![[logo]](http://ead.lib.virginia.edu/vivaead/logos/lva.jpg)
Library of Virginia
The Library of Virginia© 2003 By the Library of Virginia.
Processed by: Craig S. Moore
There are no restrictions.
There are no restrictions.
Virginia. Auditor of Public Accounts. Capitol Square Data, Records, 1776-1971. APA 655, State government records collection, The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.
These materials came in several accessions and were combined into one body of records under Acc. 40418. Included are the following accessions: Acc. 13164, 13169, 19822, 22151, 24374, 26272. Use APA 655 when requesting records.
Capitol Square in Richmond, Virginia, originated from an act of the General Assembly passed in May 1779 for the removal of the seat of government from Williamsburg to Richmond. This act also provided that five Directors of Public Buildings be appointed to procure six squares in Richmond for a Capitol Building, Hall of Justice, Governor's House, Executive Boards, and Public Market. The first five Directors of Public Buildings included James Buchanan, Archibald Cary, Robert Goode, Robert Carter Nicholas, and Turner Southall. In May 1780, an act was passed choosing Shockoe Hill as the location for these buildings and adding four additional Directors: Richard Adams, Samuel DuVal, Thomas Jefferson, and Edmund Randolph. An act passed in October 1784 authorized the Directors to provide a single building to house the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of state government. The Directors asked Jefferson in 1785 to submit a plan for the Capitol. Jefferson, serving as minister to France, chose the Maison Carree in Nismes, France, as a model and had drawings made by the French architect Charles-Louis Clerisseau and a plaster model sent to Virginia. The cornerstone for the Capitol was laid on 18 August 1785 and the General Assembly held its first session in the building on 20 October 1788. Samuel Dobie, Surveyor of Public Buildings, superintended the construction which continued until 1798. Slight alterations and repairs occurred over the years, especially by Orris Paine as Superintendent of Public Improvements in 1816. Repairs were also necessary following a tragic event on 27 April 1870, when sixty-two people died as the ceiling collapsed during a session of the Court of Appeals. The most significant alterations in the Capitol Building, however, occurred on 1 August 1904, when the east and west wings were added to the original structure.
Another significant milestone for Capitol Square occurred when an act passed on 13 February 1811 authorizing the construction of a Governor's house. Prior to this act, a house owned by Thomas Turpin was rented for the use of the governor in 1780 near the corner of Broad and Governor streets. Shortly thereafter, a four-room house was eventually purchased from James Marsden and served as the executive's residence until the present structure was built and occupied by Governor James Barbour in March 1813. Christopher Tompkins served as undertaker or contractor for the construction of the house based on plans purchased by a Boston architect named Alexander Parris.
In addition to the Capitol Building and Governor's Mansion, several other buildings were constructed in Capitol Square over the years. In 1816, James Warrell received permission to build a Museum on the southeastern portion of the square. A Bell Tower, which housed the Public Guard, was erected in 1824 by Levi Swain. A State Courthouse was added around 1847 to house the Court of Appeals, General Court, and Superior Court of Chancery. Other buildings constructed on Capitol Square include the Finance Building (formerly the State Library Building) (1893-1894), the State Office Building (1923-1924), and the Library - Supreme Court Building (1939-1940).
The Capitol Square Data Records are arranged in four series. Series have been designated for Buildings, Grounds, Statues, and the Superintendent of Public Buildings. These records represent an artificial collection of documents compiled from the Auditor of Public Accounts, Governor's Office, General Assembly, Land Office, and other state agencies. Even though the collection was gathered from various state records, it is considered part of the Auditor of Public Accounts (APA# 655) since most of the records originate from this agency. Note that not all documents relevant to Capitol Square, especially late 19th and 20th century records, are located in this collection. Researchers should consult the records of other state agencies for additional resources related to Capitol Square.
