U.S. Capitol Clean-up

View of the U.S. Capitol during Sunrise in January 2019.

The events of January 6 left most of the nation at a standstill, but Architect of the Capitol (AOC) employees immediately went to work, restoring the building and grounds to their proper condition so that Congress could safely reconvene and inaugural preparations could get back on track.

Inside the U.S. Capitol

The HVAC Shop took on an unexpected role during the breach, providing access to their eye wash stations to U.S. Capitol Police officers who were affected by pepper spray or tear gas. "In that moment, it was kind of unbelievable what was unfolding. But as it's unfolding, you just want to make sure everybody was okay," said Clinton Johnson. "It felt good to be able to help, but I just wanted to get through it."

As an AOC employee for nearly 15 years, Johnson said it was hard to see the building in that condition. "But I know that the AOC has a great staff and I know that we can restore it back to what it was," he said. "We'll persevere."

Ricardo Mitchell with the AOC's Labor Division was also on-site that day with his team. "We were here that day of the event. We got evacuated out of the building just like everybody else," he said. "Once they got everything under control, we had to come back in the building and clean up the mess, because the Members were going to return to finish voting. We had to go into the chambers and prepare them so they would be able to come back."

"It was a lot of masks and a lot of broken glass, some broken furniture. They had to barricade the doors," he said. There was a lot of heavy lifting to get the House and Senate Chambers back in shape.

Mitchell found it appalling to see the state the U.S. Capitol was in. "We put hard effort in every day to keep this building maintained. It was a lot of debris, you know? And we had a short time to clean it up. But we just got it done. I have a hardworking team," he said.

"I applaud my team for being so dedicated," Mitchell said. "We had to stay here and work extra hours in order to get the job done. We knew how important it was."

Securing the Building

The Carpentry Shop was also involved in the immediate aftermath. "That night, we went around and assessed the broken windows and some of the broken doors, and tried to make sure the building was secure," said Jeff Walters.

Many of the windows that were broken weren't historic, but some of the interior, historic doors were damaged beyond repair.

"A lot of our job comes with unexpected challenges. There's not a whole lot that surprises us anymore, but seeing the overall condition of the building that night, that, I would have to say, was a bit shocking. I've been with the Architect of the Capitol for maybe 22, 23 years. So I've seen a lot of the things that have gone on here, but I've never seen the building in such disarray," said Walters.

Fortunately, Walters said, "I've got a crew that was with me that worked tirelessly to go out and get the things done that we knew had to be done. When we go around and look at something that needs to be repaired, we're always looking at the solution part of it and not really standing back saying 'Wow, I never thought that would happen.' We just look at it as something that needs to be done."

The U.S. Capitol Grounds

The grounds around the U.S. Capitol were also in need of serious clean-up by the Capitol Grounds and Arboretum team. "We understand that the landscape is the first thing that everybody sees when they come to Capitol Hill," said Jim Kaufmann. "Regardless of where they're going, what building they're going to, they're coming on to the landscape first, and that's their first impression of Capitol Hill."

On Thursday morning, the assessment of the grounds began. "Our team of arborists, masons, gardeners, laborers, mechanics, they were all involved in the clean-up effort, to try to clean as fast as possible," said Katie Serock.

"It was tough for the crew, because these are the areas, our grounds, that we preserve. That's why we're here,” said Kaufmann.

Serock agreed: "It's definitely disheartening to witness that," she said. "It's something that we care so much about. We are creating this vision for the entire country of having this pristine and organized U.S. Capitol. And when you see it go into disarray, it kind of sinks your heart a bit."

"We have great employees that step up to the plate and get the work done," said Serock. "That's our job and we want it to be as beautiful as possible."

Preparing for the Inauguration

With the inauguration on January 20, the AOC's preparations were already well underway. This includes the inaugural platform on the West Front, which the AOC builds from scratch for each inauguration.

"When I left there Wednesday, I was real happy and proud of our team," said Kevin Grooms, who works in the Paint Shop. The white paint on the inaugural stands was completely finished, and they had made it through nearly three-quarters of the blue detail work. "We worked until probably twelve o'clock Wednesday. And the blue paint that was on the deck was actually still wet."

"We came back on Thursday morning, and I mean, it was completely destroyed," he said. "It was just totally demolished. The blue wet paint, they tracked it all over."

There was also trash and debris covering the stands. "Besides the stands having a lot of debris on them, there was a lot of broken glass. And there was a significant amount of residue from the tear gas. It was very difficult cleaning up that area," said Serock, who noted that the U.S. Capitol Police provided important guidance on how to safely handle these items.

