Wisconsin State Capitol

Photo: Jeff Dean License: 1

Completed in 1917, the building is the fifth to serve as the Wisconsin capitol since the first territorial legislature convened in 1836. The Wisconsin State Capitol is the tallest building in Madison.

The Capitol is 284 feet, 5 inches tall from the ground floor to the top of the statue on the dome, making the building 3 feet shorter than the nation's capitol in Washington D.C.

The "Wisconsin" statue on the dome was sculpted in 1920 by Daniel Chester French of New York. Her left hand holds a globe with an eagle on it and her right arm is outstretched to symbolize the state motto, "Forward." She wears a helmet with the state animal, the badger, on top. She is made of hollow bronze covered with gold leaf. "Wisconsin" is 15 feet, 5 inches tall and weighs three tons.