Oregon State Capitol

The Oregon State Capitol is the state capitol building of the U.S. state of Oregon. Housing the Oregon Legislative Assembly, the Oregon Secretary of State's office, and the offices of the Oregon State Treasury, it is located in the state capital Salem at 900 Court Street Northeast. The building was constructed in 1935 and the wings finished in 1977. The original design was by New York architects Trowbridge & Livingston, in association with Francis Keally.

The Oregon State Capitol was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.^[1]

History

Picture of the capitol in 1855 when it was briefly located in Corvallis.

The first capitol of Oregon was in Oregon City during the territorial period. This designation was by proclamation by then Governor Joseph Lane. Then in 1850, the legislature passed an act designating Salem as the capitol. However, Governor Gaines refused to relocate and remained in Oregon City along with the Oregon Supreme Court until an act of Congress on May 14, 1852, settled the matter in Salem’s favor.^[2]

On January 13, 1855, the territorial legislature of Oregon passed a bill moving the seat of government from Salem to Corvallis.^[2] Governor Curry objected to the move, as did many people since public buildings in Salem were under construction at that time.^[2] Curry sent the matter to the Secretary of the Treasury in Washington, DC, where Secretary Guthrie then declared the move invalid unless acted on by the United States Congress. Thereafter, Curry and Oregon Secretary Harding moved back to Salem.^[2] Then on December 3, 1855, the legislature convened in Corvallis, but shortly thereafter introduced legislation to move the capitol back to Salem. This bill passed on December 15, 1855. Three days later on the 18th the legislature re-convened in Salem.^[2] However, on the 29th the State House burned down, so the legislature re-opened the debate on the location of the capitol. They decided to leave it open to the people of the territory to decide by popular vote. The decision was to vote in June 1856, then take the top two vote getters in that election and have a run-off. At first this vote showed it was to be between Eugene and Corvallis, but after some votes were tossed out, it came down to a run-off between Eugene and Salem.^[2] Then in October the run-off was held and Eugene garnered the most votes, but few people in the state voted due to the earlier vote tossing.^[2] With such a low turnout, the election was ignored and the capitol remained in Salem.^[2]

First state capitol

A December 30, 1855, fire destroyed the first capitol. A downtown building, the Holman Building, served as a temporary capitol from 1859 until 1876.

Second state capitol

File:Oregon state capitol 1876.jpg

The Oregon state capitol from 1876-1935.

The second state capitol, patterned after the United States Capitol, was completed in 1876. It was destroyed by fire on April 25, 1935.

Third state capitol

The third state capitol was completed on October 1 1938. It cost $2.5 million and is the fourth newest capitol in the United States.

The rotunda features an embedded bronze replica of the Oregon State Seal in its center. It was sculpted by Ulric Ellerhusen. The capitol dome rises 106 feet above the state seal. It was painted by Frank H. Schwartz and features thirty three stars, symbolizing Oregon's place as the thirty third state to join the Union. There are four murals surrounding the rotunda, featuring moments from Oregon state history.

In 1993, the Scotts Mills earthquake damaged the dome, requiring closure for repairs.

The capitol today

In 1997, the Legislative Assembly established the non-profit Oregon State Capitol Foundation in order to "create a living history, enhance the dignity and beauty of the Capitol, and foster cultural and educational opportunities." In 2005 the foundation completed the Walk of the Flags ^[3] project, a display in Willson Park on the capitol grounds of all 50 flags of the U.S. states.

Tours are available, though scheduling in advance is recommended, especially outside of the summer months when there is a surplus of interns available to lead them.