State Capitols – Madison, Wisconsin - Interior

I am fortunate to have this interest in state houses right after a time of serious investment in restoration. Toward the end of the 20th century, many states saw their capitols had been altered and neglected and did something about it. The Wisconsin capitol did not scrimp on materials when it was built. It is all stone and wood and art and cost $7.2 million when it was completed in 1917. Between 1988 and 2002, $158.9 million was spent to return this magnificent space to its former glory.

Rotunda, Wisconsin Capitol, Madison (18 June 2009)

Unlike some capitols that employed great ‘faux’ processes to simulate stone, Wisconsin spent on the real thing. Forty-three different stone types from eight states and six countries can be found in the building.

Wisconsin Capitol, Madison (18 June 2009)

A pendentive is the architectural element that can connect a circular dome with a rectangular space below it. In the center of this shot, one of the four pendentive spaces shows the mosaic that decorates it. Each is made with over 100,000 pieces of colored glass. The figures represent Liberty and the three branches of government.

Above the Door to the Wisconsin Assembly (18 June 2009)

Badgers are everywhere in the building…in paintings, sculptures and here above the entrance to the Assembly. The association with the burrowing critter began before statehood. Early zinc miners who built their winter dwellings in hillside tunnels were called badgers.

Assembly Chamber, Wisconsin Capitol, Madison (18 June 2009)

The Assembly was in session so my wandering and shutter-popping was limited. Visible behind the Speaker’s chair, in the middle of the ledge below the mural painting, is a stuffed bald eagle. ‘Old Abe’ was the mascot of the 8th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the Civil War. The bird survived over thirty battles…earning a national reputation and a bounty…the Confederates wanted that ‘Yankee Buzzard’ eliminated. The poor bird survived the war but died of smoke inhalation in 1881. He was preserved and displayed in the capitol until it was destroyed in the 1904 fire. The Badgers felt so strongly about their mascot that another eagle was found to grace the Assembly chamber since it was completed in 1915.

Wisconsin Senate (18 June 2009)

Established artists of the day were commissioned to create paintings throughout the capitol. The three-part mural in the Senate is called ‘The Marriage of the Atlantic and Pacific.’ The opening of the Panama Canal was an important event when the capitol was completed. Though built in a classic Beaux Arts style, this state house reflects the state motto, ‘Forward.’ The state leaders saw significant global developments and believed the future presented opportunity.

Another progressive indicator is the fact that the Wisconsin Assembly was the first in the nation (1917) to install an electronic voting system with ‘Yay/Nay’ buttons on each desk and a tote board on the wall. The tradition-bound Senate continues to use a roll call when votes are cast.

Corinthian Pilasters, Wisconsin Capitol, Madison (18 June 2009)

I love the contrast of the dark stone and gold capitals. Yes, let’s further confuse that word. Madison is the capital of Wisconsin. This fine building is the capitol or seat of state government. Inside the capitol, there are columns with distinctive designs on their upper ends…the capitals. Since they are made of real stone and gold leaf, one can rightly say that it took considerable capital to make those capitals inside the capitol in the capital city...but I won’t.