Arkansas State Capitol
Encyclopedia
The Arkansas State Capitol Building, located in Little Rock
, is the main house of government of the state of Arkansas
.
In 1899, the St. Louis
architect George R. Mann
visited the governor of Arkansas Daniel W. Jones
, and presented his drawings of his winning competition design
for the Montana State Capitol
, which had not been built. They were hung on the walls of the old Capitol to generate interest in a new building. The drawings' attractiveness eased the passage of the bills for the new building, and also drew attention to the architect. In 1899, Mann was selected as architect by a seven-member commission that included future governor George W. Donaghey
. Donaghey opposed Mann's selection and advocated a national design competition, but the majority of the commission voted for Mann.
Construction took 16 years – from 1899 to 1915. The Capitol was built on the site of the state penitentiary and prisoners helped construct the building. They lived in a dormitory that was left on the Capitol grounds while construction was taking place.
The Capitol construction site was aligned incorrectly by the builder, future Governor George Donaghey, due to his failure to use surveying instruments. Instead, he aligned the plot visually using Fifth Street as a guide without recognizing that the street was not aligned east–west; Fifth Street was parallel to the Arkansas River. Therefore, the structure is situated in a north–south manner from end-to-end which does not fit the grid street pattern of Little Rock's downtown.
, which was quarried in Batesville, Arkansas
. Total construction cost was $
2.2 million with today's value of the building being . The front entrance doors are made of bronze, which are 10 feet (3 metres) tall, four inches (10 cm) thick and were purchased from Tiffany's in New York for $10,000. The cupola is covered in 24 karat gold leaf. The government was formerly located in the Old State House
.
replica, Bauxite and Granite Boulders, Confederate War Prisoners Memorial, Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Arkansas Medal of Honor Memorial, Memorial Fountain, Monument to Confederate Women, and Little Rock Nine
Civil Rights Memorial.
Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock is the capital and the largest city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 699,757 people in the 2010 census...
, is the main house of government of the state of Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
.
History
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
architect George R. Mann
George R. Mann
George Richard Mann was a United States architect whose designs included the Arkansas State Capitol...
visited the governor of Arkansas Daniel W. Jones
Daniel Webster Jones (governor)
Daniel Webster Jones was the 19th Governor of the U.S. state of Arkansas.-Biography:Daniel Webster Jones was born in Bowie County, Texas. His family moved to Washington, Arkansas in 1840. Jones attended Washington Academy there and later studied law...
, and presented his drawings of his winning competition design
Architectural design competition
An architectural design competition is a special type of competition in which an organization or government body that plans to build a new building asks for architects to submit a proposed design for a building. The winning design is usually chosen by an independent panel of design professionals...
for the Montana State Capitol
Montana State Capitol
The Montana State Capitol is the state capitol of the U.S. state of Montana. It houses the Montana State Legislature and is located in the state capital of Helena at 1301 East Sixth Avenue. The building was constructed between 1896 and 1902 with wing-annexes added between 1909 and 1912.-History:A...
, which had not been built. They were hung on the walls of the old Capitol to generate interest in a new building. The drawings' attractiveness eased the passage of the bills for the new building, and also drew attention to the architect. In 1899, Mann was selected as architect by a seven-member commission that included future governor George W. Donaghey
George Washington Donaghey
George Washington Donaghey was the 22nd Governor of the U.S. state of Arkansas from 1909 to 1913.George W. Donaghey was born in Oakland, Union Parish, Louisiana. From 1882 to 1883, Donaghey attended the University of Arkansas. He was a school teacher, carpenter, and studied both architecture and...
. Donaghey opposed Mann's selection and advocated a national design competition, but the majority of the commission voted for Mann.
Construction took 16 years – from 1899 to 1915. The Capitol was built on the site of the state penitentiary and prisoners helped construct the building. They lived in a dormitory that was left on the Capitol grounds while construction was taking place.
The Capitol construction site was aligned incorrectly by the builder, future Governor George Donaghey, due to his failure to use surveying instruments. Instead, he aligned the plot visually using Fifth Street as a guide without recognizing that the street was not aligned east–west; Fifth Street was parallel to the Arkansas River. Therefore, the structure is situated in a north–south manner from end-to-end which does not fit the grid street pattern of Little Rock's downtown.
Architecture
The exterior of the Capital is made of limestoneLimestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
, which was quarried in Batesville, Arkansas
Batesville, Arkansas
Batesville is the county seat and largest city of Independence County, Arkansas, United States, 80 miles northeast of Little Rock, the state capital. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city was 9,556...
. Total construction cost was $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
2.2 million with today's value of the building being . The front entrance doors are made of bronze, which are 10 feet (3 metres) tall, four inches (10 cm) thick and were purchased from Tiffany's in New York for $10,000. The cupola is covered in 24 karat gold leaf. The government was formerly located in the Old State House
Old State House (Little Rock)
The Old State House is a historic building in Little Rock, Arkansas, USA. It is the oldest surviving state capitol building west of the Mississippi River. It is known best as the site of President Bill Clinton's election night celebration in 1992....
.
Monuments and memorials
The Arkansas State Capitol grounds has multiple monuments and memorials representing various parts of the state's past and present. They include the Monument to Confederate Soldiers, Liberty BellLiberty Bell
The Liberty Bell is an iconic symbol of American Independence, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formerly placed in the steeple of the Pennsylvania State House , the bell was commissioned from the London firm of Lester and Pack in 1752, and was cast with the lettering "Proclaim LIBERTY...
replica, Bauxite and Granite Boulders, Confederate War Prisoners Memorial, Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Arkansas Medal of Honor Memorial, Memorial Fountain, Monument to Confederate Women, and Little Rock Nine
Little Rock Nine
The Little Rock Nine was a group of African-American students who were enrolled in Little Rock Central High School in 1957. The ensuing Little Rock Crisis, in which the students were initially prevented from entering the racially segregated school by Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus, and then...
Civil Rights Memorial.