Washington State Capitol

The Washington State Capitol or Legislative Building in Olympia is the home of the government of the state of Washington. It contains chambers for the Washington State Legislature and offices for the governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state and treasurer and is part of a campus consisting of several buildings. Buildings for the Washington Supreme Court, executive agencies and the Washington Governor's Mansion are part of the capitol campus.

History

The First Capitol Building

After Olympia became the capital city of the Washington Territory in 1853, the city's founder, Edmund Sylvester, gave the legislature 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 1854. When President Benjamin Harrison approved Washington's state constitution in 1889, he donated 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 Second Capitol Building

The legislature formed the State Capitol Commission in 1893 to oversee the creation of a new capitol building on the property in Olympia. The commission had a nationwide competition to find an architect and chose the submission of Ernest Flagg. Construction began on Flagg's plan, but was soon...
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