The Wisconsin State Capitol building, located in Madison, is a Beaux Arts-style building that was completed in 1917. Designed by George B. Post, the building was constructed on the site of the previous state capitol, which burned down in 1904. The building, which is 284 feet tall, is the third building to sit on the current site and is the fourth state capitol building in Wisconsin’s history.
The first capitol building was constructed in the village of Belmont, Wisconsin, in 1836, with the legislature meeting in a hastily constructed wood-frame building. The state government later designated Madison as the state capitol, but the legislature continued to meet in Burlington, Iowa, until a capitol building was constructed in Madison in 1837. This building was a humble Greek Revival-style building, which was replaced by a larger Classical Revival-style structure in stages between 1857 and 1869. This building had a dome inspired by the United States Capitol building, semi-circular porticoes with Corinthian columns, and two short side wings with octagonal towers at the corners. In 1882, the building was modified and extended with new wings that increased the Classical Revival aspects of the building.
The present building’s construction began in 1906, with each wing being built one at a time to provide space to the state government during the construction period. The building underwent a major renovation in the 1970s, which covered up many original features, but later projects between 1988 and 2002 restored the building while updating its systems and functions for the modern needs of the state government.
The exterior of the building’s wings feature porticoes on the ends with Corinthian columns, arched windows on the third floor, rusticated bases with entrance doors and decorative keystones, decorative reliefs featuring festoons over the windows on the porticoes, cornices with modillions and dentils, and pediments with sculptural reliefs created by several sculptors that embody different symbolism.
At the center of the building is the rotunda, which is topped with a large dome that rises from a tall base. This dome is the largest in the world to be entirely clad in granite and is the tallest building in Madison, Wisconsin. The building has a Greek cross footprint, with four five-story wings aligned with the compass directions and radial streets following the compass directions that slice through the surrounding street grid.
The Wisconsin State Capitol building houses the Wisconsin State Assembly and the Wisconsin State Senate, as well as the Wisconsin Supreme Court and the Office of the Governor of Wisconsin. The building is clad in Bethel white granite, sourced from Vermont, with an additional 42 types of stone from a total of eight states and six countries being utilized on the interior of the building. The building is a symbol of Wisconsin’s proud history and serves as a hub of democracy in the state.