Anthem

The City Dock is at the heart of the Historic District where many of the city's orginal 18th century buildings still stand. In fact, the skyline of the friendly Annapolis harbor has remained much the same for hundreds of years.

The State House and its Dome Courtesy of the Maryland State Archives Three state houses have actually occupied State Circle in Annapolis. The first was built soon after Annapolis became the capital in 1695; it burned down in 1704. The second was completed by 1709, but within 60 years the governement had outgrown it, and the decision was made to raze the delapidated building. Charles Wallace undertook the work of the third state house when no one else submitted "plans and estimates" for the project. Joseph Clark, an Annapolis architect and builder, designed and built the extraordinary dome. By the summer of 1788, the exterior of the new dome was complete. From a design and engineering point of view it is an outstanding achievement. It was constructed of timber supplied by the Dashiell family of Somerset County. No metal nails were used in its construction and, to this day, it is held together by wooden pegs reinforced by iron straps forged by an Annapolis ironmonger. The lightning rod which tops the dome is a story in itself. It is a "Franklin" rod, constructed and grounded to Benjamin Franklin's specifications. In some respects, the use of this type of lightning rod was also a political statement, expressing support for Franklin's theories on protection of public buildings from lightning strikes and the rejection of the opposing theories supported by King George III. The pointed lightning rod atop such an important new public building was a powerful symbol of the independence and ingenuity of the young nation. In 1996, an examination of the dome and the acorn revealed that almost all of the material in the acorn, its pedestal and the lightning rod was original from the 18th century. During the summer and fall of that year, the acorn was removed and replaced by a new one, due to water seepage damage. The new acorn is constructed of 31 pieces of cypress made by craftspeople from around the state. Like the original, it is clad in copper and gilded on the top. Although a steel sleeve has been placed inside the new acorn to strengthen it, the original lightning rod has remained intact and continues to serve as it has for 208 years. Annapolis The capital of Maryland, in the central part of the state on an inlet of Chesapeake Bay south-southeast of Baltimore. Settled in 1649, it was the site of the Annapolis Convention in 1786, which led to the federal Constitutional Convention of 1787. The U.S. Naval Academy, founded in 1845, is in Annapolis. Population, 33,180+. Founded in 1845 in an old Army fort, the United States Naval Academy has grown to fill a 238-acre campus located just north of downtown Annapolis, at the mouth of the Severn River. The Mission of the Naval Academy is : "To develop midshipmen morally, mentally and physically and to imbue them with the highest ideals of duty, honor and loyalty in order to provide graduates who are dedicated to a career of naval service and have potential for future development in mind and character to assume the highest responsibilities of command, citizenship and government." Maryland A state of the east-central United States. It was admitted as one of the original Thirteen Colonies in 1788. The colony was founded by Lord Baltimore in 1634 as a refuge for English Roman Catholics. Annapolis is the capital and Baltimore the largest city. Population, 4,798,600+. Updated 06-10-04 © Bill_MT 2000