West Virginia Capitol Building

The Capital Building

The capital building of today took almost 8 years to build and with just under a $10 million dollar price tag. The Capital building was built in three stages; the west wing was constructed in 1924-1925, the East Wing which was constructed in 1926-27; and the Rotunda connecting the wing in 1930-32. The Capital was named the states new capital on June 20, 1932 and the Governor William G. Conley cut the ribbon on the states 69th birthday.

The Indiana Limestone on the outside of the building is a large part of the element of design because it surrounds the building on all sides. The stone blocks create a pattern of 45-degree angles all around the building with the use of stone arches on the west entrance and on the west wing. The block lines that are applied to the building add horizontal lines to the building making the length of the building seem larger. A special spur rail line was used at the base of the building to ship needed materials to the construction site. Also the capital is topped off with a 293 foot gold dome that sits atop the structure and it is found that it is 5 feet higher than the U.S. Capital.

The style used by Cass of the capital as the East entrance exposes by the Roman Gods and goddesses over the 3 arches of the walkway. The heads above the walkways are from right to left Vesta, the Roman goddess of heart and family; Neptune, who controlled the rivers and sea; and Ceres the goddess of agriculture. This was the part of the capital building the most interested me most. Another interesting part about the capital is the chandelier that hangs on a 54-foot brass and bronze chain that is suspended 180-feet from the floor and is made up of 10,080 pieces of Czechoslovakian crystal and is illuminated by 96 light bulbs. The 4,000-pound 8-feet in diameter chandelier would still look better in my living room anyways.

The significance of this building was to pass