Minnesota’s state capital is a special one. Not just because it is grandly constructed with marble from Italy, France, Egypt, Sicily and Greece, as well as Georgia, Tennessee, and Vermont. Or because it is the only capital building with an inlaid band of pipestone jasper, a stone quarried only in Minnesota and used by the tribes of the Northern Plains Indians for ceremonial pipes. It was special to us because Minnesota was Roger’s home for many years and because Hubert Humphrey is a man we both highly respect and we wanted to see how the people of Minnesota chose to honor him.

Minnesota military heroes dominated the exhibits and statues of the first floor, and we were surprised at how much Minnesotans participated in the Civil War. They were present at Gettysburg where, in one battle, a battalion lost 82% of its men. It was up the beautiful marble staircase to the second floor where the House, Senate and Supreme Court chambers are located that we found a bronze bust of Humphrey, recognizing his many years in Congress representing Minnesota and his years as vice-president.

I was disappointed not to find a full statue until we realized that a 7 foot bronze statue of Humphrey had just been dedicated the previous year as a memorial located on the southwest side of Capital Mall. Bill Clinton and Walter Mondale helped dedicate the memorial.