State House (Pennsylvania) facts for kids
State House is a special house in Pennsylvania. It's the official home for the Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania. This big house is located on the land of Fort Indiantown Gap in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania. It's unique because it's the only official home for a Lieutenant Governor in the whole United States.
History of the State House
The State House was built a long time ago, in the 1940s. It's a three-story house, about 2,400 square feet in size. That's pretty big! It even has a garage for five cars and a swimming pool.
This house was first used as a summer home for the Governor of Pennsylvania. But in 1971, it became the official residence for the Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Department of General Services takes care of it.
Ernest Kline was the first Lieutenant Governor to live in the State House. It costs the state government money each year to keep the house running.
Recent Changes to the State House
In 2019, when John Fetterman became Lieutenant Governor, he decided not to live in the house. Instead, he chose to open the grounds to the public.
His wife, Gisele Barreto Fetterman, helps manage the swimming pool. The pool is now used for swim classes, summer camps, and other fun public events.
Because the house wasn't being used as a home, a state senator named Joe Scarnati suggested a new idea in 2019. He proposed that the state should sell the State House. The money from the sale would then be used to help people find affordable homes and to support military veterans.
