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1958: Growth Spurt

Capitol Hill Expansion Plans Were in Full Swing in 1958

Despite many changes, Capitol Hill looked much the same in 1958 as it does today — that is, the campus then, as it is now, was decorated with cranes in the sky and mounds of dirt on the ground. But instead of the Capitol Visitor Center, in 1958 the construction project was the Senate Subway tunnel (left), as well as the Dirksen Senate Office Building (right), which opened in October 1958. This was also the year in which the extension of the Capitol’s East Front was begun (below). That project had been the most dramatic change made to the Capitol’s East Front until today’s construction of the CVC.

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