The Capitol Square Data began as six volumes of documents transcribed by Virginia W. Gibbon under the direction of the Archives Division of the Virginia State Library between 1931 and 1932. These volumes were created for W.W. Savedge, Superintendent of the Division of Grounds and Buildings, and contain transcriptions from numerous sources including Journals of the House of Delegates, Hening's Statutes, Executive Papers, Executive Communications, Enrolled Bills, newspapers, magazines, and various manuscripts "on file in the Archive Dept. of the Virginia State Library." Note that some, but not all, of these manuscripts can be found among the Capitol Square Data Records. Volumes were created for the Capitol Building (vol. 1), Grounds, Property Acquisition, Placing of Buildings, etc. (vol. 2), Statues (vol. 3), Bell Tower, et al. (vol. 4), State Office Building, et al. (vol. 5), and the Governor's Mansion (vol. 6). The series designations used in the current rearrangement of the Capitol Square Data Records are based on these volumes with volumes 1, 4, 5, & 6 representing Series I: Buildings, volume 2 as Series II: Grounds, volume 3 as Series III: Statues, and a fourth series devoted to Superintendent of Public Buildings records.
In 1959, Marvin D. Evans prepared a partial inventory of sources in the Archives Division pertaining to Capitol Square. Evans' inventory includes a bibliography of archival sources from the Calendar of Transcripts (1905) and manuscripts deposited by the State Auditor in 1914 (Auditor Items 137 & 203). His inventory consists of 20 boxes of archival material which were divided into General Sources (Boxes 1- 11), Governor's Mansion (Boxes 12-15), Washington Monument (Boxes 16-19), Capitol Building (Plans, 1858 & 1904-1905), State Office Building (Plans, 1923), Finance Building (Acc.# 24811a), and Houdon Statue of Washington (Box 20). The General Sources have been reassigned to Series I through IV in this finding aid. The Governor's Mansion records are located in Series I: Buildings, Subseries B, Governor's Mansion. Items related to the Washington Monument will be arranged as a separate collection since they are considered part of the Washington Monument Fund and given a distinct entry in the Auditor of Public Accounts Inventory (APA# 668). The Governor's Office, Capitol Building, and State Office Building plans can be found with the Architectural Drawings and Plans Collection. Finally, the Finance Building materials contain Construction Records for the Old State Library Building, 1892-1896, and are considered part of the Treasurer's Office (See Acc.# 24811a).
Organized into the following four (4) series: I. Buildings, 1779-1971; II. Grounds, 1776-1931; III. Statues, 1784-1932; IV. Superintendent of Public Buildings, 1798-1906.
This series is arranged in three subseries. Subseries have been designated for the Capitol Building, Governor's Mansion, and Other Buildings. Included are bills, resolutions, contracts, reports, inventories, accounts, receipts, correspondence, vouchers, and other sundry items. This series also includes volumes 1, 4, 5, & 6 of the Capitol Square Data.
This subseries documents the construction, alteration, additions, and repair of the Capitol Building between 1779 and 1933. Volume 1 of the Capitol Square Data documents well the legislative history of the Capitol Building beginning with the relocation of the Capitol from Williamsburg to Richmond. In addition, the volume provides information on the Capitol Disaster on 27 April 1870 including a list of casualties, the purchase of Sycamore Church for the use of the Courts in 1870, the enlargement of the Capitol in 1906, and the unveiling of various busts in the Old Hall of the House of Delegates. Particularly interesting is a report of John H. Smith in 1832 which describes the historic books and papers housed in the upper story of the Capitol.
The bulk of this subseries, however, consists of financial records including accounts, receipts, and vouchers. The accounts and receipts primarily relate to expenses incurred by Edward Voss, Samuel Dobie, and Dabney Minor during the construction of the Capitol between 1786 and 1794. The numbered vouchers document the expenses paid by William Hay, one of the Directors of Public Buildings, to Voss, Dobie, and others for flooring, laborers, supplies, etc., between 1787 and 1790. The unnumbered vouchers relate to numerous expenses between 1784 and 1865. The later vouchers mainly deal with painting and repairs.
