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Madison Capital

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I visited Madison, Wisconsin recently.  It is the capital of Wisconsin and has a capital building housing both chambers of the Wisconsin legislature as well as the Wisconsin Supreme Court and the Governor’s office.  It was recently the site of a major demonstration against the Governor that ultimately led to the people of Wisconsin voting on the repeal of the Governor.  He was not repealed.

The building itself was completed in 1917.  The architect was George Post of New York and it cost $7.25 million to build.  It is 284 ft, 5 in. to the top of the dome, three feet shorter than the capital building in Washington, DC.

The white granite on the outside is from Vermont and makes the dome the only granite dome in the United States.  It is the also the largest dome by volume in the United States and one of the largest in the world.  Inside the rotunda there is marble from Greece, Algeria, Italy and France; limestone from Minnesota; red granite from Wisconsin.

It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2001