State Office Building hearing room photograph

The photograph shows the interior of the hearing room, State Office Building, Columbus Ohio, ca. 1935. Now the Thomas J. Moyer Ohio Judicial Center, the building houses the Ohio Supreme Court and related judicial offices. The perspective is from the back of the room looking toward the front. In the foreground are rows of seating that face a single row of tables and chairs. Three wall murals depicting physical labor form a dramatic backdrop to the room, which was designed by architect Harry Hake to serve as the site of workers' compensation hearings. Cincinnati artist John Holmer (1894-1962) painted a series of eleven murals for the hearing room. Collectively titled "The Progress of Industry," the murals depict scenes of Ohio industry from its earliest days to the early 1930s, when the State Office Building was constructed. Construction of the building began in 1930 and was completed in 1933. The 14-story, white marble structure, designed by Cincinnati architect Hake is a classic example of the Art Moderne style. The interior of the building includes public spaces decorated with murals, mosaics and bas-reliefs that tell the history of Ohio and its industries. The building underwent a historic renovation that was completed in 2004, when it became the Ohio Judicial Center, permanent home of the Ohio Supreme Court. In 2011 the court renamed the center in honor of the late Chief Justice Thomas Moyer, who was the second-longest-serving chief justice in state history at the time of his death in April 2010