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Capitol Dome
The
1881 Legislature authorized the construction of the central portion of the Capitol and appropriated
additional funds for the completion of the west wing. Also during that session approval was
given to the Topeka Library Association for construction of a building on the northeast corner
of Capitol Square. The Topeka Library was dedicated April 20, 1883, and was in use until 1953.
The building was razed in 1961.
Work began in 1884 on remodeling of the Senate Chamber and construction of the central portion of the building. The excavations for the foundations, which support the dome, extend more than 25 feet into the ground, to a bearing strata of bedrock. Workmen doing the excavation discovered a spring in the rock. This natural spring still flows beneath the capitol. The contract for roofing the main building and dome was let in May of 1880. After work began a crack in the main arch of the north entrance developed. The crack, caused by differences in the initial settlement of the foundations, was repaired by May of 1889.
Photo of the dome from inside the capitol. Looking straight up from the middle of the first
floor, the viewer sees the inside of the Capitol dome. In the foreground is a flag display depicting
the six different countries that have claimed Kansas land throughout history. Featured are:
a flag of England (1497-1763); a French fleur-de-lis flag (1682-1762); a flag of the French
Republic (1800-1803); flag of Mexico (1821-1836); and Spain (1492-1821); the flag of the Texas
Republic (State of Texas after 1845) (1836-1850); the 34-star United States flag, symbolizing
the admission of Kansas to the Union as the 34th state; and the 1927 Kansas flag.
Capitol Building
The Capitol Dome