Hartford, Connecticut

The mandate for the designers of Hartford’s new City Hall in 1915 was to create a building that essentially resembled the Old State House, from where the government was moving. The round-arched windows and balustrades were recreated in brick and faced with white Bethel granite in a Beaux Arts style. The roof is fashioned from copper and tile; all of the entrances are bronze. The inquisitive-looking stone lions on the south side of the building on Arch Street have been residents of Hartford since 1827. They first home was on the roof of the Phoenix Bank at 803 Main Street. The Phoenix Bank was chartered in July 1814 and was the first non-Congregational Church-owned and -operated bank in the state. They were moved to the sidewalk in front of the bank but were hassled by a city inspector in 1918 who claimed the lions were an impediment to traffic and ordered their removal. The bank offered them to the city with the proviso that they be treated with respect and in 1922 the duo was installed at City Hall.