Georgia State Capitol

The center of state government in downtown Atlanta is a Neoclassical building built in 1889, its dome crowned by a gilded statue of a torch-bearing figure called Miss Freedom. The gold covering the dome was mined in the north Georgia town of Dahlonega and carried to the capital in a symbolic procession. Inside, a museum of Georgia's natural history, industry, and government occupies the upper floors, with fossils, minerals, and historical portraits. The surrounding grounds hold many monuments and statues tracing the state's complex past.