Capitol Square

Capitol Square is a public square in Downtown Columbus, Ohio. The square includes the Ohio Statehouse, its 10-acre (4.0 ha) Capitol Grounds, as well as the buildings and features surrounding the square. The Capitol Grounds are surrounded on the north and west by Broad and High Streets, the main thoroughfares of the city since its founding, along with 3rd Street on the east and State Street the south. The oldest building on Capitol Square, the Ohio Statehouse, is the center of the state government, and in the rough geographic center of Capitol Square, Columbus, and Ohio.[1]

For the skyscraper in Columbus, see Capitol Square (skyscraper).
View of Capitol Square south from the Rhodes State Office Tower

History

The 10-acre (4.0 ha) statehouse grounds were donated by four prominent Franklinton landholders to form the new state capitol.[2] As the city's downtown began to empty in the mid-20th century, several buildings on the square were demolished. A construction boom downtown in the 1970s and 80s led to nearly all spaces being occupied again. The last large empty parcels, on 3rd Street, are aimed to be developed in the 2020s.[3]

Attributes
1872 bird's eye view facing northeast
The square facing southeast in 1893
Capitol Square facing northwest, 1936

Buildings and structures
Street corners

Buildings formerly on Capitol Square include the Neil House hotel (three buildings which existed on the square), the Columbus Board of Trade building, the former Columbus City Hall, a former location of the First Congregational Church, an early Huntington Bank, and the Deshler Hotel.

Public art
These Are My Jewels (1893)

Tourism

As the center of downtown Columbus, the square has high resident and visitor foot traffic. Programs for tourists include the Columbus Art Walk's Capitol Square tour, taking visitors around historical and architectural sites, sculptures, and other landmarks.[6]

Events

Protests

Capitol Square is the location of many protests held in the city.[7] Recent protests have included those against Ohio's stay-at-home order in the COVID-19 pandemic and against the handling of the killing of George Floyd.[8] Riots and protests over George Floyd took place in the city, centered on the square from May 28 into July, with early violent protests leading to damaged storefronts across downtown Columbus, with graffiti, trash, and looting around much of downtown.[9]

See also

References
  1. Darbee, Jeffrey T. "Ohio Statehouse, Senate Building, and Capitol Square". SAH Archipedia. University of Virginia Press. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  2. "Statehouse". Ohio Statehouse. Capitol Square Review and Advisory Board. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  3. Jim Weiker (2019-10-20). "Capitol Square changes seen in last empty parcel's development - Business - The Columbus Dispatch - Columbus, OH". Dispatch.com. Retrieved 2020-05-18.
  4. "COTA moves its offices to heart of Downtown - News - The Columbus Dispatch - Columbus, OH". Dispatch.com. 2010-06-24. Retrieved 2020-05-20.
  5. https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2016/01/05/smaller-sign-to-adorn-dispatchs-new-home.html
  6. "Capitol Square". Columbus.gov. Retrieved 2020-05-18.
  7. https://books.google.com/books?id=m8eDadki1VAC&pg=PA3
  8. https://www.dispatch.com/news/20200528/police-deploy-pepper-gas-as-protests-over-death-of-george-floyd-spread-to-columbus
  9. https://www.dispatch.com/news/20200530/columbus-downtown-business-owners-clean-up-after-protests

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