"It was a real mess, it was unbelievable. You just can't imagine," said Grooms. "We're still in shock over it." But his team worked through the weekend, "When I left there Sunday afternoon, that deck looked like it did Wednesday. Now, it's pretty much down to touch-ups."

This was a tremendous amount of work in a short amount of time for the team, but "that's just a small part," said Grooms, who pointed out that these efforts are going on across the AOC. "Everyone's doing the same type of thing, you know, everybody just wants to get everything done. We didn't want this to affect us."

Grooms also expressed thanks to the U.S. Capitol Police officers who told his team to evacuate the stands, where they had planned to work until dark that evening. "We would've been right in that mess if we wouldn't have pulled out when we did," he said. "I thanked the officers many times for that, for getting us out of there and out of harm's way."

Expressing Gratitude

The incredible efforts of employees across the AOC have not gone unnoticed. People all across America were able to take solace in seeing order restored to the U.S. Capitol by our hardworking employees.

Morgan Green helps monitor the AOC's web feedback inbox. Typically, she gets a slow trickle of logistical emails throughout the day, but in the past week, the inbox has been flooded with hundreds of messages of appreciation and offers of support.

"We've been sharing many of the messages with employees, and it has really helped raise the spirits of our staff to know that their work is appreciated," Green said.

One email resonated with our team, "I don't believe you hear it often enough, but what you do matters. It's not just what you were tasked with last week, but also what you do every day. It is more appreciated than you realize."

Thank you to all who have reached out to offer your encouragement. We humbly appreciate your support.

---
Editor's Note:
Follow @uscapitol and #CapitolCompliments on Twitter or Instagram for more.

Throughout the remainder of the year we will share some of these special messages with you via #CapitolCompliments. Thank you for recognizing us and the work we do every day. Your support and encouragement has been invaluable! (2/2)
— Architect of the Capitol (@uscapitol) February 11, 2021

Even at a time when the pandemic has limited visitors at the #USCapitol, AOC employees are still able to inspire Americans near and far: https://t.co/K4bir4th5u ✨ #CapitolCompliments
— Architect of the Capitol (@uscapitol) March 4, 2021

Our mission calls us to serve, preserve and inspire. Thank you for recognizing us. 💙 https://t.co/5CNfzmLPVW
— Architect of the Capitol (@uscapitol) April 8, 2022

Comments

I am so thankful for the strong dedicated people like the AOC employees —That help keep our Democracy in place with every minute they are on the job. I was born in Washington DC and lived on 6th SE for over a decade as an adult —so I get tearful every time I see that horrible mob rushing our peoples house on television. It doesn’t matter that I feel so bound to our Nations Capital for the work you do is for all of us —people that live everywhere in this country —that maybe have never made it to such a working important part of the government that the building is —The Capital is not just a figure or of America 🇺🇸—it’s a working part of our government—so thank you all —I wish I could hug every single one of you —just to quell my own tears —tears of happiness that you all are there—

Thank you for all that you do. After the attack on the Capitol, it was reassuring to see both chambers appearing normal on that very night. And now the repairs continue as they always do and when I make my next visit it will look timeless and perfect. I can’t wait. Thank you!

Thank you for your dedication and service. Praying for the safety of all AOC employees and their families.

Thank you for your service. No one realizes just how hard it is to maintain and do repairs to a historic building. The materials that can and can not be used. Maintenance Divisions are in many respects has the hardest job. (Along with Law Enforcement.) I am sure those with time in service at the Capital wanted to sit and cry at what they saw. All their hard work. But you all stepped up and went beyond the call of duty. Stay safe.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for restoring OUR house to it’s beautiful condition!! I have 6 children and it took 3 trips, but they’ve all been through that beautiful building!! I was brought to tears seeing it desecrated in the manner it was!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

Thank you so much, it lifted my heart and hope to see the Capitol and the grounds looking beautiful. By restoring it through your hard work, you restored my faith in our country. Truly, Thank you

I want to add my voice to the many others to thank you for your incredible work, not just now, but always. When I have visited the Capitol, I have always been struck by awe at the care given to keeping the entire complex in such meticulous condition. Thank you also for sharing this post and providing a window into your extraordinary efforts in the wake of this tragic day.