The Executive Communications and Executive Papers in this subseries have been photocopied and the originals returned to their respective collections. The Executive Communications relate to documents transmitted by the Directors of Public Buildings in 1792 and 1796. The Communication dated 1 Oct. 1792 regards the failure of Moses Austin & Co. to fulfill their roofing contract. Included is an extract from the Council Journal by Archibald Blair, Clerk of the Council, and proceedings of the Directors of Public Buildings extracted by Samuel Coleman, Assistant Clerk of the Council. Another Communication, dated 12 Nov. 1792, is from Robert Goode, one of the Directors of Public Buildings. In his letter, Goode writes with respect to the settlement of accounts, the contract of Moses Austin & Co., and the settlement of several other accounts. The last Communication, dated 9 Dec. 1796, consists of a letter from Governor James Wood to the Speaker of the House of Delegates enclosing papers from the Directors of Public Buildings including accounts of expenditures, a report of proceedings, and an estimate of the expense of finishing the outside of the Capitol.
The Executive Papers (previously labeled Correspondence, 1790) in this subseries include letters to Governors Beverley Randolph and James Wood from the Directors of Public Buildings. On 11 May 1790, William Hay wrote Gov. Randolph concerning Samuel Dobie's allowance as Surveyor of the Public Buildings and his roofing contract. Later, on 22 June 1790, Hay writes the Governor regarding Edward Voss' contract for the columns of the Capitol portico. Finally, the Directors write the Governor on 5 Feb. 1798 enclosing a copy of a report with a general account and transactions made in 1796.
Lastly, this subseries contains contracts for work on the Capitol Building including a painting contract and roofing contract. The painting contract of Zachariah Enos and John Whitburn between 1816 and 1820 contains accounts, correspondence, measurements, and a report on Enos and Whitburn's account. The roofing contract of Adam Baird and Andrew Hosia in 1806 consists of a power of attorney and judgment from their claim in covering the Capitol roof with slate commenced on 25 October 1796.
This subseries documents the construction, furnishing, and repair of the Governor's Mansion and gardens between 1779 and 1971. Volume 6 of the Capitol Square Data includes warrants for repairs and furniture, an inventory of furnishings from 1825, drawings of mantles in 1830, and disbursements for repairs in 1849.
Like the Capitol Building subseries, this subseries mostly includes vouchers for furnishings and work done on the Governor's Mansion between 1783 and 1864. In addition, this subseries includes numerous inventories of furnishings compiled between 1785 and 1878. Correspondence and estimates from 1830 relate to work on the Governor's Mansion. Correspondence addressed to William H. Richardson includes drawings of mantels from Henry C. Carey of Philadelphia, the purchase of glassware from the Jersey Glass Co., and others. The estimates relate to carpentry work, furniture, and other expenses.
The Executive Communications and Executive Papers in this subseries have also been photocopied and the originals returned to their respective collections. The Executive Communications relate to documents transmitted by the Directors of Public Buildings in 1791, 1794, & 1800. All three communications concern houses appropriated for the use of the Governor. The earliest document is a letter from William Hay to Thomas Mathews, Speaker of the House of Delegates, dated 1791 Nov. 9. This letter remarks on the poor condition of the houses and an estimate by Dabney Minor for a new kitchen, stable, and coach house. The second communication is from Robert Goode to John Wise, Speaker of the House, dated 1794 Dec. 2. This letter too relates to the condition of the houses appropriated for the Governor and the cost for repairs. The last communication consists of a report by Richard Adams, William Foushee, and Robert Mitchell, Directors of Public Buildings, dated 1800 Jan. 11, to the Speaker. This report includes an estimate for repairs to the houses appropriated for the use of the Governor, a list of furniture delivered by George Brooke, and a list of necessary furniture with costs.
