The Texas State Capitol Grounds

jtk1519 · #1 Posted **Mar 25, 2007, 12:17 AM**

So I finally got to spend some quality time in Austin last week just walking around and taking in the city in a way I haven't been able to do in a long time. As a result, I took a ton of pictures that will probably lead to a few different threads, but these are my images from a walk around the Capitol grounds. I'm almost embarrassed to see that it has been many years since I last viewed the building and I had forgotten just how beautiful it is. These pictures don't do it justice.

Derek · #2 Posted **Mar 25, 2007, 12:28 AM**

nice pics

john_mclark · #3 Posted **Mar 25, 2007, 1:08 AM**

i love our state capital

MNMike · #4 Posted **Mar 25, 2007, 1:47 AM**

nice pics! Those purple flowers are mountain laurel right? I love that stuff, it has such a unique smell.

xzmattzx · #5 Posted **Mar 25, 2007, 2:08 AM**

The capitol grounds look great. I like all of the greenery surrounding it. I remember seeing a picture of wildflowers or bluebonnets or something in front of the capitol, which made for a great picture. Is there a flower garden on the other side of the building or something?

When wqas the building built? Is there a reason it says "Republic of Texas" on the floor? I know Texas was an independent country, but why is that mentioned with the tiles?

BigKidD · #6 Posted **Mar 25, 2007, 2:57 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by xzmattzx

The capitol grounds look great. I like all of the greenery surrounding it. I remember seeing a picture of wildflowers or bluebonnets or something in front of the capitol, which made for a great picture. Is there a flower garden on the other side of the building or something?

When wqas the building built? Is there a reason it says "Republic of Texas" on the floor? I know Texas was an independent country, but why is that mentioned with the tiles?

Perhaps the same reason California's state flag says "California Republic."

peacefu603 · #7 Posted **Mar 25, 2007, 3:15 AM**

So clean!

KevinFromTexas · #8 Posted **Mar 25, 2007, 3:51 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by xzmattzx

Is there a flower garden on the other side of the building or something?

Yes. On the north side of the Capitol grounds, (these pictures are on the south side). On the north side there is a rose garden. There's other landscaped areas where there are flowers, flower beds with different types, but the rose garden is the major one.

Quote:

Originally Posted by xzmattzx

When was the building built?

Ground was broken in 1881 and construction was completed in 1888 at a cost of $3,744,600. The Capitol building was the first 300+ foot tall building in Texas and the tallest in Texas for 35 years and the tallest in Austin for 84 years from 1888 to 1972.

Quote:

Originally Posted by xzmattzx

Is there a reason it says "Republic of Texas" on the floor? I know Texas was an independent country, but why is that mentioned with the tiles?

Yes, because Texas became its own nation in 1836 when it gained independance from Mexico that year. Texas was entered into the union in 1845 when it became a state that year, but from 1836 to 1845 it was its own nation.

Austin was settled in 1835, but was originally known as "Waterloo" as it was founded by that name in 1837. The town was renamed in 1839 to Austin in honor of Stephen F. Austin who was one of the founding fathers of Texas.

jtk1519 · #9 Posted **Mar 25, 2007, 3:51 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by xzmattzx

The capitol grounds look great. I like all of the greenery surrounding it. I remember seeing a picture of wildflowers or bluebonnets or something in front of the capitol, which made for a great picture. Is there a flower garden on the other side of the building or something?

When wqas the building built? Is there a reason it says "Republic of Texas" on the floor? I know Texas was an independent country, but why is that mentioned with the tiles?

Texas was it's own country from 1836-1845 when it joined the United States. While it was it's own country, it was called the Republic of Texas. The capitol building itself was constructed from 1882-1888 so Texas was already a state at the time. However, if you look at the floor closer...

...and are familiar with the 6 flags of Texas, you will notice only 5 flags... Spain, France, the US, Mexico and the Confederate States are displayed. The 6th flag, that of the Republic of Texas, is not present but instead represented by the words "Republic of Texas". Why that was designed that way, I do not know. In short, that floor displays the 6 nations that have governed Texas.