The stunning Capitol Square complex sits in the middle of downtown Columbus, surrounded by Broad, High, State, and 3rd Streets. Capitol Square includes the Ohio Statehouse, Senate Building and Atrium. The buildings are working government offices, and monuments to the people and the period during which Ohio’s democracy was founded and formed.
Besides the business side of day-to-day activity, there is plenty for the public to enjoy at the at the People’s House, our Ohio Statehouse, including events, tours, and more.
Ohio Statehouse Tours
Guided tours are offered Monday through Friday every hour on the hour with the first tour beginning at 10 a.m. and the last tour beginning at 3 p.m. Guided tours are available on on Saturday and Sunday from 12 pm – 3 pm. Meet in the Map Room on the hour for tours.
Visitors may also take a self-guided tour. Start your tour using the self-guided tour brochure and the cell phone tour available in the Map Room, which is easily accessible from the Third Street entrance,
The House and Senate Chambers are kept locked, and are only available to be viewed during guided tours.
Cell phone tours
Learn about the people and places that the Ohio Statehouse monument collection pays tribute to. Visitors can explore the 10 acres of Capitol Square and dial in on their cell phone to specific predetermined phone numbers and listen to descriptions about the monuments and sculpture. The cell phone audio tour is FREE, except for air-time minutes according to each visitor’s cell phone calling plan.
The Ohio Statehouse Monument Cell Phone Audio Tour begins with the outside monuments and gardens on Capitol Square. Inside the Ohio Statehouse, phone messages describe the rooms and artworks of the Capitol. This allows guests to tour in their own time. Pick up a paper brochure in the ground-floor Map Room.
Museum Education Center
Museum exhibits are closed for health and safety precautions until further notice. Follow along on Facebook to learn from home!
Shop at the Statehouse Museum Shop
The Museum Shop located on the ground floor of the Ohio Statehouse and is open to the public. The Shop accepts all Statehouse Market Place on-line orders, telephone orders and email requests.
The Shop specializes in unique gifts with an Ohio or political theme. Most gifts are made by Ohio artists or businesses, and many items are exclusive to the Museum Shop. Gifts range from wine and pottery, to lapel pins, clothing and even those hard-to-find postcards. The Museum Shop has the perfect gift no matter what the occasion!
Hours are Monday – Friday: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Upcoming Annual Statehouse Events and Exhibits
Ohio Statehouse Museum Education Center exhibits are now open to the public every day. Visitors are welcome!
Ohio Statehouse Tree Lighting
December 2, 2021, 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM. The holiday season opens in Ohio with the annual holiday Statehouse event. Kickoff the holiday season with this family tradition. Historical characters and modern dignitaries will be on hand to greet guests, including Santa himself. Details for 2021 will be updated in late fall.
Ohio Statehouse Holiday Choir Performances
December 3-21, 2021. Get into the holiday spirit with FREE lunchtime holiday choir performances on weekdays by Ohio musical groups in the Museum Gallery at the Ohio Statehouse. The concerts are open to the public and will begin at noon. Details for 2021 will be updated in late fall.
Exhibits
25th Anniversary of the Statehouse Restoration. A Capitol Revival – 1996
July 16 – November 22. Twenty-five years ago, the Ohio Statehouse completed a restoration of the entire Capitol Square. Learn about the award-winning restoration with exhibits, objects and photographs throughout the building. To Be Announced–later in 2021, a special event will be planned to mark the 25th anniversary of the restoration.
Thirty-Six Star Flag from Civil War era
April 21 – November 14. An historic thirty-six star flag that flew over Capitol Square during the repose of President Lincoln on April 29, 1865 will be displayed in the Ohio Statehouse Rotunda. Also on display will be an exhibit of Civil War artifacts on loan from the descendants of Brig. General John C. Caldwell, a member of the Guard of Honor on Abraham Lincoln’s funeral train in 1865.
Ohio Land Patent
June 14 – December 31. An original 1808 document is displayed by the Ohio Statehouse Museum Education Center in the Governor Thomas Worthington Center. The Ohio Land Patent for Jacob Dittoe shows the signatures of Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. The exhibit describes the land patent system and the early history of Ohio.
100th Anniversary of Women’s Suffrage
In 1920, the 19th Amendment was added to the U.S. Constitution. The Ohio Statehouse celebrates women’s right to vote with a National Archives exhibit and displays in the Ladies’ Gallery until further notice.
Weddings and Celebrations
Your wedding, photo session or special event can be historic at the Ohio Statehouse. See details at the events tab or the weddings tab. Contact specialevents@ohiostatehouse.org or 614-466-2125.
Parking at Capitol Square
Parking is available at the facility’s underground parking garage for an hourly or daily fee. This convenient and affordable parking solution offers direct sheltered access to the Ohio Statehouse and Senate Building. Enter garage via Broad St. until the completion of construction near State and Third Street entrances. You can also park at meters or other public parking in downtown Columbus. Remember, meters are FREE on Sundays in downtown Columbus!
The Ohio Statehouse
1 Capitol Square
Columbus, Ohio 43215
Hours: Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Closed on holidays; see website to verify closures.
Annual Events tba for 2022
Red Carnation Day Exhibit
January 29 – January 31: Dayton, Ohio, native Lewis G. Reynolds founded the Carnation League of America in 1903. The League encouraged all Americans to wear a red carnation on William McKinley’s birthday, January 29. The observance will include a small exhibit on the history of Carnation Day and the life and legacy of Ohio Governor and President William McKinley.
