The Beaux Arts-style Capitol Building was built in 1906-1917 to house the state house of representatives, state senate, and offices for the Wisconsin State Government. Designed by George B. Post, it is the fourth state capitol to house the state government since the state’s establishment in 1848. The building replaced the previous state capitol, built in 1857-1869 and expanded in 1882, which burned down in February of 1904. The present building stands 284 feet tall to the top of the statue on the dome and is a personification of the state of Wisconsin. The exterior of 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 has a greek cross footprint with four five-story wings that are aligned with the compass directions and radial streets following the compass directions that slice through the surrounding street grid. The building underwent a major renovation in the 1970s that added modern features to the interior and covered up many original features, with later projects between 1988 and 2002 restoring the building while updating the building’s systems and functions for the modern needs of the state government.
The sides of the wings feature simpler cornices with dentils, pilasters and recessed window openings with arched openings at the ground floor, windows with decorative pedimented headers on the second floor, arched windows on the third floor, two small two-over-two windows on the fourth floor, and a recessed fifth floor features small paired windows, hidden behind a balustrade that runs around the entirety of the building minus the ends of the wings, concealing a low-slope roof at the setbacks on the sides of the wings and above the corner porticoes. The upper roofs of the wings are low-slope with front gabled portions in the middle punctured by skylights, with the roof being almost entirely enclosed by a parapet.
The center of the building consists of a rotunda, which is topped with a large dome that rises from a tall base. The dome is the largest in the world to be entirely clad in granite, and is the tallest building in Madison. There are four semi-circular portions of the facade at the center of the building, each with semi-circular two-story ionic porticos with large terraces and grand staircases featuring decorative copper lampposts, decorative stone balustrades, concealed entrances to the ground floor underneath the terraces, and three doorways on the upper level, with drums surrounded by buttresses featuring small windows and domed roofs above the balustrade on the fifth floor.
The building is the third building to sit on the present site, with the first capitol of Wisconsin upon the formation of Wisconsin Territory in 1836 in the village of Belmont, Wisconsin. The second capitol was a relatively humble Greek Revival-style building constructed in 1837 on the present site of the state capitol, a log and stone building, which was replaced by the larger, Classical Revival-style structure with Romanesque Revival elements constructed in stages between 1857 and 1869, with two short side wings modified and extended in 1882 with new wings. By the turn of the 20th Century, the old Capitol had become inadequate for the growing needs of Wisconsin, which had become wealthy, industrialized, and heavily populated by that point, so study of a replacement capitol building began in 1903.
In February 1904, the old State Capitol burned to the ground when a gas jet ignited a newly varnished ceiling inside the building, which spread quickly despite the building featuring a then-advanced sprinkler system, as the reservoir of the nearby University of Wisconsin was empty, which allowed the fire to spread out of control. The north wing of the building, built in 1882, was the only portion that survived, with many relics, records, and important historical items being lost in the fire, though the state law library was saved thanks to efforts by University of Wisconsin students.
The present building was built on the site of the previous building, with the construction process focusing on completing each wing one at a time to provide space to the state government with as much fiscal efficiency as possible due to financial limitations. Due to this, the north wing was built last to allow the remaining portion of the previous capitol to serve as space for the state government during the construction period, with the central rotunda and dome also being built after the other three wings had been completed, as they serve a more symbolic and less utilitarian purpose than the rest of the building.
The building houses both 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 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, which were created by several sculptors and feature different symbolism embodied by their design.
On the east wing, which is home to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, the sculpture known as Law is located on the portico pediment, on the west wing, which houses the chamber of the Wisconsin Assembly, is a sculpture known as Agriculture, on the north wing, which is home to a hearing chamber, is the sculpture known as Virtues and Traits of Character, and on the south wing, which houses the chamber of the Wisconsin Senate, is a sculpture known as Wisdom and Learning of the World.
The Wisconsin State Capitol building is a symbol of Wisconsin’s history and progress, from the log and stone building of the past to the present structure built of granite and featuring modern amenities to serve the needs of the state government. Its unique design and construction tell the story of Wisconsin’s growth and development, a living testament to the state’s history and continuing commitment to moving forward.