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Washington State Capitol

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The Washington State Capitol in Olympia, Washington is the seat of government of the state of Washington. Instead of a single building, as in most states, the capitol consists of a campus with several buildings on it. The Washington State Legislature, Washington Supreme Court, and Washington Governor's Mansion are all located on the capitol campus.

History

The First Capitol Building

After Olympia became the capital of the Washington Territory in 1854, the city's founder, Edmund Sylvester, gave the legislature 12 acres (49,000 m²) of land upon which to build the capitol, located on a hill overlooking what is now known as Capitol Lake. A two-story wood-frame building was constructed on the site, where the legislature met starting in 1928. When President Benjamin Harrison approved Washington's state constitution in 1889, he donated 132,000 acres (534 km²) of federal lands to the state, with the stipulation that income from the lands was to be used solely for construction of the state capitol.

The Third Capitol Building

The courthouse became the location of all agencies of the state government, and within a few years the legislature decided the building was too small. A new State Capitol Commission met in 1911 to build a group of buildings, rather than a single facility, to serve as the capitol. The commission held another competition for an architect, and selected the design submitted by the firm of Walter Wilder and Harry White. The Olmsted Brothers also influenced the design of the Capitol Campus in consultation with Wilder and White in 1911-12 and designed and supervised the landscaping for the Campus from 1927-31. Construction began in 1912, and the Temple of Justice was completed in 1920, followed by the Insurance Building and the power and heating plant. After multiple revisions to the plans, the Legislative Building was completed in 1928. Additional buildings on the capitol campus were constructed over the next several decades. The Capitol Campus was placed on the National Register of Historic Districts in 1974 and contains or contributes to some of the most valued views in the State including the Olympic Mountains, Puget Sound, Mt. Rainier, the Capitol Dome and the Capitol Group of buildings on the hill. The design of the Capitol Campus is a grand example of the City Beautiful Movement from the Progressive era of the early 20th Century.

Buildings

360° panorama of the Temple of Justice and the Legislative Building on an August afternoon.

Located on the campus are the Legislative Building, Temple of Justice, John A. Cherberg Senate office building, Irv Newhouse Senate office building, Insurance Building, John L. O'Brien House office building and several other office buildings. The Capitol Conservatory, built in 1939 by the Works Progress Administration, housed various types of flora until it was permanently closed on September 5, 2008. The campus also hosts many veterans memorials.

The state seal, which is featured throughout the buildings on the state flag, tapestries, railing, door handles and elsewhere, was designed by Talcots by making two circles and putting a two-cent stamp of George Washington in the middle. There is even a brass seal embedded in the floor of the rotunda, whose nose has become flattened over time as a result of people walking on it; the seal is now roped off from foot traffic.

The Legislative Building

Interior of the Legislative Building.

The Legislative Building houses the Washington State Legislature and the offices of the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, and Treasurer. This building is the dominant feature of the capitol grounds, with its dome reaching a height of 287 feet (87 m), making it the tallest self-supporting masonry dome in the United States, and fourth tallest in the world, surpassed only by St. Peter's Cathedral, Rome, St. Paul's Cathedral, London, and St. Isaac's Cathedral, St. Petersburg. It features the largest quantity of marble of any state capitol, imported from four different countries (Belgium, France, Germany and Italy), and Alaska. The exterior sandstone was collected from Wilkeson Quarries, Pierce County, Washington. There are a number of features commemorating Washington’s addition to the Union as the 42nd state. 42 granite steps lead up to the building’s North entrance and the Legislative Building currently possesses one of five 42-star flags. These were never official flags because Idaho became a state shortly after their release.

All lamps and Roman fire pots in the rotunda were made by Louis Comfort Tiffany. These comprise the largest collection of Tiffany bronze in the world and Tiffany’s final large commission before his death in 1933. The five-ton (4.53 metric ton) chandelier above the rotunda is suspended 50 feet (15.24 meters) above the floor by a 101-foot (30.7 m) chain and measures 25 feet (7.62 meters) long. It can fit a full-size Volkswagen Beetle if put in sideways and features life-size faces, human figures and 202 lights.

The Legislative Building is also home to a large brass bust of George Washington. Over time, the nose on the bust has become shiny from visitors rubbing it for good luck.

Other Buildings

Entrance to the Temple of Justice, facing the Legislative Building.

Facing the Legislative Building is the Temple of Justice, home to the State Supreme Court and the State Law Library. Until 1924, the unused boiler and coal rooms located under the Temple of Justice housed the Division of Highways Testing Laboratory, which would later become the Department of Transportation Materials Laboratory.

The Governor's Mansion.

The Governor's Mansion is located immediately west of the Legislative Building. Built before the rest of the capitol campus in 1908, the four-story Georgian-style mansion was intended as a temporary structure, and over the years the state legislature has considered replacing it with an office building or a new mansion. The legislature decided to renovate and remodel the existing building in 1973, and since then the private, non-profit Governor's Mansion Foundation has furnished and maintained the mansion's public rooms.

The dome of the Legislative Building and lantern.

It is located in Olympia, Washington

Natural Disasters

Three major earthquakes have rocked the capitol since its construction. The first, in 1949, damaged the cupola of the Legislative Building's dome so badly it had to be completely replaced. A 6.5 magnitude quake in 1965 had even worse results, with the dome's brick buttresses left in such poor condition that a major aftershock could have caused them to collapse entirely, according to a state report. The state worked on the capitol after both earthquakes to reduce the impact of future occurrences, and performed additional seismic improvements in 1975. The Nisqually earthquake of 2001 caused further damage, including a splintered buttress, but the earthquake-resistance work prevented more serious harm to the building.

The capitol dome, weighing 26,000 metric tons, was not held in place by any bolts or fasteners, but by gravity alone. During an earthquake, the dome could shift, along with the sandstone columns supporting it. The columns moved up to three inches (76 mm) during the Nisqually quake. Renovations completed in 2004 by design firm Einhorn Yaffee Prescott permanently fixed the dome to the rest of the building.

Quirks of law and security

Because the Capitol grounds are outside the normal jurisdiction of Olympia and/or Thurston County, the police and sheriff do not investigate crime on the Capitol campus. The Washington State Patrol is responsible for law enforcement and investigations on the Capitol grounds as well as at the Old Capitol Building and adjoining Sylvester Park in downtown Olympia. The Senate and House also have stand-alone security details.

After the September 11th attacks, there had been a security checkpoint at the entrance to the Capitol building, complete with magnetometer and x-ray machine, but security has since reverted to its original state. Pocket knives are not allowed, but handguns are for concealed carry permit holders only.

Controversies

In December 2008, as a result of an atheist sign being displayed by a nativity scene in the State Capitol as part of a Christmas display, there was wide media coverage and a controversy which ensued. The sign was stolen, but eventually found and returned to the state capitol. There was a rapid influx of requests from individuals and groups wanting to display other material, including a Festivus pole and a request by the Westboro Baptist Church to display a sign saying (among other things) "Santa Clause will take you to hell."

References

• Johnston, Norman J. Washington's Audacious State Capitol and Its Builders. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1988.

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External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Washington State Capitol

• State Capitol Visitor Information
• State Capitol Virtual Tour
• Governor's Mansion
• Governor's Mansion Foundation
• Washington State Legislature
• Washington State Capitol - Photographs from a visit to the capitol
• [2] - Visitor Facts about the state capitol

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