H. Con. Res. 135 Agreed to July 10, 2009

One Hundred Eleventh Congress 

of the 

United States of America 

AT THE FIRST SESSION 

Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday, 

the sixth day of January, two thousand and nine 

Concurrent Resolution 

Whereas enslaved African-Americans provided labor essential to 

the construction of the United States Capitol; 

Whereas the report of the Architect of the Capitol entitled ‘‘History 

of Slave Laborers in the Construction of the United States Capitol’’ documents the role of slave labor in the construction of 

the Capitol; 

Whereas enslaved African-Americans performed the backbreaking 

work of quarrying the stone which comprised many of the floors, 

walls, and columns of the Capitol; 

Whereas enslaved African-Americans also participated in other 

facets of construction of the Capitol, including carpentry, masonry, 

carting, rafting, roofing, plastering, glazing, painting, and sawing; 

Whereas the marble columns in the Old Senate Chamber and 

the sandstone walls of the East Front corridor remain as the 

lasting legacies of the enslaved African-Americans who worked 

the quarries; 

Whereas slave-quarried stones from the remnants of the original 

Capitol walls can be found in Rock Creek Park in the District 

of Columbia; 

Whereas the Statue of Freedom now atop the Capitol dome could 

not have been cast without the pivotal intervention of Philip 

Reid, an enslaved African-American foundry worker who deciphered the puzzle of how to separate the 5-piece plaster model 

for casting when all others failed; 

Whereas the great hall of the Capitol Visitor Center was named 

Emancipation Hall to help acknowledge the work of the slave 

laborers who built the Capitol; 

Whereas no narrative on the construction of the Capitol that does 

not include the contribution of enslaved African-Americans can 

fully and accurately reflect its history; 

Whereas recognition of the contributions of enslaved African-Americans brings to all Americans an understanding of the continuing 

evolution of our representative democracy; and 

Whereas a marker dedicated to the enslaved African-Americans 

who helped to build the Capitol will reflect the charge of the 

Capitol Visitor Center to teach visitors about Congress and its 

development: Now, therefore, be it 

Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
H. Con. Res. 135—2 

SECTION 1. PLACEMENT OF MARKER IN CAPITOL VISITOR CENTER 

TO ACKNOWLEDGE ROLE OF SLAVE LABOR IN 

CONSTRUCTION OF CAPITOL. 

(a) PROCUREMENT AND PLACEMENT OF MARKER.—The Architect 

of the Capitol, subject to the approval of the Committee on House 

Administration of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

on Rules and Administration of the Senate, shall design, procure, 

and place in a prominent location in Emancipation Hall in the 

Capitol Visitor Center a marker which acknowledges the role that 

slave labor played in the construction of the United States Capitol. 

(b) CRITERIA FOR DESIGN OF MARKER.—In developing the design 

for the marker required under subsection (a), the Architect of the 

Capitol— 

(1) shall take into consideration the recommendations 

developed by the Slave Labor Task Force Working Group; 

(2) shall, to the greatest extent practicable, ensure that 

the marker includes stone which was quarried by slaves in 

the construction of the Capitol; and 

(3) shall ensure that the marker includes a plaque or 

inscription which describes the purpose of the marker. 

Attest: 

Clerk of the House of Representatives. 

Attest: 

Secretary of the Senate.