Capitol Timeline

Below is a timeline of significant events important to the history of Ohio and the Ohio Statehouse.

Year	Event
1795	Lucas Sullivant begins surveying land for the town of Franklinton, which later becomes part of Columbus.
1803	Congress recognizes Ohio as the 17th state to join the nation.
1812	The city of Columbus is founded and named as the state capital.
1816	The seat of state government moves from Chillicothe to its new home in Columbus.
1838	Design contest held to determine the look of the new Statehouse
1839	Construction of the present Statehouse begins. It takes 22 years to complete due to political wrangling, cholera epidemics and lack of funding.
1852	The original 1816 Statehouse burns and work on the new Statehouse proceeds more earnestly.
1861	The present Statehouse is completed. It is considered to be one of America’s finest examples of Greek Revival architecture.
1880	Early telephone communication begins with service in the House Chamber.
1880	George Washington Williams serves in the Ohio House of Representatives and is the state’s first African-American legislator.
1888	The state places electric lights in the Supreme Court room in the Statehouse, and the entire building is wired for electricity by 1892.
1896	William McKinley of Canton is the first presidential candidate to campaign by telephone.
1901	The Statehouse Annex, also known as the Judiciary Annex, is completed and originally houses the Attorney General’s office, Ohio’s Supreme Court and four state department offices.
1922	The first female state senators, Nettie Longhead and Maude C. Waitt, and the first female state representatives, Nettie MacKenzie Clapp, Lulu T. Gleason, May VanWyn and Adelaide Sterling Ott, are elected.
1960	The Ohio House and Senate legislative sessions are televised for the first time.
1989	Restoration of the Ohio Statehouse and Annex begins. The restoration is completed in 1996.
2003	Ohio celebrates its Bicentennial.