The Georgia State Capitol – the histories of our streets (2024)

Western Facade of the Capital Blueprints¹

If you were to think of the Georgia State Capitol, the image that would come to your mind would likely be the imposing building sitting just south of the Georgia State University MARTA station. Standing atop Capitol Square Block, the structure gated off from the outside. Several statues adorn the outside along with maintained lawns to give an almost park like appearance. The actual structure itself is four stories tall with four asystematical facades that adorn its outside. Its main entrance, the west main entrance, is the grandest of these facades. Carved into the stone above the west entrance in a relief carving are four figures and the seal of Georgia. On the right of the seal is a man and a woman. The man represents the armed forces with a helmet and sword and the woman represents peace with her horn of plenty. On the left side, there is another man and woman. The woman holds mercury and an anchor to symbolize trade while the man holds a hammer to symbolize industry. Yet, towering above the four figures is a fifth. Standing atop the capitol building at its highest point, standing on a dome of gold, is a robed women holding a sword and a torch representing the idea of liberty.

The imposing structure is heavily inspired by the greco-roman architecture of the federal capitol building and other government structures. When contrasted with the more modern offices of the state supreme court and the rundown five points, you would be excused to believe that this temple of democracy has stood for eons as Georgia’s capitol. However, this could be no further from the case. The great building is one of seventeen that came before it and is a product of the New South as Atlanta rose from its ashes. The building itself history is a turbulent one, marred with budget fights, racial discrimination, and competing interests, much like Georgia itself.

Georgia’s capitol moved around a lot in its early years. While first residing in Savannah, it was moved to Augusta after the fall of the city during the Revolutionary War.² In the political chaos of the revolution and its aftermath, the location shifted from one city to another before finally falling into the lap of Milledgeville in 1807. However, the lack of year-round river access and poor-quality roads prevented the city from growing much. The crown of Capitol came under fire as early as 1847 Atlanta began to push for relocation but was defeated in a Georgia General Assembly Vote 68 to 55.³

Yet, the city continued to push for relocation. A general election defeated a motion to move the capitol to Atlanta again in 1855 because of the costs of moving the capitol. The civil war appeared to silence the debate for some time but the war and aftermath proved deadly to Milledgeville’s place of dominance.⁴

The Military Reconstruction Act of 1867 placed the state of Georgia under military rule after the civilian government in Milledgeville bucked the 14th amendment. The Act would require the people of Georgia to put together a new constitution. General John Pope was sent to Georgia to oversee this and put his headquarters in Atlanta which swayed momentum away from Milledgeville.⁵ Atlanta lobbying campaign to move the capital was once again whipped up. The constitutional convention took place within the Atlanta City Hall building, where white and black delegates rubbed shoulders to hash out the new government.

An aerial view of the courthouse, where the capitol would be built, 1871⁶

The reason behind Atlanta’s fervent push for the crown of capitol was simple. Atlanta’s destruction during the war had left poor and in urgent need of an economic boost. Due to the railroads being the primary method of moving goods in and out of the city, the city’s economy was structured around railroads. More traffic through Atlanta would result in more money being poured into Atlanta’s economy. Therefore, moving the capitol to Atlanta would result in a significant boost to the economy thanks to the increase in travel to the capitol.

The city’s efforts were successful in 1866 during the ratification of the constitution where it fended off contenders from Macon and Milledgeville. The new capitol building would be selected based on nepotism however one of the city’s leaders, Hannibal I. Kimball promoted the use of the Atlanta Opera House which was owned by his brother Edwin Kimball as the new capitol building. The state leased a single floor of the building in exchange for providing funding for a wholescale renovation of the Opera House thanks to Kimball’s connections with Republican Governor Rufus Bullock.⁷

It was within the temporary capitol where African Americans lost several rights. In 1868, several African American representatives were expelled from the assembly on trumped-up charges in a blatant attempt to strip power away from the African American population. An extended legislative fight between Republicans and Democrats over the matter resulted in the Republicans abandoning their position of supporting African American rights in the South in hopes of keeping white voters.

