History of Springfield, Illinois, its attractions as a home and advantages for business, manufacturing, etc. Pub. under the auspices of the Springfield board of trade, by J. C. Power.

14 SPRINGF IEtD, ILLINOIS, AND
STATE CAPITOLS.
The building which was used as a ter- up the Kaskaskia river. The ground
ritorial capitol was a French structure, in axed upon was covered with an exceedthe primitive style of architecture. Judge ingly heavy growth of timber. Having
Caton, in his oration at the laying of the agreed upon the place, the commissioners
corner stone of the new State House, Oc- united their intellectual faculties in a
tober 5, 1868, described it by saying: gigantic effort to select a name that should
"It was a rough building in the centre of be sufficiently high-sounding and euphoa square in the village of Kaskaskia, the nious to attract the attention of the whole
ancient seat of the western empire for country. Governor Ford, in his history
more than one hundred and fifty years. of Illinois, gives the following humorous
The body of this building was of uncut account of the way it was done:
limestone, the gables and roof of the gain- "Tradition says that a wag, who was
brel style, of unpainted boards and shin- present, suggested to the commissioners
gles, with dormer windows. The lower that the "Vandals" were a powerful nafloor, a long. cheerless room, was fitted up tion of Indians, who once inhabited the
for the House, whilst the Council sat in banks of the Kaskaskia river, and that
the small chamber above. This venera- "Vandalia," derived from the name,
ble building was, during the French oc- would perpetuate the memory of that excupancy of the country, prior to 1763, the tinct but renowned people. The suggesheadquarters of the military command- tion pleased the commissioners, the name
ant. Thirty years ago the house was a was adopted, and they thus proved that
mass of ruins, and to-day, probably, there the cognomen of their new city-if they
is not a stone left to designate the spot were fit representatives of their constituwhere it stood." ents-would better illustrate the characDuring the whole territorial existence ter of the modern than the ancient inhabof Illinois, the building just described itants of the country."
was the Capitol, and the State Govern- As soon as the town was laid out, the
ment was inaugurated there also. timber was cut away and a two story
The State Constitution of 1818 required fiame building erected, on the square set
the General Assembly to petition Con- apart for the State Capitol. The edifice
gress for a grant of land, upon which to was placed on a rough stone foundation,
locate the seat of government for the in the centre of the square, and was of
State. In the event of the prayer of the very rude workmanship. The lower floor
petitioners being granted, a town was to was for the House of Representatives, and
be laid out on said land, which town the upper divided into two rooms, the
should be the seat of government for the largest one for the Senate and the smaller
Statefor twenty years. The prayer of the for the office of secretary of state. The
petitioners was granted. "At the session auditor and treasurer occupied detached
of 1819 in Kaskaskia, five commissioners buildings. The archives of the State
were appointed to select the land appro- were removed from Kaskaskia to Vandapriated by Congress for the State Capi- lia in December, 1820.
tal." They made their selection further This wooden State House was burned