Capitol Cornerstone 100th Anniversary


Article Body

Office of the Governor
500 E. Capitol Ave.
Pierre, SD57501
(605) 773-3212
www.state.sd.us
 
For Immediate Release: Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Contact: Mitch Krebs at 773-3212 or John Moisan at 773-3688
 
Capitol Cornerstone 100th Anniversary
 
Pierre, S. D. – Gov. Mike Rounds today announced that the state of South Dakota will celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the laying of the Capitol cornerstone in a ceremony on Friday, June 20, 2008, at 11 a.m. (CDT).
 
“The South Dakota Capitol is a grand building which has stood the test of time through floods, tornados, blizzards, and drought,” said Gov. Rounds. “It is a tribute to the quality craftsmanship and construction of the Capitol and to the thousands of state employees and contractors who have maintained this building over the last 100 years.”
 
Construction of the South Dakota State Capitol began in 1905 with the laying of the cornerstone taking place in June 1908. The Capitol was completed at a cost of approximately $900,000 and occupied in June 1910.
 
“We are going to duplicate, as closely as we can, the ceremony which laid the cornerstone of the Capitol. In 1908, the statewide Grand Lodge of Masons of South Dakota conducted a great deal of the ceremony which certified that the builder of the Capitol had performed his task in erecting a sound foundation for the building and, in turn, a sound foundation for government, “said Gov. Rounds. “The officers of the Grand Lodge of Masons of South Dakota still perform cornerstone ceremonies and we have asked them to once again ceremonially verify that the Capitol is sound.” 
 
Approximately 300 members of the Grand Lodge of Masons of South Dakota will be in attendance, including the Chanters Choir from Sioux Falls and El Riad Big Band members from all areas of the state. Laurie Gill of Pierre will serve as the Mistress of Ceremonies and an abbreviated 1910 speech by The Honorable General William Beadle will be performed by Don Boyd of the Pierre Players.
 
Officials of the Bureau of Administration said that the cornerstone of the 1910 Capitol contains a time capsule with numerous articles of the period and have declined reopening the cornerstone because of the cost and possibility of compromising the building structure. A listing of the items that are reported to be in the cornerstone, based upon reports from the 1910 South Dakota Historical Collections, will be read at the ceremony.
 
“This will be a great and historic event,” the governor added. “It’s an opportunity for South Dakotans to join us to help celebrate history on our journey to the Centennial of the South Dakota Capitol celebration in June 1910.”
 
In addition, the Capitol celebration will feature numerous scheduled building tours, historic displays, vendors, and the premiere Rotunda showing of the film produced by South Dakota Public Broadcasting, “South Dakota – A Capitol Idea.” The cornerstone rededication ceremony will be held in conjunction with the 125th Anniversary of the city of Pierre.
 
No scheduled group Capitol tours will be given on June 20. Tours of the South Dakota Capitol are available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. by calling 773-3765.
 
-30-