The Opera House made a poor state house, with the building in poor physical condition and the funds meant to fix it being used by Kimball in other ways. The ceiling was buckling over the senate speaker stand and western foundation had failed which caused doors and windows to jam. Democrats rallied around the Opera House being a symbol of republican corruption and campaigned for a new statehouse. During the next time the state constitution was drafted up in 1877, the question of relocation came up again. Atlanta defended its position by giving the land of the Fulton County Courthouse and yielding political power to the rural counties to keep its capitol crown.⁸

In 1883, within the Capitol Act signed by Governor Henry McDaniel, the state commissioned a new state house on the grounds of the old Fulton County Courthouse with a budget of one million dollars.Just two years later, the cornerstone was placed at the construction site, bearing the seal of Georgia. The general trend of State Houses was that they often ballooned over budget and stretched beyond the initial Statehouse with offices and other buildings. Georgia could not afford this and had to stay within the one million dollars allocated to this.⁹ After much debate, the committee behind the construction of the building chose Willoughby J. Edbrooke and Franklin Burnham’s design.

The original capitol building plans called for a clear classical exterior with a Victorian interior, clearly inspired by the national capitol in Washington D.C. While there were hopes to use the money to use Georgia marble or granite to keep state money within the state, costs forced the committee to use Indiana oolitic limestone despite furious protests by local industries.¹⁰ As many Georgia materials as possible were used though. Georgia Marble decorates the flooring, Georgia Pinewood makes up the doors and locally made plaster was used in construction.¹¹ In addition, the original plans for a gas lighting system were swapped out for electricity midway through construction. For interior decoration, paintings came from Chicago and furniture came from Ohio. The golden dome that we know today was not golden then, instead being constructed from cheap wood and brick.

Astonishingly, the building was completed in 1889 going 118.43$ under budget, a rarity for state house projects. On July 3. In 1889, the building was officially opened and occupied by the Georgia state legislators. The Georgia State Capitol building, a symbol of the New South, had been completed.

After opening, the democrats took no time in putting their mark on the capitol. Portraits of revolutionary and confederate leaders were put up such as the enormous portrait of civil war confederate general Robert Toombs. Further developments to improve the look of the capitol were done in 1890, when the grounds were decorated with stone walls and walkways. The first statue on capitol grounds was for John B. Gordon in 1907, the man depicted in a Confederate uniform.¹²

While the under-budget construction was a success, the new capitol began to show its problems in 1890 with a leaky roof and dirty floors from all of the foot traffic in it. This began a long struggle with leaky roofing for the building. The government was unwilling to dedicate sufficient budget to maintenance which led to the building being in bad condition by 1920 with falling apart ceiling tiles and leaky plumbing.¹³ A budget was approved to deal with the maintenance issues and further budgets were approved to convert the basem*nt into office space.

An aerial view of the Capitol, 1919¹⁴

Across the 1950s, a series of renovations and repairs were completed. Old portraits were restored, parking lots were constructed and offices were expanded. However, the most critical renovation was the dome. In 1955, an inspection of the building found that the wood inside the dome was physically rotting and in 1956, the most extensive renovations to date were funded. New lighting, windows, and electrical work were put into the legislative chambers. The State Library was reduced in size to make room for more office space. The offices of elected officials were recarpeted and given new furniture. Finally, the dome itself was rebuilt and layered with the gold leafing that we know and love in 1958.¹⁵

A view of the Basem*nt renovations. ¹⁶

The last greatest renovation was a huge project in 1996, which renovated the building to replicate the look it had in 1889 for its public spaces. This project attempted to restore the original fabric, lighting, and furniture of the era.¹⁷

Renovations continue to this day with the most recent ones being the liberty plaza expansion in 2014 to create more public park space.¹⁸ In addition, the capitol has started to remove some of the statues of more controversial figures, like Tom Watson, a white supremacist.¹⁹

The statehouse just south of Georgia State University has not been the first of its kind. It has gone through transformations with its people and changed along the way. As you walk through its halls, you will find pieces of history from reconstruction to now. It is a temple of democracy but also a window into the past, overlooking the city that fought so hard to get it.

