That gleaming dome catching the light above Beacon Hill is Charles Bulfinch's declaration of American ambition in brick and marble. The Massachusetts State House was completed in 1798, with Paul Revere laying the cornerstone and Samuel Adams — the great agitator of the Revolution, then serving as governor — presiding over the ceremony. Bulfinch, the first native-born American architect of consequence, designed the building in the Federal style he had developed by studying the work of Robert Adam in England, and its red brick, white marble trim, and yellow dome became the model for state capitols across the country.
The dome, originally made of wood shingles, was covered in copper by Paul Revere's company in 1802, painted gray during World War II to prevent it from being used as a navigation target, and gilded in gold leaf in 1874, a coating that has been renewed several times since. Oliver Wendell Holmes called it the hub of the solar system, giving Boston its enduring nickname. Inside, the Sacred Cod, a carved wooden codfish suspended in the House chamber, has represented the fishing industry's importance to Massachusetts since 1784.
Walk up the steps and let Boston Common unfold behind you, the commanding view Bulfinch intended.