Congressman reveals one of the cool hidden secrets under US Capitol floorboards

A Republican congressman shared a video that purportedly revealed “one of the hidden secrets” under the floorboards of the U.S. Capitol.

“Come with me to see one of the hidden secrets of the Capitol!” North Carolina Rep. Tim Moore posted on X, along with a video revealing a secret door in the floor of the Capitol.

Hidden staircases and passageways reportedly left over from the building’s original construction in the 18th century give a historical glimpse into the past, just as America gets ready for the  250th anniversary of its founding on July 4, 2026.

Come with me to see one of the hidden secrets of the Capitol!

The Lincoln Room is one of my favorite spots to bring visitors — when President Lincoln was serving in the House, he sat by the fireplace in this room to read his letters, but the most interesting part of the room is… pic.twitter.com/hp36jfQrk4

— Congressman Tim Moore (@RepTimMooreNC) May 9, 2025

“The Lincoln Room is one of my favorite spots to bring visitors — when President Lincoln was serving in the House, he sat by the fireplace in this room to read his letters, but the most interesting part of the room is underneath the floorboards,” Moore explained in his post.

The video showed the congressman lifting a floorboard to expose the hidden passageway beneath.

“Construction started in the 1700s, and there are all sorts of little hidden passageways. As you saw, I just pulled this cover up, and you can see…there’s a passageway,” Moore said. “These were old stairs that used to be here that were closed off.”

“We’re just off of what’s called Statuary Hall, which at one time was the actual House chamber.… But this is just an example of some of the little hidden secrets in the Capitol,” the lawmaker continued, noting that small tour groups can see the space for themselves.

“Believe it or not, my big self has actually gotten down and, more importantly, out of this hole,” he told the camera. “I’ve been able to live and tell about it.”

Moore went on to explain that he has been told it was “one of the staircases that British soldiers used went they breached the Capitol” in the War of 1812.

“Known as the ‘Burning of Washington,’ British soldiers in August 1814 set fire to the U.S. Capitol, the Washington Navy Yard and the White House – which was then known as the Presidential Mansion – before storms put out the fires and military personnel were called to D.C. to defend it from British forces,” Fox News noted.

Moore’s video generated plenty of interested commentary on social media.

Fun piece of history. Thank you for sharing.

— Robot Machines (@robot_machines) May 10, 2025

Can you send someone down with the camera and show the rest of the space? Super cool, Congressman!

— Richard England (@REnglandDC) May 10, 2025

This is creepy.

— Crazy Town (@Adail83) May 10, 2025

Cool, but it looks like a security risk.

— Stan Kerr Fringe Minority (@spjk) May 10, 2025

Nobody should get any bright ideas; it is heavily guarded and cannot be entered like before.

— Mrs. M (@RoseMarieMusk) May 10, 2025

I’m not surprised about these hidden and forgotten passageways in the US Capitol Bldg. The building has been revised so many times since 1800, with plans of alterations lost decades (or centuries) ago.

If you look at the room the lawmaker is in, it’s round like an internal…

— K. R. Baylor (@krbaylor618) May 11, 2025

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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.

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