United States Capitol

The United States Capitol houses Congress and stands on Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall. The cornerstone was laid in 1793 by George Washington himself; the design came from physician-architect William Thornton. British troops burned the building in 1814, after which Benjamin Henry Latrobe and Charles Bulfinch led the rebuilding. The cast-iron dome topped by the Statue of Freedom rose between 1855 and 1866 under Thomas U. Walter during the Civil War, because Lincoln insisted the work continue as a symbol of the unbroken Union. Inside, the Rotunda holds Constantino Brumidi's fresco Apotheosis of Washington, alongside the National Statuary Hall. Visitors enter through the underground Visitor Center and may watch Senate and House sessions from the galleries. The president is traditionally sworn in on the west portico.