Cheyenne is one of the state capital cities that is nowhere near the center of the state. It wasn’t even a dot on the map until the builders of the transcontinental railroad ended up there in 1867 as they built the western end of the line. The growing city’s location on the railroad line made it most convenient to name Cheyenne as the seat of the Wyoming territorial government in 1869.
This location also made it quite convenient for us to pay a visit on our travels from South Dakota to Colorado, thus adding another state capitol to our list of visits.
By 1886, the territorial government commenced construction of a capitol building, which was completed in 1890 just in time for Wyoming’s admission to the Union as the 44th state.
The building was designed by David Williams Gibbs and William DuBois, both politician-architects, in a Renaissance Revival style quite similar to the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC.
Sandstone for the building came from quarries in Rawlins, Wyoming, and Fort Collins, Colorado.
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