The Arkansas State Capitol, often called the Capitol Building, is the home of the Arkansas General Assembly, and the seat of the Arkansas state government that sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the Capitol Mall in Little Rock, 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 from 1896 for the Montana State Capitol, which had not yet been built in their state capital of Helena. 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 appropriation 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.[1] After Donaghey was elected governor in 1908, he forced Mann off the project and selected Cass Gilbert to finish the Capitol.[2]
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 foundations were aligned incorrectly by their original builder, future Governor George Donaghey. He centered the building on the centerline of Fifth Street (now Capitol Avenue), but he aligned the building north–south using the still-standing penitentiary walls as a guide without recognizing that Fifth Street was not aligned east–west; like other "east-west" downtown Little Rock streets, it runs parallel to the Arkansas River at a slight angle off true east–west. Therefore, the structure is in a north–south manner from end-to-end, which does not fit the grid street pattern of Little Rock's downtown. This also led to a slight S-curve in the formal entrance walkway between the foot of Capitol Avenue and the front steps of the Capitol.
Aired in February 1986, the NBC miniseries Under Siege, directed by Roger Young (director), depicted the bombing of the nation's capitol building. There was controversy within the state after pyrotechnics left surface stains on the dome that remained for several years.[3]
In 1990, the Arkansas Capitol grounds were featured extensively in external and internal photography for the action film Stone Cold starring Brian Bosworth.[4]
The exterior of the Capitol is made of limestone, which was quarried in Batesville, Arkansas.[9] Though it was initially stipulated a total cost for the envisioned capitol would not to exceed $1 million, total construction cost eventually was $2.2 million (or $320 million in 2014 dollars). 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 & Company in New York for $10,000. The cupola/dome is covered in 24 karat gold leaf. The government was formerly located in the Old State House. The structure also used Yule marble.
The winning competition design was from 1896 for the planned Montana State Capitol in Helena by George R. Mann, became the model for the Arkansas State Capitol.
The entrance to the State Capitol
Interior view of the Arkansas State Capitol Dome looking up from the Rotunda.
Monument to Confederate Women May 1, 1913 The statue was designed by J. Otto Schweizer. The monument was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.
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Not to be confused with Little Rock Arkansas For the legislature see Arkansas General Assembly The Arkansas State Capitol often called the Capitol Building is the home of the Arkansas General Assembly and the seat of the Arkansas state government that sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the Capitol Mall in Little Rock Arkansas Arkansas State CapitolMain facade of the Arkansas State CapitolGeneral informationArchitectural styleClassical RevivalAddress500 Woodlane StreetTown or cityLittle Rock ArkansasCountryUnited StatesCoordinates34 44 48 N 92 17 21 W 34 74667 N 92 28917 W 34 74667 92 28917Construction startedNovember 27 1900 1900 11 27 CompletedJanuary 1 1915 1915 01 01 CostUS 2 200 000ClientState Capitol CommissionOwnerArkansas governmentDesign and constructionArchitect s George R MannMain contractorCaldwell amp DrakeWebsitesos wbr arkansas wbr gov wbr state capitolArkansas State CapitolU S National Register of Historic PlacesNRHP reference No 74000494Added to NRHPJune 28 1974 Contents 1 History 1 1 In popular culture 2 Architecture 3 Monuments and memorials 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksHistory EditIn 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 from 1896 for the Montana State Capitol which had not yet been built in their state capital of Helena 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 appropriation 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 1 After Donaghey was elected governor in 1908 he forced Mann off the project and selected Cass Gilbert to finish the Capitol 2 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 foundations were aligned incorrectly by their original builder future Governor George Donaghey He centered the building on the centerline of Fifth Street now Capitol Avenue but he aligned the building north south using the still standing penitentiary walls as a guide without recognizing that Fifth Street was not aligned east west like other east west downtown Little Rock