Having it serve as the seat of both the state and federal government seemed confusing and crowded. Lancaster was ultimately chosen over Harrisburg as state capital due to its larger population, but that only lasted just over a decade. At the end of the day, it was geographic factors that led to Harrisburg becoming capital of Pennsylvania. I n the minds of politicians and policymakers, it made sense for the capital to be located as close to the center of the state as possible, allowing the easiest access from all areas.
There were no planes or cars in those days, so transportation to and from a capital always needed to be a consideration. Philadelphia may be the largest population center in the state, but it is located in the far southeastern corner, roughly miles from Erie, PA, up in the northwestern corner. It would take close to two weeks to make the journey in the era of the horse-drawn carriage. Harrisburg, on the other hand, is a full miles west of Philadelphia toward the center of the state, and its location directly on the Susquehanna River made it easily accessible by ship.
This meant most were able to reach it in a day or two if necessary. Despite thirty years of mismanagement and corruption under Mayor Stephen Reed , which led to the city filing for bankruptcy in , Forbes named Harrisburg the 2 nd best place in America to raise a family in Because, while the city itself struggles with debt to this day, its high concentration of state and federal government offices has made it somewhat recession-proof from an employment perspective.
Think you know a thing or two about the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania? Test your skills in the quiz below! While it is by no means a small city, with a population of over ,, Raleigh is still just over half […].
Until , they met in the old Dauphin County Courthouse, which was modified for the state to use. Stephen Hills began assembling materials to build the Capitol in , although he was not officially chosen as architect until Actual construction began on April 19, , with the cornerstone for the new building put in place in May. Construction progressed rapidly, and by December , the new building was ready for occupancy. On January 2, , Hills and 80 workmen formed a procession leading the legislature and dignitaries to the new building and into the House Chamber for the dedication ceremony.
During the course of its seventy-five-year existence, the Hills Capitol saw several additions and alterations. But on February 2, , in the middle of a snowstorm, hundreds of Harrisburg residents stood helpless as the Capitol burned out of control. The Legislature, which was in session at the time, was forced to evacuate and reconvene in the Grace Methodist Episcopal Church.
It was uncertain whether Harrisburg would remain the capital because measures were taken to try to move the seat of government back to Philadelphia. These were later postponed when the Legislature voted to tear down the remaining brick structure of the burned-out Hills Capitol and replace it with a larger and more modern structure, appropriate for a state that was then an industrial giant.
Cobb's well-intended ideas and design for the new, grand building looked good on paper. In , former Treasurer Rob McCord pleaded guilty to two counts of extortion ; more recently, Attorney General Kathleen Kane lost her law license and is currently fighting perjury charges for her alleged leaking of secret grand jury documents. Corruption in Harrisburg is so bad that bronze plaques noting corruption charges now hang from four portraits in the state capitol building. Could we cut out the rotten core of our state government simply by relocating it?
In , Dr. Filipe Campante and Dr. Pennsylvania is toward the top right, just above the red line. Voter turnout in state elections is actually lower when the capital is in an isolated location.
The result: bribery, corruption, and extortion are far more likely to occur when nobody is watching.
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