The Visit To the House

The Oakmont Regional Baseball team took a trip to Boston, In honor of their 2024 state championship win! They went into Boston on a Wilson bus with the whole varsity team and coaches along with Eric Dawley and Mike Milligan. Throughout their experience in Boston they stopped at the State house where they met Johnathan Zlotnik of the Democratic party for the 2nd Worcester District. Zlotnik congratulated them on their historical accomplishment, then began the tour.

They entered the state house through the General Hooker Entrance. They went through some very historical places such as the nurse hall, memorial hall, grand staircase, great hall, Senate reading room, Senate chamber, and the house chamber, where they were greeted by Kimberly Ferguson of the Republican party for the 1st Worcester District. This is where they took their celebratory photo.They also visited the Governor room, and lastly the governors balcony.

These places were very interesting and Zlotnik gave them a background on every room. As Oakmonts head coach Caouette said “It was truly a great sense of accomplishment to be recognized by our State Reps. Zlotnik and Ferguson. To see first hand how our state government functions, and to experience the history of that building while being honored under that same dome is incredible.  To get to do it twice is even better.” The other coaches couldn’t agree more.

After seeing these historic places they invited the team to have pizza and cookies in a meeting room next to the house chamber, the pizza was amazing. This is an amazing experience and Oakmont is very appreciative of Johnathan Zlotnik for reaching out to Caouette and inviting them back to the house for a second time.

Eric Dawley Oakmonts athletic director, joined the baseball team on their trip for an excellent experience. As Dawley said “It was my first experience at the state house and I thought it was pretty awesome getting to see pretty much the entire facility and to learn the background of our government.” The Baseball team appreciates all the hard work Dawley puts into the baseball team and being a big help in setting up the trip.

History on the house

Some people might not know but there was actually a state house before the one in use right now. The first state house was originally a townhouse and then grew to serve the town and the country, leading to it being called a state house. It served as the Commonwealth’s first State House until January 11, 1798, then called the town hall for Boston.

The first State House served through many historical events such as- The creation of North America’s first (and the world’s third-oldest) military organization, now known as the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts, and The Boston Massacre of March 5, 1770. Years after these events the building fell into disrepair until many years later the building was reconstructed and preserved to where it is now. 

The new and current State House was completed in 1998. The most recognizable part of the house is the golden dome. The dome was originally covered in wooden shingles and wouldn’t support the rain causing flooding, then copper-plated, before being gilded in 23-karat gold leaf. Many people either don’t notice or aren’t sure what it is, but there’s a wooden pine cone on the top to represent the pine trees that built the homes of the early settlers. 

During World War II, the dome was painted dark gray to avoid attracting attention from enemy ships at sea or enemy planes overhead—and to reduce reflected light during the day or during ordered blackouts at night. There are multiple bullet proof rooms in the house along with a bomb shelter, in case of any serious events. As of November 2024 there are 132 reps for the democratic party, 24 reps for the republican party, 1 independent, and 3 vacancies. This leads the decisions in the house very one sided.

The house is open Monday-Friday: 9:00am-5:00pm, where you can book a tour of the house with the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s State House Tours Division, rent a public event space, and attend legislative sessions and public hearings. The house is accessible by foot, bus, car, or a short walk from the train station. It is a very informative tour and is worth your time. 

The adventure of the Duck Tours

“We thought you boys deserved something else,” said Athletic director Eric Dawley. A DUCK BOAT! Announced everyone. After the announcement they left the state house and went back on the Wilson bus to the Boston Aquarium where they loaded onto the duck boat and took a group photo. Thanks to Mr. Dawley, Mr. Stiles and Mr. Stiles’s daughter Carson who worked with the duck boat company for setting up the duck boat.

The employee who told the team all about the history in and around Boston was hilarious, well very informative. He taught the team a game where whenever they passed another duck boat he would yell and the whole team would explode with quacks and whichever boat was loader won.  We then went to some of the most historical parts of Boston including the building where the declaration of independence was signed.

Then they slid into the water to explore the Charles river, where they explored the history on both sides of the river- Boston and Cambridge. They went under the Longfellow Bridge, then returned back to the museum where the Wilson bus waited to bring them back to Oakmont Regional High School.

What a Experience

The Oakmont Spartans Baseball Team, coaches, and everyone else involved are extremely thankful for this experience. Most people don’t get to experience what the baseball team got to. So most people don’t understand how awesome it is to get notice from the government for an accomplishment from such a small district. They all give a big and meaningful thank you to everyone who took their time to congratulate them on this accomplishment,TWICE!