III 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. CON. RES. 99 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 9, 2012 

Received 

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 

Authorizing the use of Emancipation Hall in the Capitol 

Visitor Center for a ceremony to unveil the marker which 

acknowledges the role that slave labor played in the 

construction of the United States Capitol. 

Whereas enslaved African-Americans provided labor essential 

to the construction of the United States Capitol; 

Whereas in 2005 Congress created the Slave Labor Task 

Force to study the role that enslaved African-Americans 

played in the construction of the Capitol and to make 

recommendations to Congress on how to commemorate 

their contribution; 


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HCON 99 RDS 

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 AfricanAmericans can fully and accurately reflect its history; 


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HCON 99 RDS 

Whereas recognition of the contributions of enslaved AfricanAmericans brings to all Americans an understanding of 

the continuing evolution of our representative democracy; 

Whereas in 2007 the Slave Labor Task Force recommended 

to Congress the creation of a marker commemorating the 

contributions of enslaved African-Americans in the construction of the Capitol; and 

Whereas the marker dedicated to the enslaved African-Americans who helped to build the Capitol reflects the charge 

of the Capitol Visitor Center to teach visitors about Congress and its development: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 

2 concurring), 

3 SECTION 1. USE OF EMANCIPATION HALL FOR CEREMONY 

4 TO UNVEIL MARKER DEDICATED TO 

5 ENSLAVED AFRICAN-AMERICANS WHO 

6 HELPED BUILD THE CAPITOL. 

7 (a) AUTHORIZATION.—Emancipation Hall in the 

8 Capitol Visitor Center is authorized to be used on Feb9 ruary 28, 2012, for a ceremony to unveil the marker which 

10 acknowledges the role that slave labor played in the con11 struction of the United States Capitol. 

12 (b) PREPARATIONS.—Physical preparations for the 

13 conduct of the ceremony described in subsection (a) shall 


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HCON 99 RDS 

1 be carried out in accordance with such conditions as may 

2 be prescribed by the Architect of the Capitol. 

Passed the House of Representatives February 9, 

2012. 

Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, 

Clerk. 


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