Tuesday, May 4, 2010

The U.S. Supreme Court Building

In the year, 1932, construction on the U.S. Supreme Court Building started. Designed by Cass Gilbert, construction was finished in 1935. Although the first session of Supreme Court was held in 1790, the official building was not built much later on. At first, Supreme Court was held in the Royal Exchange Building of New York, but was moved to Independence Hall, and later to Philadelphia's City Hall. When the capitol was moved to Washington D.C., the supreme court was given space in the Capitol Building. From 1860 to 1935, when the new Supreme Court Building was finished, the Old Supreme Court Chamber was used to hold court sessions, but in 1929, President William Taft, who was once a Supreme Court Justice, persuaded Congress to give the Supreme Court a permanent home. The building was built on a scale to give the Judicial Branch of government the same look of dignity as the other two branches of government. Above the 16 columns on the west entrance, are the words, "Equal Justice Under Law", and the west entrance doors are cast in bronze. The east entrance of the building has the words "Justice the Guardian of Liberty" above it. On May 4th [Today] in 1987, the Supreme Court building was designated a National Historic Landmark.