The House of Burgesses met in a large yet relatively simple chamber on the first floor in the east wing of the Capitol. Among those who served as burgesses, were Patrick Henry, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Peyton Randolph, and George Wythe. The Capitol was not only the place where these men strode toward independence but also very much a training ground for those who would create a new, democratically elected representative government. The Speaker’s chair in the Hall of the House of Burgesses dates to the 1730s, a silent witness to the creation of this new republic.
Capitol Hall of Burgesses
