Atop Capitol Hill, at the eastern end of the Capitol Mall in Little Rock, the Arkansas State Capitol houses the Arkansas General Assembly and the seat of the state government. Imagine how this place began as an idea: in 1899 St. Louis architect George R. Mann brought drawings to Governor Daniel W. Jones — designs he had first won with in 1896 for the Montana State Capitol in Helena. Those drawings were hung on the walls of the old Capitol to build interest; their attractiveness helped push through appropriation bills and put Mann in the spotlight.
A seven-member commission named Mann architect in 1899, though one member, future governor George W. Donaghey, objected and wanted a national competition. After Donaghey won the governorship in 1908, he removed Mann and brought in Cass Gilbert to finish the project. The building you face was the product of persistent politics and changing plans, and its construction spanned 16 years, from 1899 to 1915.
Picture George W. Donaghey pushing Mann aside in 1908 and Cass Gilbert finishing what sixteen years of politics had started by 1915.