The Executive Papers in this subseries include letters to Governors James Monroe and George William Smith in 1811. The first document consists of a memo of agreement, dated 1811 March 1, between William Moncure and A.B. Venable, et al., acting as commissioners, for the rent of his dwelling house and grounds for the use of the Governor. The second Executive Paper is a letter, dated 1811 May 6, from Robert Greenhow, one of the Commissioners to Dispose of Certain Public Property, regarding renting a house for the Governor. The third Executive Paper is a letter from Edward Cunningham, dated 1811 May 15, also related to the rental of Moncure's home.
The Grounds and Narrative Report contains a report of a program for the development and maintenance of the grounds of the Executive Mansion by Stanley W. Abbott, Landscape Architect, in 1971. The report includes a blueprint showing suggested revisions for the gardens and grounds of the Mansion.
Lastly, there are miscellaneous records related to repairs of the Governor's Mansion between 1914 and 1918. Included are proceedings of the Commission on Repairs to the Governor's House awarding a contract to the J.C. Beazley Co. (Richmond, Va.). This file also contains correspondence from Cuthbert Homan and insurance policies for rugs, carpets, etc., at N. 1st St., and on betterments and improvements made to the Mansion.
This subseries documents the of the Bell Tower, Arsenal, Museum, Court House, State Library Building, State Office Building, and other buildings on Capitol Square between 1780 and 1916. Volume 4 of the Capitol Square Data includes designs of the Bell Tower in 1824, documents related to the Arsenal in Richmond, the petition of James Warrell regarding his Museum, and legislation for a State Courthouse. Volume 5 contains miscellaneous documents including a motion in the Journal of the House of Delegates to relocate the Capitol from Richmond to some point west of the Blue Ridge Mountains in 1818 and numerous reports by the Superintendent of Public Edifices, etc., between the 1830's and 1860's. Moreover, this volume includes legislation, reports, and correspondence relative to the State Library between 1823 and 1916 and the State Office Building in 1916.
Besides the Capitol Square Data volumes, this subseries simply contains the original Bell Tower proposal from 1824 including the designs mentioned in the volume above and records respecting the Library Heating System in 1906 including blueprints.
This series chronicles the landscaping, enclosure, stonework, and acquisition of property in Capitol Square. Volume 2 of the Capitol Square Data includes an act for locating the public squares and to enlarge the town of Richmond, a report of Carter Braxton from the committee to confer with the Directors of Public Buildings regarding their opinion to favor the lots on Shockoe Hill instead of Richmond Hill, an act to contract some persons for regulating the surface of Capitol Square in 1816, and a letter from Thomas Giles, Member of the Committee on Capitol Square, providing a legislative history of Capitol Square in 1852.
An important component of this series are the inquisitions dated from 1781 to 1788. The inquisitions include writs of quod damnum by the state for acquisition of the property located between Broad & Main Streets and 9th & 12th Streets. The inquisitions are arranged alphabetically by lot owner and include a plan presented to the library in 1926 by the City Engineer's Office which provides the names of the lot owners and lot numbers. A bound photostat copy of the inquisitions and map can also be found in this series. Related correspondence from S. Bassett French to Samuel P. Waddill, clerk of the Henrico County Court, in 1876 concerns the six "lost" lots in Capitol Square.
Contracts in this series relate to earthmoving and landscaping, erecting a fence around Capitol Square, and stonework. John P. Shields contracted with the state between 1817 and 1820 for earthmoving and landscaping. A file in this series contains correspondence from Shields to the Governor and Council. Paul A. Sabbaton was awarded the contract with the state to enclose Capitol Square with an iron fence in 1817. Sabbaton often wrote Orris Paine and enclosed a draft of a brace to support the cast iron railing. There are also proposals for the fence submitted between 1816 and 1817, some of which include sketches. James Kinkead received a contract to furnish granite stone steps for the Capitol. Memos of agreement and correspondence to A.S. Brockenbrough, Superintendent of the Improvement of the Public Square, can also be found in this file. Kinkead died before the work could be completed and another contract was granted to George C. Longden. Longden was also contracted in 1816 to remove the rock on the east side of the Capitol and lay a stone wall surrounding the Governor's lot or Capitol Square.
