Nebraska State Capitol

On July 4, 1863, Luke Lavender arrived, with several Methodists, in Lancaster and built a log homestead at 14^th and “O” Streets on his 80 acres of land. This cabin was the first residence to be built on the plat of Lincoln, as the three Commissioners, Butler, Gillespie, and Kennard, who decided that Lancaster would become the capital city of Nebraska, chose a site on Lavender’s acreage as the most suitable place for the construction of the State Capitol Building. Luke Lavender sold the acres and also demanded a fee of $1,000 for the land. Construction of the first State Capitol Building for Nebraska began on January 11, 1868, with Joseph Ward having the contract. It was designed by an architect from Chicago and constructed from limestone quarried in Gage county. This building was T-shaped and two-story with a large central pavilion and central cupola. By December 3rd that year, the building was completed at a cost of $76,000 which was almost twice the amount that had been allotted to it. Under cover of darkness, all state books, documents and furnishings were removed from the former capitol in Omaha, in covered wagons. Governor Butler then proclaimed the removal of seat of government from Omaha to Lincoln.

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This first building was structurally unstable and soon began crumbling. In 1875, senators were banned from applauding or stamping their feet in the building due to concerns for the integrity of the building. A second building was constructed in stages, between 1880 and 1883, on the site, at a cost of just less than $700,000. The second building was of neo-Classic style, with large colonnades and pediments on the central section which was topped with an octagonal dome, and had three-story wings.  This second State Capitol also was not structurally sound, and the statue of President Lincoln, by Daniel Chester French completed in 1912, on the west side of the current building is one of the few remnants from it, and stands on its original site.

State Capitol Building

In 1919, the construction of the third State Capitol Building was authorized, and a competition launched to determine the design of the building. Bertram Goodhue, a New York architect was selected, and on April 15, 1922, ground was broken by Governor Samuel McKelvie with a plow pulled by white horses. The building was completed in 1932, with a final cost of $10million. Today’s State Capitol Building is in Streamline Moderne style.

The Main Door, north-side of Capitol Building

From afar and all directions, the city skyline is dominated by the State Capitol Building, with a few tall buildings, water towers and grain elevators. A city statute mandates that no structure can be built higher than the 400-foot dome of the building. Lee Lawrie’s bronze statue, The Sower, on top of the dome is 27 feet high. The 750-pound chamber doors are carved with Native American motifs. Inside is … awesome, and the only non-partisan one-house legislature in the U.S.

Above the Main Door north-side of the Capitol Building

The philosopher for the themes of the Capitol is Dr. Hartley Burr Alexander, the sculptor is Lee Lawrie, and Hildreth Meiere designed all the floor and ceiling mosaics.

The Gold Dome and Sower on the State Capitol Building