streets it runs parallel to the Arkansas River at a slight angle off true east west Therefore the structure is in a north south manner from end to end which does not fit the grid street pattern of Little Rock s downtown This also led to a slight S curve in the formal entrance walkway between the foot of Capitol Avenue and the front steps of the Capitol In popular culture Edit Because of its monumental dome the State Capitol has served as a filming location to stand in for the United States Capitol in Washington D C Aired in February 1986 the NBC miniseries Under Siege directed by Roger Young director depicted the bombing of the nation s capitol building There was controversy within the state after pyrotechnics left surface stains on the dome that remained for several years 3 In 1990 the Arkansas Capitol grounds were featured extensively in external and internal photography for the action film Stone Cold starring Brian Bosworth 4 In 1999 Capitol interiors were used in the filming of Daddy and Them 5 a comedy drama written and directed by Arkansas native Billy Bob Thornton It stars Thornton Laura Dern Andy Griffith Diane Ladd Kelly Preston Jamie Lee Curtis Ben Affleck Walton Goggins and country singer songwriter John Prine It is also the final on screen performance of Jim Varney 6 God s Not Dead 2 2016 a faith based dramas directed by Harold Cronk and starring Melissa Joan Hart Jesse Metcalfe David A R White Hayley Orrantia and Sadie Robertson Its sequel God s Not Dead A Light in Darkness 2018 also filmed on the Capitol grounds It stars David A R White John Corbett Shane Harper Benjamin Onyango Ted McGinley Jennifer Taylor Tatum O Neal Shwayze and Cissy Houston 7 8 Architecture Edit The front of the CapitolThe exterior of the Capitol is made of limestone which was quarried in Batesville Arkansas 9 Though it was initially stipulated a total cost for the envisioned capitol would not to exceed 1 million total construction cost eventually was 2 2 million or 320 million in 2014 dollars 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 amp Company in New York for 10 000 The cupola dome is covered in 24 karat gold leaf The government was formerly located in the Old State House The structure also used Yule marble Monuments and memorials EditSee also Ten Commandments Monument Little Rock Arkansas The Arkansas State Capitol grounds has multiple monuments and memorials representing various parts of the state s past and present They include the Arkansas Fallen Firefighters Memorial Arkansas Medal of Honor Memorial Bauxite and Granite Boulders Confederate Soldiers Monument Confederate War Prisoners Memorial Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Liberty Bell replica Little Rock Nine Civil Rights Memorial Memorial Fountain Monument to Confederate Women Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the controversial Ten Commandments Monument The winning competition design was from 1896 for the planned Montana State Capitol in Helena by George R Mann became the model for the Arkansas State Capitol The entrance to the State Capitol Interior view of the Arkansas State Capitol Dome looking up from the Rotunda Monument to Confederate Women May 1 1913 The statue was designed by J Otto Schweizer The monument was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1996 See also EditList of state and territorial capitols in the United StatesReferences Edit The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History amp Culture George Richard Mann 1856 1939 retrieved 3 March 2010 The Cass Gilbert Society retrieved 4 July 2012 Encyclopedia of Arkansas Encyclopedia of Arkansas Retrieved August 16 2019 Filmmakers find state welcoming Arkansas Online September 6 2015 Retrieved August 16 2019 Thornton Billy Bob Meistrich Larry Kosinski J Geyer Salerno Robert Blethyn Brenda 1946 Dern Laura Ladd Diane 2011 Daddy amp them Echo Bridge Home Entertainment OCLC 767886100 a href Template Citation html title Template Citation citation a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Encyclopedia of Arkansas Encyclopedia of Arkansas Retrieved November 13 2019 Truitt Brian Watch the fiery trailer for the faith based film God s Not Dead A Light in Darkness USA TODAY Retrieved November 13 2019 Faith films execs give 25 000 to fix Commandments digital olivesoftware com Retrieved November 13 2019 Stone Used in the Construction of the Arkansas State Capitol Building retrieved 4 July 2012External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Arkansas State Capitol Official website Arkansas State Capitol at the Encyclopedia of Arkansas Geographic data related to Arkansas State Capitol at OpenStreetMap Portals Architecture Arkansas National Register of Historic Places Politics Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Arkansas State Capitol amp oldid 1126601185, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
