A Louisville, Kentucky couple has checked off one of the more ambitious bucket-list items imaginable: visiting all 50 state capitol buildings, a journey that began in 2014 and wrapped up in early August 2026. Mary Ann and Tony Zierer, both retired, spent more than 12 years working their way across the country one statehouse at a time, collecting favorites, least-favorites, and a few travel horror stories along the way.
Their trip started at the Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg in 2014, according to WDRB. That building, dedicated in October 1906, drew a famous compliment from President Theodore Roosevelt, who called it “the handsomest building I ever saw,” per the Pennsylvania Capitol. Designed by architect Joseph Huston as a self-described “Palace of Art,” the Harrisburg statehouse features a 272-foot dome modeled after St. Peter's Basilica in Rome and hundreds of stained-glass windows.
A Dozen Years, One Shared Bucket List
Mary Ann told WDRB the goal started as hers before becoming something the couple pursued together. She said she and Tony have always been drawn to history, and the pair have been together 32 years and married for 28 of them, according to the station's report. What began as a personal itch turned into a joint mission spanning more than a decade of road trips and flights.
Along the way, the Zierers made an early stop at the West Virginia State Capitol in Charleston, visiting it after pulling off their route back to Louisville in 2014, per the same account. That building, designed by architect Cass Gilbert and dedicated in 1932, carries its own bragging rights: its 293-foot gold-leafed dome stands nearly five feet taller than the U.S. Capitol dome in Washington, D.C., according to the West Virginia Legislature. Gilbert also designed the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington.
Crowning a Prettiest and an Ugliest
Of all the capitols they toured, the Zierers ranked the Massachusetts State House in Boston as the prettiest, WDRB reported. Designed by Charles Bulfinch and completed in 1798 on land once owned by John Hancock, the building's dome started out covered in wooden shingles before Paul Revere's company copper-plated it in 1802; it wasn't gilded with gold leaf until 1874, according to the Salem Witch Museum. Built on Beacon Hill, it remains one of the nation's oldest active statehouses.
At the other end of their rankings sits the Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville, which the couple named the ugliest of the bunch, per the WDRB article. Designed by architect William Strickland in the Greek Revival style, the building holds a distinction no other statehouse can claim: it is the only state capitol in the country with human remains buried inside its exterior stone walls, according to the Nashville Scene. Strickland himself died in 1854 during construction and was interred in the building's north wall; the grounds also house the tomb of President James K. Polk.
Home-State Pride and Harrowing Traffic
Not every ranking was about looks. The couple gave top honors for food to the Kentucky State Capitol in Frankfort, their own home state's statehouse, the WDRB report notes. Completed in 1910 in the Beaux-Arts style, the Frankfort building features marble imported from Vermont and Italy and a grand staircase modeled after the one at the Paris Opera House. City of Frankfort records show that the city’s first statehouse was built by 1794 but burned in 1813, while its successor was completed in 1816 and burned in 1824. According to the City of Frankfort, the Old State Capitol Building was designed by Gideon Shryock in the Greek Revival style and served as Kentucky’s capitol from 1829 to 1909.
Not every leg of the trip went smoothly. Mary Ann said the couple was once told they could not enter the Missouri State Capitol in Jefferson City during a visit, according to WDRB. That kind of turnaway is not unheard of: public access to legislative galleries, hearing rooms, and tour routes at the Missouri statehouse can be restricted or suspended during active legislative sessions, major debates, or state events, according to usstatecapitols.com. The current building opened in 1917 after a 1911 fire destroyed its predecessor.
New York brought its own kind of test. Tony described driving into New York traffic as harrowing for someone accustomed to driving in Louisville, per the WDRB account. The Albany capitol he was navigating toward is no small building either: constructed over 32 years from 1867 to 1899 at a cost of $25 million, it was the most expensive government building of its era, according to Wikipedia. It's known for its Million Dollar Staircase, featuring 77 hand-carved stone faces, and sits in downtown Albany's Empire State Plaza.
An Open-Air Stop in the Pacific
The couple's travels also took them to Honolulu, Hawaii, WDRB reported. The Hawaii State Capitol there breaks from tradition entirely: dedicated in March 1969 to mark ten years of statehood, it was built without a central dome, instead featuring an open-air central courtyard exposed to the sky, ringed by reflecting pools meant to represent the Pacific Ocean and 40 perimeter columns shaped like coconut palms, according to Atomic Ranch. It replaced Iolani Palace as the seat of state government. Hawaii is one of just 11 states whose capitol skips the traditional dome altogether, a group that also includes Alaska, Florida, Louisiana, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee, and Virginia, per Wikipedia.
According to the California State Capitol Museum, the statehouse’s massive six-year restoration project cost $67 million in total and was completed in 1982.
Beyond the architecture debates, Mary Ann offered a broader takeaway from twelve years of crisscrossing the country. She said people may have political differences but that ultimately everyone wants to help everyone else, according to WDRB. She and Tony also found lighter common ground on the road, telling the station they enjoy spirited discussions about flowers.
A Rare Travel Milestone
Finishing all 50 state capitols is a narrower feat than it might sound. While thousands of travelers complete visits to all 50 states, touring every state capitol is a more specialized pursuit that milestone travel organizations say often takes over a decade of planning, according to the All Fifty Club, which tracks such achievements alongside state and national park visits. For the Zierers, that decade-plus arc ran from a 2014 stop in Harrisburg to a finish line reached earlier this month, capping a journey that took them from Beacon Hill to Beaux-Arts marble to an open-air courtyard in the middle of the Pacific.
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