4th Grade Field Trip - Part III

 After lunch, the students loaded the bus for a short trip to the Governor's Mansion.  Tours of the Governor's residence are only given on Thursdays so the place was very busy with tour groups.  The Governor and First Lady have their living quarters on the second floor; so, the tour includes the main floor and basement.

 This is the State Dining Room where dinners are held for distinguished guests.  The china has the Nebraska State Seal on it.  The tour guide told a story about the chandelier being cleaned and part of it breaking because the cleaning person didn't take the time to move the stool he was standing on and it collapsed to the ground.

 The current governor's residence was built in 1957.  It used to be in another location.  This is the foyer.

 On the floor in the foyer, is this rug.  Throughout the rug are various symbols of Nebraska for example:  the state flower, state bird, state animal, etc.  The theme of Nebraska is clear throughout the house.

 Downstairs is the Heritage Room.  The cases that line the wall are filled with dolls depicting the 1st ladies of the state throughout the years.  The first ladies leave behind a swatch of fabric or the whole dress from the inauguration of the governor to be made into their doll for display.  Some of the dolls even have real locks of hair from the governors' wives. 

 After the governor's mansion, we went across the street to the State Capitol building.  Every 4th Grade student studies Nebraska history in social studies so it is fitting to make it part of the field trip.

 Someday this photo could end up on their senior class video for graduation.

 The students had a fabulous tour guide at the capitol.  She gave them so much information about the State of Nebraska.  Unfortunately, the students by this time were starting to really get tired and lacked the focus needed to really get the whole benefit.  The legislature had already ended for the day so we did not get to see them in session.  But, Nebraska is the only state in the United States that has a unicameral government, meaning that we only have one house.

This was our last room on the tour, the Nebraska Supreme Court chambers.  This room was beautiful and it is built to absorb sound and not have an echo like the rest of the building.

After the tour, the bus was loaded and the trip home started.  We got back to the parking lot at school at 5:30 p.m.  It was a long, but fun day!

Take care,
Michelle