(LITTLE ROCK, ARK.) – Secretary of State Cole Jester is reopening the historic bronze doors of the State Capitol to the Arkansas public for the first time in 25 years.

The doors will first be opened on Fridays from 9 am-12 pm, beginning this Friday, February 20th, as a new entrance for the public. Open hours will expand over time.

Purchased for $10,000 from Tiffany & Company in 1910, their value is priceless today. These six doors have become an iconic centerpiece of the Capitol’s architectural beauty. For one hundred and ten years, they have been polished almost every day.

After the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the doors were closed as a regular entrance to the Capitol for security reasons.

“The idea that we have to be less free to be safe is wrong. This year, we have the technology and manpower to open back the Arkansas State Capitol Bronze doors. Walking up the steps and through these historic doors, as the architect intended, is a right of every Arkansan,” said Secretary of State Cole Jester.

Jester credits State Representative Scott Richardson (R-Bentonville) for his collaboration on this project, and the encouragement he’s given over the last year as the Jester Administration has taken on this mission.

“I’m grateful to Secretary of State Cole Jester and his team for restoring public access through the Capitol’s bronze doors — a meaningful part of our state’s heritage that generations of Arkansans have experienced,” Richardson said.