Door to Texas State Capital
by David and Carol Kelly
Title
Door to Texas State Capital
Artist
David and Carol Kelly
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
This is the door knob on the massive door to the Texas State Capital Building. The Texas Capitol door knobs have the trademark "Texas Star" and show the 100+ years of use.
Construction of the Italian Renaissance Revival-style Texas State Capitol was funded by an article of the state constitution, adopted on February 15, 1876. The cornerstone for the building was laid on March 2, 1885, Texas Independence Day, and the completed building was opened to the public on April 21, 1888, San Jacinto Day. The building was originally planned to be constructed entirely of limestone from Oatmanville (present-day Oak Hill), about ten miles (16 km) to the southwest. However, the limestone was found to have a high iron content after it began to discolor. Learning of the problem, the owners of Granite Mountain near Marble Falls offered to donate to the state, free of charge, the necessary amount of sunset red granite as an alternative. While the building is mostly built of the Oak Hill limestone, most of it is hidden behind the walls and on the foundations. Red granite was subsequently used for many state government buildings in the Austin area.
Uploaded
January 29th, 2013
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