Lastly, this series contains documents related to the sale of land adjoining the Governor's lot from the heirs of Gustavus V. Clarke in 1857. Included is the opinion of Attorney General J.R. Tucker, a copy of Clarke's will, and a map of the property at the corner of Franklin St. and 13th St. (a.k.a. Governor's St.). Negative photostats of deeds between 1785 and 1862 for property at Capitol Square are also in this series. These deeds were copied from Henrico County and City of Richmond deed books. There is one Executive Paper belonging to Governor James Barbour, however, this document is missing. According to the endorsement page, the letter was from David Bullock regarding the removal of wooden houses in the public lot from 1812. Finally, a letter from Richard Young relates to the construction of a reservoir on the east side of the Capitol in 1827.
This series relates to statues on Capitol Square and elsewhere in the City of Richmond. Volume 3 of the Capitol Square Data includes documents regarding the history and value of the Houdon Statue from 1873, a bronze copy of Houdon's statue of Washington for France in 1910, the Washington Monument Fund and architect Robert Mills, and a biography of Thomas Crawford in 1908, artist for the Equestrian Statue of Washington. For additional records on the Equestrian Statue of Washington, researchers should consult the Washington Monument Fund (APA 668).
The Executive Papers of Gov. Joseph Johnson include a petition from twelve members of the General Assembly regarding plaster casts of the Houdon Statue to be placed in state colleges and a letter concerning the same from W.J. Hubard to George W. Munford, Secretary of the Commonwealth. Lastly, there is a letter and receipt from G. Blagden to Joseph Huddlestone regarding an inscription engraved on the pedestal of the Houdon Statue in 1813.
This series documents the work of the Superintendent of Public Buildings and its various incarnations including Superintendent of Public Edifices, the Superintendent for the Improvement of the Public Square, etc. This series mostly consists of reports of the Superintendent from 1819 until 1850. These reports to the governor provide the best narrative on the work done to Capitol Square during this time period. The reports relate to a variety of subjects including leaks in the Capitol Building, repairs, the Bell Tower, the Governor's Stable and Mansion, Museum, etc. In addition to public buildings, the reports also concern arms and ammunition, the Public Guard, and the Armory. Noteworthy is a report of 15 June 1841 which includes a drawing of the Capitol Building depicting the skylight. During this time, several individuals served as Superintendent including Claiborne W. Gooch, Adjutant General (1819-1820); Capt. Blair Bolling, Superintendent of Public Property/Edifices (1821-1839); Lt. E. Brown, Public Guard (1839); John B. Richardson, Superintendent of Public Buildings (1839-1843); and Charles Dimmock, Superintendent of Public Buildings (1844-1850).
This series also contains applications and recommendations to Gen. W.C. Newberry, while he served as Superintendent of Public Buildings. These records, which date between 1869 and 1872, document individuals' requests for positions in Capitol Square including Capitol Police, janitors, watchmen, and others.
Orris Paine, was appointed by Governor Wilson Cary Nicholas in July 1816 as Superintendent relative to the repairing of the Capitol, improving the Public Square, and building the Governor's stable. Paine kept files containing account books, correspondence, accounts, and receipts. Paine often wrote the Governor with respect to repairs to the Capitol, accounts, and other topics. The correspondence also includes memos of agreement with A.S. Brockenbrough who served as Superintendent of the Improvement of the Public Square.
Two files labeled "miscellaneous" contain contracts, correspondence, accounts, receipts, vouchers, etc., between 1874 and 1879. These documents seem to originate from the Register of the Land Office who also served as Superintendent of Public Buildings beginning in 1874. These materials relate to sundry purchases, roofing the State Courthouse, renting the old Armory Building, furnishing coal for state buildings, and purchasing boilers for the Capitol Building from the Tredegar Iron Works.