State House (Pennsylvania) facts for kids

State House is the official residence of the Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania. The mansion is located on the grounds of Fort Indiantown Gap in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania. Originally a secondary Pennsylvania Governor's Residence, it is the only official residence of a Lieutenant Governor in the United States.

History

State House was built in the 1940s. The three-story house is 2,400-square foot house and includes a five-car garage and a swimming pool. The house, originally a summer residence for the Governor of Pennsylvania, was designated as the official residence of the Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania in 1971 and is under the control of the Pennsylvania Department of General Services. It is the only official residence of a Lieutenant Governor in the United States. It is located on the grounds of Fort Indiantown Gap. Ernest Kline was the first Lieutenant Governor to live at State House. The house costs the state government roughly $400,000 a year to maintain.

In 2019 Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman decided not to move into the residence upon being elected, instead choosing to open the grounds to the public. Fetterman's wife, Second Lady Gisele Barreto Fetterman, oversees the management of pool use for swim classes, summer camps, and other public functions. On May 9, 2019 Joe Scarnati, a Republican state senator and former lieutenant governor, proposed legislation that would require the Department of General Services to sell the residence, with proceeds going towards affordable housing and assisting military veterans, since the residence is not being used.