Photograph of the Capitol Building Under Construction in Washington, DC

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Description

In 1856, workers removed the old dome of the U.S. Capitol and began replacing it with a new fireproof cast-iron dome. Philip Reid, a slave, supervised the placement of the statue of “Freedom” atop the dome in 1863.

Citation

This primary source comes from the Records of the Public Buildings Service.

National Archives Identifier: 1632656

Full Citation: Photograph of the Capitol Building Under Construction in Washington, DC; ca. 1863; Records of the Public Buildings Service, Record Group 121. [Online Version, https://docsteach.org/document/photograph-of-the-capitol-building-under-construction-in-washington-dc/, March 12, 2026]

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