reese to antagonize Malcolm more. However, Herkabe's arrogance in confessing that he had failed gym and lied about not taking the course, was brought to light that led to his GPA Award being revoked by Mr. Hodges. He was last seen being humiliated by Reese during dodgeball.
Commandant Edwin Spangler, played by Daniel von Bargen (16 episodes), is the military veteran in charge of the cadets at Marlin Academy. He has a contentious relationship with the rebellious Francis throughout his entire stay at the Academy, although the two were shown at times to have a deep sympathy for the other's emotional scarring. After Spangler is fired from Marlin Academy and arrives in Alaska, Francis gets him a job at the Snow Haven Retirement Home where he has free rein to bully the elderly.
Cadet Eric Hansen, played by Eric Nenninger (28 episodes), one of Francis' friends and classmates from Marlin Academy. Francis accompanies Eric in his plan to abandon the Academy to find well-paying labor work in Alaska. At the end of season three, Eric is seen for the final time being left by Francis to hitchhike home, possibly as revenge for even suggesting to find work in Alaska.
Lavernia, played by Brenda Wehle (10 episodes), is Francis and Eric's malevolent boss who owns the logging site in Alaska. She has a debt book and presumably knows every dirty secret about her workers. Lavernia has a personal grudge towards Piama, who blackmailed her to be nice to Francis by holding her pet parakeet hostage.
Otto Mankusser, played by Kenneth Mars (13 episodes), is Francis' friendly and cheerful boss at the dude ranch, albeit a bit naïve at times.
Ed, played by Paul Wilson (5 episodes), is one of the many neighbors who despises Hal and Lois, along with Reese. He has shown some favoritism towards Malcolm for helping him set up his new computer.
Ira Prescott, played by Jonny Acker (3 episodes), is a student of North High School. He is Billy's older brother and Reese's bully. Ira made his first appearance in "Forbidden Girlfriend" in which he owns a car which Reese ruins by using Dewey in pouring cement in it and letting Billy take the blame for the prank. With Dewey's help, Ira got his revenge on Reese for his prank and using Billy by simply beating him up. He returns briefly in Season 5's "Malcolm Films Reese" who is among the students in humiliation and in Reese's Apartment when Malcolm is tutoring Ira and help get him a passing grade in his classes so he can keep his spot on the North High School sports team(which is never specified). Unlike Reese, Ira has more respect for Malcolm.