Wear red or a red carnation on January 29 and get a 20% off discount at The Statehouse Museum Shop. Some exclusions apply: postage, wine, food, nylon flags, consignment items, dated Statehouse ornaments, and the books, Art and Artistry of the Ohio Statehouse and From Cornerstone to Cupola.
January 29 at noon. Free online tour on Red Carnation Day. The virtual tour of the Ohio Statehouse will talk about architecture, art, history, and state government throughout the building. President William McKinley and his important roles in Ohio and the United States will be featured during the noon tour on January 29. The Facebook Live event is open to the public online. You do not have to be a member of Facebook to join the live event.
Grande Winter Ball
Not scheduled for 2021. Hosted by Civil War re-enactors, 1stOhio Light Artillery Battery A. All ages welcome. Dress in Civil War period attire or in your regular clothes and learn to reel or waltz (or just watch). Details for 2022 will be updated closer to the event.
February: Black History Month
In honor of Black History Month, four special programs will be presented online by We’ve Known Rivers on Tuesdays at noon. Programs will be available virtually via Zoom.
Each program will be open to the public online using the Zoom app. Some events include prerecorded videos, and live, interactive Q-and-A sessions. See details and Zoom links here. Afterward, a recorded video of each program will be available at OhioChannel.org.
President’s Day Programming at Ohio Statehouse
Virtual Ohio Statehouse Tour Celebrates Ohio Presidents. The Ohio Statehouse Museum Education Center will offer a free virtual tour on Friday, Feb. 12 at 12 p.m. This tour will focus on sharing fascinating information about all the presidents from Ohio. Anyone interested in learning more about the Ohio-born presidents and the role they played in our nation’s history can access this event through Facebook Live. A Facebook account is not required to watch the tour. Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/247421600105850.
Did you know? Of the forty-six presidents in our country’s history, eight of them lived in Ohio. For that reason, Ohio is recognized as “the Mother of Presidents.”
Presidents’ Day Deal at the Statehouse Museum Shop
During the month of February, you get the opportunity to purchase a beautiful replica of the Ohio Statehouse for only $50 (it normally sells for $69). The Statehouse Museum Shop welcomes in-person shoppers from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, and online orders at StatehouseShop.com.
The Statehouse is closed on President’s Day.
Family Day Festival for Ohio Women’s Suffrage Centennial
August 1, 2021 2:30 PM – 6:30 PM. Ohio celebrates the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution for the Ohio Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission Family Day Festival at the Ohio Statehouse.
The festival kicks off with a presentation of the 2021 Ohio Women’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony, the event will feature family activity booths from COSI, Girl Scouts, Girls on the Run, Ohio Library and more! There will also be food trucks, live music, statehouse tours, and other family entertainment will occur throughout the day culminating with a free concert by the Columbus Symphony Orchestra at 5:30pm.
9/11 Memorial Flags 20th Anniversary on Capitol Square
September 9, 2021 5:00 PM – September 13 – 12:00 PM. The Capitol Square Review and Advisory Board (CSRAB) will commemorate 20th anniversary of the attacks of September 11, 2001 with a memorial flag display on the west lawn of the Ohio Statehouse. On Thursday, September 9, 2021, a short program will begin at 5 p.m. on the West Plaza of the Ohio Statehouse. After the program, volunteers from across central Ohio will install the 2,977 flags that comprise the memorial.
The flags represent the 2,977 victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and United Airlines Flight 93. When seen from above, the design represents the World Trade Center towers, with a space in the shape of the Pentagon and an open strip representing the field in Pennsylvania. Located on the West Lawn of the Ohio Statehouse, the memorial will be open to the public from 7 p.m. Thursday, September 9 until 12 p.m. Monday, September 13, 2021.
Volunteers are welcome for installation. Please contact Dayna Jalkanen, djalkanen@ohiostatehouse.org or 614-728-2697 to sign up for this event.
National Fossil Day Tour for Earth Sciences Week
October 13, 2021 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM. Explore fossils in the building stones of the Ohio Statehouse with special guests Mike Angle and Mark Peter of the Ohio Geological Survey, ODNR, and Dale M. Gnidovec, Curator of the OSU Orton Geological Museum. Celebrate Earth Science Week with a public tour of the Ohio Statehouse. The tour is free and open to the public.
Visitors will receive a free copy of the new booklet, Statehouse Fossils: A Guide to Fossils of the Ohio Capitol, by Mark E. Peter.
Haunted Ohio Statehouse Tours
October 15, 16, 22, and 23, 2021. Tours were cancelled in 2020 and online stories were available for viewing. Details for 2021 will be updated in early fall, and tickets will go on sale in September.
Veterans Parade 2021 Cannon Firing at the Ohio Statehouse
November 5, 2021 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM. The 1st Ohio Light Artillery, Battery A will fire a Civil War cannon at 11:30, 11:45 a.m. and 12 p.m. to begin the 2021 Veterans parade in Columbus. After the cannon has been fired three times, the parade starts at noon.
Michael Rupert says
Guided tours of the Ohio Statehouse are now available on weekends too. Meet in the Map Room on the hour from 12 to 3 p.m., Saturday and Sunday.
Ohio Statehouse Museum Education Center exhibits are now open to the public every day. Visitors are welcome!