North Carolina State Capitol
Raleigh, Wake County, North Carolina
Marker Inscription
State Capitol. Built 1833-40. Ithiel Towne, A. J. Davis and David Paton, architects. First State House built here, 1796; burned, 1831.
Erected by North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources
The Story
North Carolina's first State House rose on this square in 1796, only to burn in 1831, taking with it Canova's celebrated marble statue of George Washington. In its place the state built the Greek Revival capitol of 1833–40, designed by the noted architects Ithiel Town, Alexander Jackson Davis, and David Paton. It remains one of the best-preserved examples of a mid-19th-century American statehouse.
Why it matters
The Capitol embodies the ambitions of the young state and stands as a landmark of American civic architecture from the era of the Early Republic.
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Related people
- · Ithiel Town
- · Alexander Jackson Davis
- · David Paton
Related events
- · Construction of the State Capitol, 1833–1840
Themes & tags
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