The Senator's Desk

The desks of the Senate chamber occupy a unique place in America's political history.

After the British set fire to the U.S. Capitol during the War of 1812, many of the original desks were destroyed. Shortly thereafter, Congress hired New York cabinetmaker Thomas Constantine to create 48 new mahogany desks. As more states joined our nation, the number of Senate desks grew as well. And although they have changed over time, all the desks in use today are patterned after Constantine's original design.

The Senate desks have been moved around over time and are numbered using Roman numerals to track their location, though they are not arranged in numerical order.

Today, Senator Reed sits at desk LXIX (#69). This is the same desk that was once occupied by Reed's predecessor, Senator Claiborne Pell (D-RI). The desk was also used by former Senator John O. Pastore (D-RI), who nominated Reed to West Point in 1967.

To learn more about the history and evolution of the Senate desks, and to view a seating chart and images of Senator's Reed's desk, please visit the Senate's interactive exhibit: Senate Chamber Desks.