1. Not Available. “Georgia State Capitol Drawings.” Georgia Archives. 1883, https://vault.georgiaarchives.org/digital/collection/adhoc/id/224. ↩︎
2. Falkenburg-Hull, Eileeen. “Georgia’s State Capitals (1868- Present).” Official Georgia Tourism & Travel Website | Explore Georgia.org, October 2013. https://www.exploregeorgia.org/blog/georgias-state-capitals-1868 present#:~:text=After%20a%2014%2Dyear%20shuffle,for%20a%20new%20capital%20site. ↩︎
3. William Irvine, “Diary and Letters of Dr. William N. White, a Citizen of Atlanta-Written 1847, 90 Years Ago”, Atlanta Historical Bulletin, July 1937, 48 ↩︎
4. Farrisee, Anne H., and Timothy J. Crimmins. Democracy restored: A history of the Georgia state capitol. University of Georgia Press, 2022, 30 ↩︎
5. Kenneth Colemen, ed., A History of Georgia (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1977), 208-12 ↩︎
6. Ruger, A.Birds eye view of the city of Atlanta, the capitol of Georgia
   . [St. Louis, Mo, 1871] Map. https://www.loc.gov/item/73693339/. ↩︎
7. Farrisee, Anne H., and Timothy J. Crimmins. Democracy restored: A history of the Georgia state capitol. University of Georgia Press, 2022, 35 ↩︎
8. Kenneth Colemen, ed., A History of Georgia (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1977), 295 ↩︎
9. Farrisee, Anne H., and Timothy J. Crimmins. Democracy restored: A history of the Georgia state capitol. University of Georgia Press, 2022, 48 ↩︎
10. Farrisee, Anne H., and Timothy J. Crimmins. Democracy restored: A history of the Georgia state capitol. University of Georgia Press, 2022, 52 ↩︎
11. Linley, John. The Georgia Catalog, Historic American Buildings Survey: A Guide to the Architecture of the State. Vol. 15. University of Georgia Press, 1982. ↩︎
12. Farrisee, Anne H., and Timothy J. Crimmins. Democracy restored: A history of the Georgia state capitol. University of Georgia Press, 2022, 75 ↩︎
13. Farrisee, Anne H., and Timothy J. Crimmins. Democracy restored: A history of the Georgia state capitol. University of Georgia Press, 2022, 102 ↩︎
14. Foote And Davies Company.Atlanta
    . [N.P, 1919] Map. https://www.loc.gov/item/75693190/. ↩︎
15. Farrisee, Anne H., and Timothy J. Crimmins. Democracy restored: A history of the Georgia state capitol. University of Georgia Press, 2022, 132 ↩︎
16. Historic American Buildings Survey, Creator, Willoughby J Edbrooke, Franklin P Burnham, Builder Miles & Horn, Anne Farrisee, Janet Barrickman, and Timothy J Crimmins.Georgia State Capitol, Capitol Square, Atlanta, Fulton County, GA
    . Atlanta Fulton County Georgia, 1933. translateds by Mason, Annemitter Documentation Compiled After. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/ga0413/. ↩︎
17. Farrisee, Anne H., and Timothy J. Crimmins. Democracy restored: A history of the Georgia state capitol. University of Georgia Press, 2022, 156 ↩︎
18. Salzer, James. “Remake of Capitol Hill Includes New, ‘Liberty Plaza.’” ajc, April 26, 2014. https://www.ajc.com/news/remake-capitol-hill-includes-new-liberty-plaza/vikfljpDQi4zYED60zlBzH/. ↩︎
19. Torres, Kristina. “Tom Watson Statue Removed from Georgia’s Capitol Steps.” ajc, November 29, 2013. https://www.ajc.com/news/tom-watson-statue-removed-from-georgia-capitol-steps/lXsGyKnHtKqWHvabgEzNVP/. ↩︎