Montana State Capitol — Attraction in Helena

The Montana State Capitol is the state capitol of the U.S. state of Montana that houses the Montana State Legislature which is located in the state capital of Helena at 1301 East Sixth Avenue. The building was constructed between 1896 and 1902 with wing-annexes added between 1909 and 1912. A design competition for the building was conducted in 1896. The commission selected a design by George R. Mann as the winner. In 1897, after it was found that the Commission was planning to scam money from the building project, it was disbanded and a second Capitol Commission was convened. The new Commission abandoned Mann's plan as being too costly, and had a second design competition, won by Charles Emlen Bell and John Hackett Kent, of Bell & Kent of Council Bluffs, Iowa. In order to have their design built, Bell & Kent relocated their office to Helena. While Mann's building was never built in Montana, it was selected later as the basic design for the Arkansas State Capitol. The winning design by Bell & Kent had been altered already during the construction phase, when in 1901 the commission asked for the structure to be made more imposing by increasing the height of the dome. Kent opposed the changes, as his original low spherical dome was meant to be "pure Greek", but Bell advocated the commission's request. Between 1909 and 1912, the building was extended by the addition of two new wings on the eastern and western sides. This work was executed by Link & Haire, architects of Butte, with F. M. Andrews & Company of New York as...

Since 1902, the Montana State Capitol, located in Helena, has served as both a commanding symbol of the past and a bold promise for the future. The building is constructed of sandstone and granite. A statue depicting Liberty sits atop the copper dome. A walk through the Capitol will allow you to view many beautiful paintings, including Charles M. Russell's magnificent historical depiction of "Lewis and Clark Meeting Indians at Ross' Hole" on September 5, 1805. The main section of the Capitol was completed in 1902. The two wings were completed in 1912. Restrooms are located on the first floor to the left of the grand staircase. Snack bar is located in the basement of the Capitol. Gift shop and museum are located directly across the street to the east of the Capitol in the Montana Historical Society. A post office is available for public use on the 1st floor of the...

We were in Helena for a day, while travelling from YellowStone to Glacier, we saw the capitol building multiple times and decided to enter it and check it out. The building is open to the public, but please keep your phones in silent mode, no food/drinks and maintain the decorum. We bumped into Governor Greg Gianforte but didn't recognize him until a gentleman made us realise what we had missed. The Governor was on live TV minutes later :( We saw the Rotunda, the Senate, the Court room and it is a beautiful place. Overall, Montana was a pleasant experience and the Capitol building was a...