Annapolis, Maryland: Oldest State Capitol, former U.S. Capitol, St. Anne crown the two highest points.
Drive into the center of Annapolis off of US 50 and two buildings will capture your attention. This is by design as laid out in province documents as far back as 1695. When the capital of the province was moved to Annapolis, the royal governor laid out a street plan that organized the highest point of two circles for the state house and the second highest circle for the church. Three statehouses have occupied the top spot with the current one being the oldest U.S. State capitol in continuous use dating back to 1772. In 1783 and 1784 it also served as U.S. Capitol. Queen Anne became Monarch in 1702 and the first St. Anne's Episcopal church was built about 1700. The current and third St. Anne's dates back to 1859 after a spectacular fire on Valentines day in 1858 burned down the second church building.
The three buildings on each circle are connected as church and state were connected in Colonial times. In 1692, on order of the king and queen, William and Mary, became a crown colony, and the Maryland provincial assembly, then located in St. Mary's City, voted "the Establishment of the Protestant Religion within this Province." Thirty Church of England parishes were set up throughout the colony, one of which became St. Anne's. Sheriffs were required to collect taxes, paid in tobacco, to be turned over to parish vestries to build necessary churches and chapels and then use the proceeds to support the clergy. Imagine the outrage this setup would cause in today's world.
Opposition of Quakers and Roman Catholics in Maryland led the monarchs' Privy Council to veto the act. The act was passed and rejected three more times before Queen Anne signed it after becoming monarch. The Act included provisions for religious toleration for both Catholics and Quakers who were allowed to have their own places of worship but had to pay the tobacco tax. You can dive deeper into these church and state connections by going to www.stannes-annapolis.org/history.
The State House grounds had it's own symbols of distinction leaning toward a separation of space from it's lower church circle. The capitol is topped by the largest wooden dome in the United Sates constructed without nails. Construction was started in 1772 but not finished until 1797 due to the ongoing Revolutionary War and maybe that lack of nails. The large dome is topped by a balustraded balcony, another octagonal drum and a lantern capped by a lightning rod. The rod was constructed and grounded according to the direct specifications of its inventor, Benjamin Franklin. The building was surrounded by a low brick wall in 1818. Could this be a wall of separation between church and state? Actually, it was to prevent cattle incursions, and was replaced by an iron fence with a granite base in 1836.
The history of church and state connections and separation can be studied here on two circles on the crown of Annapolis in the state of Maryland. Take a small detour off US 50 before the bay bridge and the US Naval Academy for a royal lesson in time.