On July 4, 1837, the first brick was laid for Illinois' fifth capitol. It was designed by John F. Rague who also designed the nearly identical Iowa Territorial Capitol.  In 1853, the capitol was completed for a total sum of $260,000, almost twenty times the cost of any such previous structure. The building was designed in the Greek Revival style from stone quarried six miles (10 km) from the site. For many years, it was the largest and most extravagant capitol of the western frontier of the United States. The fifth capitol is associated with Abraham Lincoln as it was here that he argued cases before the Illinois Supreme Court, here that he served with the State Legislature, here that he first debated Stephen Douglas, here where he delivered his famous "House Divided" speech, and here where he lay in state after his assassination on May 4, 1865.

As Illinois prospered and experienced several booms in population, the fifth capitol became crowded, especially as a result of relocations after the Civil War. On February 24, 1867, the state voted to construct a new larger capitol. After breaking the ground for the sixth and current Capitol in 1868, the state recouped the costs of the fifth capitol by selling it to Sangamon County for $200,000. It served as the county court house until 1961 when the state again purchased the building and restored it as a historic landmark, the Old State Capitol State Historic Site.

ADDRESS: 1 SW Old State Capitol Plaza, Springfield, IL 62701