Idaho State Capitol - Boise, Idaho - American Guide Series on Waymarking.com

"The CAPITOL at Eighth and Jefferson is monumentally classical in aspect, with Corinthian columns supporting a Corinthian pediment. It is faced with Boise sandstone. In the rotunda is a remarkable equestrian statue of George Washington. This, the work of Charles Ostner, a soldier of fortune sojourning in Idaho, was carved by hand from a yellow pine tree at Garden Valley with the crudest of tools and with only a postage stamp to serve as a model. It was four years in the making, and was then carefully scraped with glass, sandpapered, gilded with paint, and later overlaid with gold leaf. It was presented to Idaho Territory in 1869 and dedicated to Idaho pioneers. In the basement of the Capitol is the STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY (admission free), crowded into one room, with stuffed birds and beasts thrust out into the hallways, and with piles of materials shoved into drawers and vaults. Many valuable gifts and collections are being withheld until a suitable building is erected for housing them." - Idaho: A Guide in Word and Picture, 1937

The Idaho State Capitol building continues to serve as the seat of government for the State of Idaho. In 2010 a 30-month, $120 million renovation project was completed, adding 50,000 square feet of space and preserving the building's history and architecture.