Thank you for your care of the Capitol on January 6 and every day of the year. Your care for the building is care for our country and care for me as a citizen. That events of that day are a vivid reminder of the tension that we hold as a large nation - we are full of terribleness and greatness at the same time. Thank you for being the embodiment of our greatness on a terrible day.

As an architect and landscape architect I deeply appreciate your daily efforts to provide the highest standard of first impression for any and all who come to the US Capital and it’s environs. Bravo for your stewardship and for maintaining true American standards.
Thank you!

Thank you for your hard work in keeping our nation’s capital clean. As a high school junior I visited and it was so exciting. 40 plus years years later I was crying when I saw the disrespectful actions. Thank you for your important work.

Thank you for your dedication and hard work during this extremely difficult situation!! You are much appreciated!!!!

Thank you, AOC staff, for all the work you do every day to keep the Capitol running, preserve the history within the buildings, and keep everything looking its best. Please know that Americans far and wide appreciate your efforts and are sending you lots of support. Be safe, and be well. — Emily, former House staffer 2012-2015

I want to sincerely thank everyone that worked so hard to keep our country safe and orderly. Your jobs have not gone on unnoticed and my family and I are deeply grateful. Thank you again.

The hard work of these people does not go unnoticed! I use to be a housekeeper at a retail store and I knew how difficult that can be. Y’all are incredible!

Thank you for the work you do to take care of our Capitol building each and every day. Your dedication to uphold this beautiful building so it remains a symbol of what we believe in, is so important. We appreciate you.

Hello from San Jose California. I am a fellow historical preservation nerd, gardener and interior designer. Lastly, I love my country. I am so saddened and frankly traumatized by the attack and insurrection of 1/6/21. Thank you for your dedication to our precious historic building and it’s grounds. You are the patriots.

Thank you for your hard work, dedication and expert craftsmanship in taking care of the Capitol and grounds.

Thanks to all of you who work at the Capitol and maintain it, and to all of the extra effort required to repair the damage done by the January 6, 2021 assault on the Capitol. From Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Thank you for your service and dedication. You all are American heroes! We appreciate and applaud your tremendous efforts to restore our beautiful capitol to its grand state in such a timely manner!

Thank you so much for doing an exemplary job cleaning up the Capitol after last week’s riot. You all are so appreciated! Thank you!

Thank you for restoring the Capitol so the work of the Representatives could continue. You were a bright spot in a dark day.

After every tragic event, it beings solace to my heart to hear about the helpers. I need to read about the people who took something awful and made it better. Hearing about how quickly this teamed jumped into action and had to clean up some unthinkable things let me know that things are going to be ok. We may have many more challenges as a nation, but there will be people like you to help and turn it around. Thank you so much for all of your hard work, extra hours, and dedication to democracy.

Thank you for all that you do and continue to do. Your job is greatly appreciated, especially after what happened last week. Consider this a virtual hug!

THANK YOU, from the bottom of my heart , for all that you do, daily, and especially all that you did last week after the horrible Capitol riots and destruction of property. We love you and appreciate all that you do.

Washington, D.C. is my favorite city in the world, I've lived everywhere. I was heartbroken to watch the destruction and vandalism, but knowing that your incredible team was right there to put it all back was comforting. There's so much that needs putting back in order in this country, hopefully your tremendous efforts are getting us back on the right track. We've got to start somewhere! Thank you

To All Staff at the Capitol:
No one stops to think of all the people who maintain our beautiful capitol each and everyday. As a nurse I get that we just go out and do our job everyday with no expectation of a thankyou, but when a simple thanks comes it is so appreciated. So thankyou to all of you for doing your job everyday and especially for the Herculean job to clean up the deviling of our Capitol last week as well as prep for the Ignauguration, it provided a sense of order from the chaos. Stay safe, stay healthy.

It sounds like you are a team that not only works well together but looks out for each other. Peace and gratitude, Rachel from Massachusetts

You all are unsung heroes and I’m proud of your TRUE American spirit! Keep up the amazing work!!

Thank you for sharing all of this about the clean up. I'm just a working mom in Utah but I am incredibly grateful for the work your teams did and are doing for our country and our democracy. Thank you!

You All are Amazing and I Thank YOU ALL, for taking such Great Care of OUR NATION'S CAPITAL ❣️. Your job probably often guess unnituced and unappreciated but you ALL do SHINE ❣️
PLEASE take care of yourselves in the next few weeks, months and stay safe ‼️

Thank you again ‼️

I want to thank you and all of the employees of the AOC for the tremendous work you’ve put in the last week to restore the Capitol. The way you quickly worked to fix the symbols of our democracy makes a huge difference in demonstrating we will not be deterred by those who want to cause violence to our democracy. Heroic efforts on your part, and it made a big difference, especially in our small family, to see the bedrock of our representative government back in action in short order. Thank you doesn’t begin to cover it.

