The Kansas State Capitol, known also as the Kansas Statehouse, is the building housing the executive and legislative branches of government for the U.S. state of Kansas. It is located in the city of Topeka, which has served as the capital of Kansas since it became a state in 1861. It is the second building to serve as the Kansas Capitol.
The dome, at 304Â ft (93Â m), is taller than the 288Â ft (88Â m) United States Capitol dome, although its diameter (50Â ft (15Â m)) is approximately half that of the national capitol (96Â ft (29Â m)). It is one of the few capitols in the United States that continues to offer tours that go to the top of the dome. Visitors enter the dome by climbing 296 steps leading from the fifth floor to the top.
History
Macey Tours the Kansas Capitol - Architecture, art and history are all part of the experience at the Kansas State Capitol in Topeka, KS. Join six-year-old Macey Hensley from Council Grove, KS on the tour and as she climbs...
19th century
The land for Capitol Square was donated by Cyrus K. Holliday via his Topeka Town Company in 1862. The master architect was Edward Townsend Mix with the wings designed by John G. Haskell. Construction on the East Wing began in 1866, using "native" limestone from Geary County, Kansas. Construction began on the West Wing in 1879 using limestone from Cottonwood Falls, Kansas and in 1881, the legislature authorized and appropriated funds for the construction of a central building to link the two wings. Construction of this central building began in 1886, and the contract for dome construction was let in May, 1889.
20th century
The building was declared officially complete in 1903, after 37 years of construction.
(John Brown was in Bleeding Kansas)
It was not until 1988 that a design for a sculpture to stand atop the dome was finally approved. Ad Astra, a 22Â 2â„12-foot (6.756Â m) bronze sculpture weighing 4,420 pounds (2,000Â kg), was installed atop the dome on October 10, 2002. The sculpture, by Richard Bergen, depicts a Kansa Native American with bow and arrow pointed at the North Star and was chosen from 27 entries to adorn the dome. The title Ad Astra is Latin shortening of the state motto Ad Astra Per Aspera To the stars through difficulty.
21st century
The building was featured prominently on Kansas license plates issued from January 2001 until April 2007.
In December 2001, the Statehouse began a $120 million modernization project, led by Treanor Architects; the project included restoration of its first through fifth floors, the rehabilitation and expansion of its basement, restoration of its exterior masonry and copper roof/dome. By the time the project finished in spring 2014, scope creep and delays resulted in a total cost of $332 million, covering "new heating and cooling systems, greater security and restroom accessibility, a new parking garage, visitor center, underground office space and replacing the roof and dome."
Frescos and murals
In 1898, Jerome Fedeli painted frescos near the top of the dome in the rotunda. Fedeli's work depicted bare-breasted classical women. However officials referred to the paintings as "Nude Telephone Girls" and had them painted-over.
In the 1930s, John Steuart Curry painted murals on the second floor including the building's most famous paintingâ€"Tragic Preludeâ€"which depicts an oversize and raging John Brown wedged between flames and a tornado. Curry's work gained considerable notoriety for depicting unsavory aspects of Kansas history and he left them unsigned and did not complete a commission to paint murals in the rotunda. Curry's depiction of John Brown is believed to be the only instance of a person convicted of treason being featured in a state capitol.
From 1976 to 1978, Lumen Martin Winter painted the murals in the rotunda.
References
External links
- Kansas State Capitol from the Kansas Historical Society
- Photo Gallery of Kansas Statehouse construction wrapping up, from Lawrence Journal-World
- Copper From Statehouse Dome Becomes Art on YouTube, from Hatteberg's People on KAKE TV news
