During the State of the Union address Tuesday night, House Speaker Mike Johnson will display the marble gavel that America’s first President, George Washington, used in 1793 to lay the cornerstone of the U.S. Capitol building.
He will be the first speaker to do so, in a gesture meant to honor the 250th anniversary of America’s founding.
The U.S. Capitol Historical Society worked with Mr. Johnson and Potomac Lodge No. 5, the oldest Masonic Lodge in Washington and the custodian of Washington’s gavel, to arrange for it to rest on the speaker’s rostrum during President Trump’s address.
“Complementing the State of the Union with George Washington’s Gavel beautifully reflects the importance of preserving and sharing the Capitol’s history; helping Americans connect with the people, places, and traditions that continue to shape our nation,” said Roswell Encina, president of the U.S. Capitol Historical Society. “A significant part of the Society’s mission is to bring Congress to the People. During America250, it is especially satisfying to have helped bring the People to Congress.”
On Sept. 18, 1793, Washington led a procession of volunteer artillery and local Masonic lodges in crossing the Potomac River to the future Capitol building site where he stepped into a trench that had been dug, laid a silver engraved plate and lowered the cornerstone onto it.
Washington gifted the marble gavel to the head of Potomac Lodge No. 5, Valentine Reintzel, who had assisted the president during the ceremony.
“Reintzel kept it safely in his possession until his passing and then returned back to the lodge for safe keeping,” the lodge says on its website. “Throughout its 225 year history, it has been loaned out by the lodge to lay the cornerstone of several other edifices across the District and the United States including the Washington Monument, the Smithsonian Institution, and the National Cathedral.”