We hope to visit the Capitol again soon.

Thanks to all the employees who worked so hard to get our Capital cleaned up.

I cannot thank all the hardworking custodians, carpenters, gardeners, masons, HVAC technicians, *everyone* there on staff for all your incredible hard work. Your decency and pride in your work are inspiring in times like this. It is people like you who give me hope. Thank you!

Thank you so much for all of your hard work! I hate all of the extra effort that you have had to go through. Please know that we appreciate you and that you make us proud!

Thank you to everyone who maintains this beautiful building and surroundings. I visited the day after the 2017 Women's March, and will return at the earliest opportunity.

I am a former senate staffer and I just want you to know how much I love the Capitol grounds and buildings. I have hundreds of photos on my phone of the flowers in different seasons, the Russell courtyard in the fall. Thank you for making the Capitol so beautiful every day. It made it a joy to work there.

Thank you SO much for all your hard work in the cleanup of the Capitol following the horrible assault on her on Jan. 6. You folks are amazing and I am forever grateful for all you did to clean her up! God bless you all!

My heartfelt gratitude for your work every day but especially after the insurrection on January 6, 2021. It must have broke your hearts to see this beautiful historic building broken and trashed. You are appreciated.

Sending my sincere thanks to all who work to make our capital a place that we can all be proud of, in these sad times, and always. May we always hold the vision of a strong and beautiful government for our country, one where we are able to all work together to create a country of strength and kindness.

Many thanks to every single person who cleaned up the mess and destruction at the U.S. Capitol following the insurrection on January 6, 2021, and to those who restored the building and prepared it once again for the upcoming inauguration of President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. The tireless efforts of so many dedicated people are truly what makes America GREAT!

Having read up on the condition of the Capitol and grounds, just a huge thank you to all who worked so hard to get things back in order. It can’t have been easy, after all you’d just been through. It was a proud moment watching the vote count go through later in the evening- you would never have known what happened in that chamber just hours before. It gave me a lot of hope that we would get through this. Thank you all so much. You had an important role to play, and you came through for us.

Thank you so much for all that you and your teams did. It was comforting to see order restored and the Congress be able to do their important work. It couldn’t have happened without you all collaborating. Live from Indiana💙💙❤️💙💙

So nice to see people who care about their work

I want to say how both, deeply saddened and proud I am for all who have had to deal with this clean-up of our nation's capitol. My gratitude to you all for what you do and what you have accomplished in such a short time is deep.
Thank you AOC team.
Tracy Brasell-Byrd

I am so grateful for you and your staff. I lived in Washington when I was younger. Then and since I have many times visited the Capitol and take great pride in it. I was surprised at how deep that sense of pride and ownership went when I saw it besmirched and violated. I felt like I had been punched and violated too. No one should have had to clean up that mess., but getting it clean was so important to send the message out that lawlessness and violence will not triumph. You guys are heroes. I am very grateful for your courage and care. I wish I could pin a medal on or send a bonus to each and every one of you.

I went to law school in DC. As a lifelong Californian there wasn’t much I liked about DC, but having the opportunity to experience our historical landmarks is something for which I will be forever thankful. I lived down the street from the Capitol and walked past it every day on my way to school and it filled me with awe every time. One of the first things I did upon moving to DC, was take my Mom to watch July 4th fireworks from the Capitol lawn. It remains one of our fondest memories.
Watching the events of January 6th saddened and angered me. Please know that there are millions of us who empathize and share your pain. A big thank you to all who work so hard to maintain this beautiful part of history.

Sincere thanks to all the AOC teams who restored our beautiful Capitol building and grounds, especially after bearing witness to Wednesday’s violence. Your dedication and perseverance are inspiring! Thank you.

Thank you. Nothing could happen in Congress without you and your sacred labor. It's a privilege to be your colleague in the executive branch.

Thank you so much!

So sad to see all of the destruction. Thank you to all involved in cleaning up the destruction and restoring our precious Capitol building.

U.S. Capitol Clean-up

Inside the U.S. Capitol

Securing the Building

The U.S. Capitol Grounds

Preparing for the Inauguration

Expressing Gratitude

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