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It may go down as the most ambitious restoration project in Springfield history… taking down the original state capitol building in Springfield, brick by brick, and then reassembling it into its original form as it existed in the days of Lincoln.
After serving as the first Statehouse in Springfield, the Old State Capitol turned county courthouse was modified in 1899 by hoisting the structure and adding a new first floor and basement underneath it. In the 1960s, the county moved to a new building at 8th and Monroe. Governor Otto Kerner championed the effort to restore the Old State Capitol to its original form.
Architectural firm Ferry and Henderson oversaw the painstaking process of rebuilding it… even though they lacked the original floor plans. The three-year effort culminated in a rededication ceremony on December 3, 1968, marking the 150th anniversary of Illinois becoming a state.
Learn more about the history of the Old State Capitol and the restoration effort at SangamonLink, the official blog of the Sangamon County Historical Society… and get more Springfield history here each week in the Springfield History Minute.
