Cupolas of Capitalism
State Capitol Building Histories

States from T to V
View States: A-B,  C-E,  F-IL,  IN-K,  L-ME,  MI-MO,  N-NE,  NO-O,  P-S,  T-V,  W-Z

South front elevation. Delineated by Tanya Wattenburg, Dale Hall, & Murray Miller in 1988 for the Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress).

Historic architectural drawing of the Texas State Capitol
Building.  Courtesy of the Library of Congress (H.A.B.S.)

States with Capitol Buildings featuring prominent exterior cupolas are highlighted in yellow.  Historical information appearing on this page comes from the same sources acknowledged on the first page of this gallery.

Click on any picture to see an enlarged version, or to view the other historic images available in the Cupolas of Capitalism Picture Gallery.
 
STATE CITY STATE CAPITOL BUILDING DATE(s) / ARCHITECT(s) BLDG. DESCRIPTION(s), IMAGE(s) and SITE LINK(s)
Tennessee Nashville 1845-54, Capitol designed and construction begun / William Strickland (who dies in 1854, and is buried in a basement vault).

1854-57, construction continues / Francis Strickland (son of William).

1857-58, construction continues without architect.

1858-59, library designed and built, finalizing interior work and completion of capitol building  / H. M. Akeroyd.

1860-61, landscaping and other site improvements / William Pritchard.

1953-59, exterior renovation &  interior restoration / Charles W. Waterfield et. al.

1984-88, exterior renovations and partial interior restoration / Waterfield & Goodwin with Hickerson & Falkes.		 Historic photo showing the South Carolina State House. From the Library of Congress's Historic American Buildings Survey.
Greek Revival capitol building, featuring a central square tower with a cupola on top.  The circular cupola is a modified replica of the Choragic Monument of Lysicrates in Athens.  198 feet tall.  Pictures and more info are available offsite, with a short article from the Tennessee State Museum; some modern 3D views of the building; a great building photo gallery from photographer Edward Crim; another photo gallery from Mary Ann Sullivan's Digital Imaging Project; a building description from Beverly Hernandez; and a period drawing and building history from Kirchner Prints.
Texas Austin 1881-88, Capitol designed and built / Elijah E. Myers (dismissed shortly before project completion).

1988-95, capitol modernization and restoration / 3D International, Inc. with Ford, Powell, and Carson, Inc.		 Partial view of the Texas State Capitol Building's north elevation. Photo courtesy of Pat and Debbi Furrie, taken in June of 2003.
Italian Renaissance Revival statehouse.  Features a central circular drum tower capped with dome and cupola.  Approx. 292 feet tall.  The cupola is crowned with the Goddess of Liberty statue.  More photos and building info offsite with official capitol information pages here and here.  One includes this photo gallery.  A photo album is also available from photographer Edward Crim.
Utah Salt Lake City (Old and New Capitol Buildings) 1891-94, Old Capitol designed and built (originally constructed as the Salt Lake City and County Building, and used as the Utah State Capitol from 1896-1915) / Henry Monheim, George W. Bird, and Willis T. Proudfoot formed the short-lived architectural partnership of Monheim, Bird, and Proudfoot for the project.  My sources credit Bird as the lead designer.

1973-89, Miscellaneous minor restoration work to mid 80's. Major seismic upgrade and complete restoration from 1985-89. Building now called the Salt Lake City and County Building once more / The Ehrenkrantz Group.

1911-16, New Capitol designed and built / Richard K. A. Kletting.

1998-2001, preparation of capitol restoration master plan, driving the following two projects / Cooper Roberts, Simonsen Architects (CRSA) of Salt Lake City, working with the Capitol Preservation Board.
2001-2004, East and West Administration Buildings constructed behind the original capitol building / joint venture of FFKR Architects; Gillies, Stransky, Brems & Smith (GSBS); and CRSA (all Salt Lake City architects).

2002 to Jan. 2008, renovation and seismic upgrades to exiting capitol building / joint venture VCBO Architecture and Max J. Smith Architects (MSJA) of Salt Lake City, with Schooley Caldwell Associates of Columbus, OH.		 Historic photo showing the old Utah State Capitol Building. From the Library of Congress's Historic American Buildings Survey.
Richardsonian Romanesque Old Capitol Building.  Tall central clock tower with a steeply pitched pyramidal roof and finial/cupola.  239 feet tall.  More info offsite with this official illustrated history and another illustrated building history from the Utah Geological Society.

Front elevation of the Utah State Capitol Building. Photo courtesy of Les R. Center, taken in May of 2001.
Italian Renaissance Revival New Capitol Building.  Central circular drum tower capped with copper covered dome and cupola.  285 feet tall.  More info offsite with a Flash driven virtual tour, description, and history from the State of Utah Capitol Preservation Board; another virtual tour from the official State of Utah website; and this illustrated building history from the Utah Geological Society.  Info on the latest restoration and new building construction is available from the Utah Capitol Capitol Preservation Board.  Historic construction photos are available via the J. Willard Marriott Digitized Collections at the University of Utah.  More photos and building history are available here, here, and here.  Also available offsite is Jeff Schmerker's photo essay and Virtual Guidebooks' QuickTime panorama(favors viewing via Firefox browser).
Vermont Montpelier 1834-36, Capitol designed and built / Ammi Burnham Young.  Burned in 1857, but portico survives and is incorporated into next Capitol.  Based on the Greek Temple of Theseus.

1857-59, Capitol reconstructed on grander scale / Thomas W. Silloway, followed by Joseph R. Richards.

1888, annex built to house Supreme Court and State Library / ? Architect.		 Front elevation of the Vermont State Capitol building. Photo courtesy of Pat and Debbi Furrie, taken in June of 2003.
Greek Revival front portico from earlier capitol incorporated into newer Renaissance Revival building.  Central circular drum tower capped with a gold leafed dome and cupola-like pedestal supporting a statue of Ceres, the mythological Greek Goddess of Agriculture.  136 feet tall.  More info available offsite with this official virtual tour.  A brief photo description and a short photo essay are also available.
Virginia Richmond 1785-90, Capitol designed and built /  Charles-Louis Clerisseau, the French architect, provided the design and plans at the request of Thomas Jefferson.  This was Virginia's first permanent capitol in Richmond.
 
1800, walls covered with stucco.

1870, Supreme Court floor above the House of Delegates collapses in an upper level room under the weight of spectators, killing 62 and injuring 251.

1904-06, flanking wings added / ? Architect.

1962, interior renovated and remodeled / ? Architect.

2003-07, major restoration, focusing on the capitol's historic 1906 appearance.  New addition and public entrance built in hill beneath the portico on the south side, including a new reception area, cafe, exhibition area, offices, and miscellaneous service spaces / Hillier Architecture (now tied to RMJM).		 Early 20th century view of the Virginia State Capitol. Historic postcard image courtesy of Chris Miller.
Low gable roofed Neoclassical capitol (Roman Imperial Revival in this case).  Central portion based on the Maison Cairee, an ancient and very influential Roman temple in Nimes, France.  83 feet 4 inches tall.  No real exterior dome or cupola, although the roof does have several low boxy appendages that might be called cupolas (some are probably clerestories).  More building pictures, history, and tour info available offsite from the Virginia General Assembly website.  The Virginia Capitol website includes info on the latest restoration and addition.  An excellent building photo album is available from photographer Edward Crim.

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